Speedcore

This article is about the electronic music genre. For the faster form of hardcore punk, see Thrashcore.

Speedcore
Stylistic origins	Hardcore techno Breakcore Gabber Digital hardcore Cybergrind
Cultural origins	1990s
Typical instruments	Keyboard, synthesizer, drum machine, sequencer, sampler
Mainstream popularity	low
Subgenres
Extratone - Splittercore
Fusion genres
Psycore

Speedcore is a form of hardcore techno that is characterized by a high rate of beats per minute and aggressive themes. The name originates from the high BPM rate found in this genre, which rarely drop below 300 BPM. Earlier Speedcore tracks often averaged at about 250 BPM, whereas more recent tracks sometimes exceed 1000 BPM. Songs with beats above 600 BPM are often classified as splittercore. When a song reaches 1000 BPM, the music is often known as extratone. However, when beats are in the range of 1000-1500 BPM the individual tones become indistinguishable, and turn into actual musical tones.

Speedcore tracks often contain elements of the related genres gabber and breakcore.

Characteristics

The music is oftentimes angry and aggressive in nature. Speedcore DJs often use violent, vulgar, and offensive themes in their music to push the boundaries of the genre that they spawned from.

While most speedcore artists are content to attack the normal standards of music, or even the gabber music that spawned them, the extremism of speedcore has caused some to turn inwards and parody the standards of the genre. These songs tend to use lighter, more manic samples.

Aside from the very fast tempo of speedcore, which rarely drops below 300 BPM, speedcore can often be distinguished from other forms of hardcore techno by an aggressive and overridden electronic percussion track that is often punctuated with hyperactive snare or tom-tom fills. The Roland TR-909 is often the drum machine of choice for speedcore producers due to its ability to generate heavily distorted bass-drum kicks that anchor the percussion tracks. Most producers will often overdrive their kicks so much that they become square waves, much like in gabber, giving Speedcore its distinctive pounding sound. The amen break is frequently used in a similar way to jungle music. In particular, the snare is often played tens of times per second via a sampler, which can also be used to pitch the snare up and down quickly.

As with many other forms of techno, synthesizers are also heavily used, often producing heavily distorted and/or disharmonic melodies to complement the underlying drums. Although any analog or hybrid synth can be used, the analog/digital hybrid Roland Juno-106 is a common favorite with speedcore artists. Pure digital synthesizers are comparatively rare in speedcore.

Samples are often used to further heighten the aggressive nature of speedcore, with many artists using audio samples of violent scenes from movies by directors such as Martin Scorsese and Stanley Kubrick. Some artists simply sample shouted obscenities and incorporate these samples into their music.

External links

• Wikipedia NL Guide to Extratone
• Canadian Speedcore Resistance