Image of Frankie Knuckles DJ'ing

What is the difference between Deep House and House Music?

 

So many of us might talk about deep house music, but are we really just house music fans at the end of the day? - house heads unite!!! In this blog feature we look at some of the key questions around house and deep house, some of the origins, places to find decent mixes to listen to and more…

 

So what is the difference between Deep House and House Music?

 

It’s a fine line between the two styles sometimes and often a DJ set might take in both if not more subgenres of house on its flow. Deep House is most commonly played a little slower than house music, between 120 (sometimes even less) and 124 BPM (beats per minute) while House often ranges between 125 and 128.

 

Deep house music if more bass-oriented than house, which, compared to deep, is often more percussive. In both genres, a lot is done with chopped vocals. House music also pushes it’s boundaries all the way to a more commercial sound and covers a diverse range of styles such as progressive, happy, tech, deep tech, or beach house, although personally I’d say beach house is more of a deep house vibe, with terrace vibes and such reminding me of my days in Ibiza (ahhh happy days!).

 

House was pioneered by DJs and producers mainly from Chicago and New York such as Frankie Knuckles, Larry Levan, Ron Hardy, Jesse Saunders, Steve "Silk" Hurley, Farley "Jackmaster" Funk, Mr. Fingers, Marshall Jefferson and many others. Initially fusing elements of Chicago house with 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music, much of which still marks out popular deep house today. Many sources online credit Larry Heard with the first deep house track - "Mystery of Love" in 1984. The track “Can You Feel It?” had an impact on deep house music which is similar to that Derrick May's “Strings Of Life” (1987) had on Detroit techno. All of them classics selling for big money on discos.com.

 

The most common mix up in today's EDM culture is the misuse of deep house classification which is often used to describe more chilled out or melodic tech house - complicated isn’t it!? Beatport’s classification changes over the last few years have added further confusion, often finding tech house amongst their picks for deep house because labels and distributors have classified a track that way and no one checks prior to retail release.

 

On the other hand House Music as a genre was created by Djs and music producers from Chicago's underground club culture in the early and mid 1980s, as DJs from the subculture began altering disco dance tracks to give them a more mechanical beat and deeper basslines - the energy of these tracks is one key difference between deep house and house music, with labels such as Moiss Music being a current hot bed of house music in a more pure sense - using lots of disco samples, bags of energy but they often get classified as deeper house - incorrectly!

 

As each cycles through periods of popularity, many people seek to take the sound ‘underground’ - a term often read on forums and social media threads.

 

What is underground house music?

 

Describing music as “underground” can mean many different things depending on the context. Often in DJ circles it can be a stamp of approval, pointing to the fact that, whatever sound it is, comes from a genuine place of creativity not commercialism. Deep house labels especially often seek to be seen as underground in an effort to create a sense of mystery - the fact is today, with social media and access to new music being so easy, being underground is near impossible.

 

Over the years the term has developed to capture music that is fresh, not been overly exposed and having a newness to it. That could be the label, the producer or even the club it’s being played in.

 

What are the Origins of Deep House Music?

 

Deep house as a subgenre of house music is more bassline driven. Soulful vocals are common, jazzy or funk touches to the arrangements are used too. Deep house is a ‘moody’ sound, not so much tracks to dance all night to, but perhaps stand or sit nodding your head, tapping your feet and feeling. House is a feeling afteral!. It’s popularity over the last couple of decades has seen labels such as Large Music, iRecords, Naked Music, Panhadle, Paperecordings, Slip n Slide, Nuphonic, Junior Boys Own and so many more attain legendary status. Naked Music for one made the genre hugely popular with it’s sexy, soulful moods and amazing artwork. Many deep house labels originate from those pioneering DJs such as Kevin Yost, Blaze, Julius Papp, Masters At Work, Mood II Swing, Mark Farina, Miguel Migs and the likes - their craft of knowing how to play a crowd and fuse that with music production made the deep house sound what it is today and took it on from it’s founding fathers like Frankie Knuckles, Larry Leven and Marshall Jefferson.

 

What is a House Mix?

 

Hip hop mixtapes first appeared in the mid-1970s in New York City, featuring artists such as Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa. As more tapes became available, they were collected and traded by fans. From the late 1970s to the early 1980s, DJs began recording mixtapes from their homes, referring to them as House Tapes - giving birth to the term house mixtape. DJ’s such as Mark Farina made their names on the basis of their mixtapes and indeed Farina founded his own Mushroom Jazz record label to allow him to produce and release the music he loved and formed on those early tapes.

