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Deep house

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Deep House)

Deep house is a subgenre of house music[1][3][4] that originated in the 1980s, initially fusing elements of Chicago house with the lush chords of 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music. Its origins are attributed to the early recordings of Larry Heard (aka Mr. Fingers), including his influential track "Can You Feel It".[5]

Characteristics

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Deep house is known for tempos typically from 110 to 125 bpm,[1][6][7] muted basslines, spacious use of percussion elements (typically using a Roland TR-909 drum machine),[8] soft keyboard sounds (pads), use of advanced chord structures, ambient mixes, soulful vocals, and steady hypnotic repetition that notably avoids other dance genres' emphasis of energy build-up and release.[9][10]

History

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Deep house was largely pioneered by Chicago producers such as Marshall Jefferson (On the House) and Larry Heard (Mr. Fingers) and with tracks such as "Mystery of Love" (1985) and "Can You Feel It?" (1986);[11] the latter became internationally emblematic of deep house, much like Derrick May's "Strings of Life" (1987) did for Detroit techno.[12] Many considered its gentler, more organic (yet still synthesizer based) production and instrument sounds close to jazz and soul. "Can You Feel It" became a deep house blueprint; Heard used a Roland Juno-60 synthesizer to create the deep bassline,[13] along with a Roland TR-909 drum machine for the beats.[8]

Author Richie Unterberger has stated that Heard's deep house sound moved house music away from its posthuman tendencies back towards the lush, soulful sound of early disco music (particularly that of old Philadelphia International and Salsoul records).[14] DJ Ron Trent stated that the term was initially used to describe the DJ work of Frankie Knuckles and Ron Hardy, emphasising that despite early critics of house stereotyping it as an "eccentric" electronic genre, it in fact incorporated eclectic elements like disco, jazz, and underground music.[15] However others, including Chicago DJ/producer Cornelius Ferguson (aka Corky “Traxman” Strong aka simply Traxman) point out that mid-80s deep house pioneers like Larry Heard and Marshall Jefferson were also producing more aggressive, percussive and electronic "jack tracks" (which provided the blueprints for Chicago's ghetto house, juke and footworking styles).[16]

While Chicago defined and named both house and deep house, there were parallel developments in New York and New Jersey, where post-disco DJs and producers like Timmy Regisford, Boyd Jarvis, Larry Levan and Tony Humphries combined sophisticated soul song structures with extremely high production values and increasingly electronic instrumentation. Likewise in Detroit, a sophisticated house sound developed alongside the techno the city is better known for; deep house DJs Alton Miller and Chez Damier (who would become a regular production partner of Ron Trent's) were both early residents at the Music Institute alongside names better known for techno, while many names in the second wave of Detroit techno including Carl Craig, Blake Baxter, Kelli Hand and Stacey Pullen made soulful, instrumental house music too.[9]

In the early 1990s, the Chicago house scene was evolving, and deeper, jazzier and more eclectic strains were emerging blending house with hip-hop, disco and soul. DJ Heather was a leading figure in this second wave[17], as were Derrick Carter and many artists associated with Cajmere and his Cajual label.[18] In New York too, the sound evolved, with labels like Strictly Rhythm, Nu Groove, Nervous and 4th Floor becoming synonymous with deep house for international audiences[19]. Throughout the 90s, deep house extensively cross-pollinated with other emerging club sounds internationally which emphasised jazz-inspired sophistication, including nu jazz and broken beat[20], as well as with experimental electronica via artists like Matthew Herbert and Terre Thaemlitz aka DJ Sprinkles.[10][21]

In the 2000s and 2010s, the genre remained very popular. By around mid/late 2010s, however, the perception of the genre was resulting in a sense that some house music was being labeled "deep" inappropriately,[22] and the term has since been used to encapsulate various types of bassline-driven house music, later named Brazilian bass, slap house or deep tech[23] as the genre evolved from its historical origins. However throughout this period particular scenes and collectives around the world kept the more soul-focused, hypnotic sense of deep house. These included Theo Parrish, Moodymann and Rick Wilhite in Detroit; Jimpster, AtJazz and Phil Asher in the UK; Henrik Schwarz, Âme and Dixon in Germany, and the Mule Musiq label in Japan.[9]

Artists, DJs, and record labels

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For a list of deep house producers and disc jockeys, see: Deep house musicians.

