Genres, Tech House /Tech House Music

As the name suggests, tech house is a fusion of techno and house. Whereas progressive house incorporates atmospheric textures and ambient sounds, tech house has much more in common with deep house, Detroit techno and minimal techno. DJ and producer Mr. C, who co-owns The End nightclub in London is said to have first coined the term 'tech house'. Tech house has the same structure and tempo of house (between 118 and 135 beats per minute), however some elements of the house sound are replaced by techno elements. For instance, tech house often has a shorter, deeper and more distorted kick drum than house music and noisier snares and shorter hi hats (synonymous with techno). Basslines in tech house are usually more synthetic sounding than house, with tech house producers favouring square wave and sawtooth oscillators. Tech house can sometimes be jazzy and soulful, and at other times dubby and techno orientated and as a result there is some overlap between tech house and its surrounding genres. Therefore it is quite popular with DJs who like to play many different styles and moods. It is also generally deeper and more laid back than either techno or house. Tech house is often called 'groovy' because tech house tracks have less builds ups and troughs than house or trance, and if a number of tech house tracks are played in succession they will create more of an even groove than a progressive house or trance set which aims at building towards a peak.