 

Technically speaking a DJ mix or DJ mixset is a sequence of musical tracks typically mixed together to appear as one continuous track, the set might flow in mood and style as the DJ takes the listener on a journey. DJ mixes are usually performed using a DJ mixer and multiple sounds sources, such as turntables, CD players, digital audio players or computer sound cards, sometimes with the addition of samplers and effects units, although it is possible to create one using sound editing software such as Ableton. Personally I use a Native Instruments S4 mixer with two Technics 1210’s plugged in to allow me to use older, vinyl tracks, that have never seen the light of day on modern digital retail stores.

 

Best House mixes to listen to?

 

There is something for everyone out there - fact! From Youtube, to Soundcloud, Spotify, Bandcamp and the big retailers (Beatport, Traxsource). The digital world is full of options. My personal favourites are the Boiler Room series. Boiler Room is an online music broadcasting platform commissioning and streaming live music sessions around the world. Founded in London in 2010, Boiler Room has now hosted shows in around 100 cities worldwide. Their ability to get the biggest names is well worth checking them out for - although be warned, not everyone is excellent it turns out behind the decks!

 

FabricLive series reflect the kinds of music typically showcased at the nightclub's Friday night events and are always excellent too.

 

Head over the Soundcloud or Mixcloud and just search deep house mixes and you’ll find some many to enjoy. Currently I’m really into Defected Radio - Sam Divines mixes are great and a top source of inspiration for my own sets.

 

 

 

 

 

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What is the difference between Deep House and House Music?

 

So many of us might talk about deep house music, but are we really just house music fans at the end of the day? - house heads unite!!! In this blog feature we look at some of the key questions around house and deep house, some of the origins, places to find decent mixes to listen to and more…

 

So what is the difference between Deep House and House Music?

 

It’s a fine line between the two styles sometimes and often a DJ set might take in both if not more subgenres of house on its flow. Deep House is most commonly played a little slower than house music, between 120 (sometimes even less) and 124 BPM (beats per minute) while House often ranges between 125 and 128.

 

Deep house music if more bass-oriented than house, which, compared to deep, is often more percussive. In both genres, a lot is done with chopped vocals. House music also pushes it’s boundaries all the way to a more commercial sound and covers a diverse range of styles such as progressive, happy, tech, deep tech, or beach house, although personally I’d say beach house is more of a deep house vibe, with terrace vibes and such reminding me of my days in Ibiza (ahhh happy days!).

 

House was pioneered by DJs and producers mainly from Chicago and New York such as Frankie Knuckles, Larry Levan, Ron Hardy, Jesse Saunders, Steve "Silk" Hurley, Farley "Jackmaster" Funk, Mr. Fingers, Marshall Jefferson and many others. Initially fusing elements of Chicago house with 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music, much of which still marks out popular deep house today. Many sources online credit Larry Heard with the first deep house track - "Mystery of Love" in 1984. The track “Can You Feel It?” had an impact on deep house music which is similar to that Derrick May's “Strings Of Life” (1987) had on Detroit techno. All of them classics selling for big money on discos.com.

 

The most common mix up in today's EDM culture is the misuse of deep house classification which is often used to describe more chilled out or melodic tech house - complicated isn’t it!? Beatport’s classification changes over the last few years have added further confusion, often finding tech house amongst their picks for deep house because labels and distributors have classified a track that way and no one checks prior to retail release.

 

On the other hand House Music as a genre was created by Djs and music producers from Chicago's underground club culture in the early and mid 1980s, as DJs from the subculture began altering disco dance tracks to give them a more mechanical beat and deeper basslines - the energy of these tracks is one key difference between deep house and house music, with labels such as Moiss Music being a current hot bed of house music in a more pure sense - using lots of disco samples, bags of energy but they often get classified as deeper house - incorrectly!

 

As each cycles through periods of popularity, many people seek to take the sound ‘underground’ - a term often read on forums and social media threads.

 

What is underground house music?

 

Describing music as “underground” can mean many different things depending on the context. Often in DJ circles it can be a stamp of approval, pointing to the fact that, whatever sound it is, comes from a genuine place of creativity not commercialism. Deep house labels especially often seek to be seen as underground in an effort to create a sense of mystery - the fact is today, with social media and access to new music being so easy, being underground is near impossible.

 

Over the years the term has developed to capture music that is fresh, not been overly exposed and having a newness to it. That could be the label, the producer or even the club it’s being played in.

 

What are the Origins of Deep House Music?