Record labels of the genre include Alleviated Records (Larry Heard), Madhouse Records. Inc (Kerri Chandler),[24] AFTR:HRS, Glasgow Underground, Naked Music, Om Records, Peacefrog Records and Soma. Examples of deep house albums from artists known from other genres include The Martyr Mantras (1990) and Modernism: A New Decade (1989) from The Style Council.

See also

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References

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  1. 1 2 3 M'Baye, Babacar; Hall, Alexander Charles Oliver (29 July 2013). Crossing Traditions: American Popular Music in Local and Global Contexts. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-8828-9. Deep house is a subgenre of house music that is revered by its fans for its faithfulness to Chicago house and New York garage. Deep house cooks up a tasty sonic stew from disco, gospel, soul, jazz, funk, Latin, and R & B. Like its predecessors, its simmers at 120 to 125 BPM. What distinguishes deep house from its progenitors is its tendency to overuse shrieking divas, ominous organs, and chord progressions to whip up dance floor drama.
  2. ↑ Ishkur (2019). "Ishkur's guide to Electronic Music".
  3. ↑ Mitchell, Tony (1989). "Performance and the Postmodern in Pop Music". Theatre Journal. 41 (3): 275. doi:10.2307/3208181. JSTOR 3208181. "House" music, and its offshoots acid house, deep house, and techno...
  4. ↑ Sfetcu, Nicolae (2014). Dance Music.
  5. ↑ Resident Advisor (8 May 2018), How Larry Heard made house music deep | Resident Advisor, retrieved 30 September 2018 {{citation}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  6. ↑ "Deep House Music". Armada Music.
  7. ↑ "List of Average Tempo (BPM) By Genre". digitaldjhub.com. 30 April 2013. Archived from the original on 6 December 2016. deep house: 120-125 bpm
  8. 1 2 The Mr. Fingers 'Can You Feel It' Bass Line, Synthtopia
  9. 1 2 3 Muggs, Joe (2 June 2021). "Beatport's Definitive History of House Music". Beatportal. Archived from the original on 16 January 2026.
  10. 1 2 Leight, Elias (19 October 2016). "DJ Sprinkles Talks Deep House, 'Culturally Critical' Audio Production & The Value of Boredom". Billboard. Archived from the original on 8 December 2021.
  11. ↑ Iqbal, Mohson (31 January 2008). "Larry Heard: Soul survivor". Resident Advisor. Archived from the original on 12 November 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  12. ↑ "Various Artists - The Kings of House, Compiled and Mixed by Masters at Work". In the Mix. 12 August 2005. Archived from the original on 6 January 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  13. ↑ "The Syntronik J-60 Soft Synth | Reverb Software Pick". August 2018.
  14. ↑ Unterberger, Richie (1999). Music USA: The Rough Guide. London: Rough Guides. p. 265. ISBN 185828421X. Retrieved 23 July 2012.
  15. ↑ Orlov, Piotr. "Theo Parrish: Wudaaji". Pitchfork. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
  16. ↑ Muggs, Joe (26 February 2025). "Traxman on the History of Chicago Dance Music". Bandcamp Daily. Archived from the original on 26 February 2025.
  17. ↑ Keeling, Ryan (26 March 2026). "The women who shaped the genres". Pioneer DJ. Retrieved 9 September 2026.
  18. ↑ "A Deep Dive Into the Second Wave of Chicago House". Bandcamp Daily. 25 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2026.
  19. ↑ Needs, Kris (5-21-2012). "Have I Got Nu For You". {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ↑ Johnson, Jamaal (25 September 2024). "The Lesser Told Story of Broken Beat, the Enigmatic Sound That is Yet to 'Break' the Mainstream". Mixmag. Archived from the original on 25 September 2024.
  21. ↑ Jonze, Tim (20 August 2015). "Matthew Herbert: 'I can make music out of a banana or David Cameron or Belgium'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 13 September 2026.
  22. ↑ "Stop calling it deep house". Mixmag. Archived from the original on 30 September 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
  23. ↑ Morris, Dominic (30 December 2014). "How deep tech became clubbing's biggest success story". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 30 December 2014. Retrieved 13 September 2026.
  24. ↑ "Kerri Chandler introduces Madhouse sister label, Madtech". Madhouse Records. 11 May 2012.
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