 

Deep house as a subgenre of house music is more bassline driven. Soulful vocals are common, jazzy or funk touches to the arrangements are used too. Deep house is a ‘moody’ sound, not so much tracks to dance all night to, but perhaps stand or sit nodding your head, tapping your feet and feeling. House is a feeling afteral!. It’s popularity over the last couple of decades has seen labels such as Large Music, iRecords, Naked Music, Panhadle, Paperecordings, Slip n Slide, Nuphonic, Junior Boys Own and so many more attain legendary status. Naked Music for one made the genre hugely popular with it’s sexy, soulful moods and amazing artwork. Many deep house labels originate from those pioneering DJs such as Kevin Yost, Blaze, Julius Papp, Masters At Work, Mood II Swing, Mark Farina, Miguel Migs and the likes - their craft of knowing how to play a crowd and fuse that with music production made the deep house sound what it is today and took it on from it’s founding fathers like Frankie Knuckles, Larry Leven and Marshall Jefferson.

 

What is a House Mix?

 

Hip hop mixtapes first appeared in the mid-1970s in New York City, featuring artists such as Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa. As more tapes became available, they were collected and traded by fans. From the late 1970s to the early 1980s, DJs began recording mixtapes from their homes, referring to them as House Tapes - giving birth to the term house mixtape. DJ’s such as Mark Farina made their names on the basis of their mixtapes and indeed Farina founded his own Mushroom Jazz record label to allow him to produce and release the music he loved and formed on those early tapes.

 

Technically speaking a DJ mix or DJ mixset is a sequence of musical tracks typically mixed together to appear as one continuous track, the set might flow in mood and style as the DJ takes the listener on a journey. DJ mixes are usually performed using a DJ mixer and multiple sounds sources, such as turntables, CD players, digital audio players or computer sound cards, sometimes with the addition of samplers and effects units, although it is possible to create one using sound editing software such as Ableton. Personally I use a Native Instruments S4 mixer with two Technics 1210’s plugged in to allow me to use older, vinyl tracks, that have never seen the light of day on modern digital retail stores.

 

Best House mixes to listen to?

 

There is something for everyone out there - fact! From Youtube, to Soundcloud, Spotify, Bandcamp and the big retailers (Beatport, Traxsource). The digital world is full of options. My personal favourites are the Boiler Room series. Boiler Room is an online music broadcasting platform commissioning and streaming live music sessions around the world. Founded in London in 2010, Boiler Room has now hosted shows in around 100 cities worldwide. Their ability to get the biggest names is well worth checking them out for - although be warned, not everyone is excellent it turns out behind the decks!

 

FabricLive series reflect the kinds of music typically showcased at the nightclub's Friday night events and are always excellent too.

 

Head over the Soundcloud or Mixcloud and just search deep house mixes and you’ll find some many to enjoy. Currently I’m really into Defected Radio - Sam Divines mixes are great and a top source of inspiration for my own sets.

 

 

 

 

 

Image of Frankie Knuckles DJ'ing
Image of Frankie Knuckles DJ'ing

What is the difference between Deep House and House Music?

 

So many of us might talk about deep house music, but are we really just house music fans at the end of the day? - house heads unite!!! In this blog feature we look at some of the key questions around house and deep house, some of the origins, places to find decent mixes to listen to and more…

 

So what is the difference between Deep House and House Music?

 

It’s a fine line between the two styles sometimes and often a DJ set might take in both if not more subgenres of house on its flow. Deep House is most commonly played a little slower than house music, between 120 (sometimes even less) and 124 BPM (beats per minute) while House often ranges between 125 and 128.

 

Deep house music if more bass-oriented than house, which, compared to deep, is often more percussive. In both genres, a lot is done with chopped vocals. House music also pushes it’s boundaries all the way to a more commercial sound and covers a diverse range of styles such as progressive, happy, tech, deep tech, or beach house, although personally I’d say beach house is more of a deep house vibe, with terrace vibes and such reminding me of my days in Ibiza (ahhh happy days!).

 

House was pioneered by DJs and producers mainly from Chicago and New York such as Frankie Knuckles, Larry Levan, Ron Hardy, Jesse Saunders, Steve "Silk" Hurley, Farley "Jackmaster" Funk, Mr. Fingers, Marshall Jefferson and many others. Initially fusing elements of Chicago house with 1980s jazz-funk and touches of soul music, much of which still marks out popular deep house today. Many sources online credit Larry Heard with the first deep house track - "Mystery of Love" in 1984. The track “Can You Feel It?” had an impact on deep house music which is similar to that Derrick May's “Strings Of Life” (1987) had on Detroit techno. All of them classics selling for big money on discos.com.

 

The most common mix up in today's EDM culture is the misuse of deep house classification which is often used to describe more chilled out or melodic tech house - complicated isn’t it!? Beatport’s classification changes over the last few years have added further confusion, often finding tech house amongst their picks for deep house because labels and distributors have classified a track that way and no one checks prior to retail release.

 

On the other hand House Music as a genre was created by Djs and music producers from Chicago's underground club culture in the early and mid 1980s, as DJs from the subculture began altering disco dance tracks to give them a more mechanical beat and deeper basslines - the energy of these tracks is one key difference between deep house and house music, with labels such as Moiss Music being a current hot bed of house music in a more pure sense - using lots of disco samples, bags of energy but they often get classified as deeper house - incorrectly!

 

As each cycles through periods of popularity, many people seek to take the sound ‘underground’ - a term often read on forums and social media threads.

 

What is underground house music?

 

Describing music as “underground” can mean many different things depending on the context. Often in DJ circles it can be a stamp of approval, pointing to the fact that, whatever sound it is, comes from a genuine place of creativity not commercialism. Deep house labels especially often seek to be seen as underground in an effort to create a sense of mystery - the fact is today, with social media and access to new music being so easy, being underground is near impossible.

 

Over the years the term has developed to capture music that is fresh, not been overly exposed and having a newness to it. That could be the label, the producer or even the club it’s being played in.

 

What are the Origins of Deep House Music?

 

Deep house as a subgenre of house music is more bassline driven. Soulful vocals are common, jazzy or funk touches to the arrangements are used too. Deep house is a ‘moody’ sound, not so much tracks to dance all night to, but perhaps stand or sit nodding your head, tapping your feet and feeling. House is a feeling afteral!. It’s popularity over the last couple of decades has seen labels such as Large Music, iRecords, Naked Music, Panhadle, Paperecordings, Slip n Slide, Nuphonic, Junior Boys Own and so many more attain legendary status. Naked Music for one made the genre hugely popular with it’s sexy, soulful moods and amazing artwork. Many deep house labels originate from those pioneering DJs such as Kevin Yost, Blaze, Julius Papp, Masters At Work, Mood II Swing, Mark Farina, Miguel Migs and the likes - their craft of knowing how to play a crowd and fuse that with music production made the deep house sound what it is today and took it on from it’s founding fathers like Frankie Knuckles, Larry Leven and Marshall Jefferson.

 

What is a House Mix?

 

Hip hop mixtapes first appeared in the mid-1970s in New York City, featuring artists such as Kool Herc and Afrika Bambaataa. As more tapes became available, they were collected and traded by fans. From the late 1970s to the early 1980s, DJs began recording mixtapes from their homes, referring to them as House Tapes - giving birth to the term house mixtape. DJ’s such as Mark Farina made their names on the basis of their mixtapes and indeed Farina founded his own Mushroom Jazz record label to allow him to produce and release the music he loved and formed on those early tapes.

 

Technically speaking a DJ mix or DJ mixset is a sequence of musical tracks typically mixed together to appear as one continuous track, the set might flow in mood and style as the DJ takes the listener on a journey. DJ mixes are usually performed using a DJ mixer and multiple sounds sources, such as turntables, CD players, digital audio players or computer sound cards, sometimes with the addition of samplers and effects units, although it is possible to create one using sound editing software such as Ableton. Personally I use a Native Instruments S4 mixer with two Technics 1210’s plugged in to allow me to use older, vinyl tracks, that have never seen the light of day on modern digital retail stores.

 

Best House mixes to listen to?

 

There is something for everyone out there - fact! From Youtube, to Soundcloud, Spotify, Bandcamp and the big retailers (Beatport, Traxsource). The digital world is full of options. My personal favourites are the Boiler Room series. Boiler Room is an online music broadcasting platform commissioning and streaming live music sessions around the world. Founded in London in 2010, Boiler Room has now hosted shows in around 100 cities worldwide. Their ability to get the biggest names is well worth checking them out for - although be warned, not everyone is excellent it turns out behind the decks!

 

FabricLive series reflect the kinds of music typically showcased at the nightclub's Friday night events and are always excellent too.

 

Head over the Soundcloud or Mixcloud and just search deep house mixes and you’ll find some many to enjoy. Currently I’m really into Defected Radio - Sam Divines mixes are great and a top source of inspiration for my own sets.

 

 

 

 

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Image of Frankie Knuckles DJ'ing