Emoism Records

Kawaii future bass is a Japanese-born microgenre that blends the sidechained, chord-heavy drops of future bass with the cheery melodies, cute sound design, and pop sensibilities of J-pop, anime music, and game-inspired chiptune. It typically features bright supersaw stacks, bell and mallet plucks, high-pitched vocal chops (often from Vocaloid or J-pop/utaite sources), and sugary melodies in major or Lydian modes. Drums follow a half-time trap groove with crisp snares on beat three, while heavy sidechain compression creates a buoyant, bouncy feel. The aesthetic emphasizes “kawaii” (cute) culture—pastel tones, playful samples, and whimsical ear-candy—resulting in upbeat, feel-good tracks that are as much about personality and texture as they are about harmony and rhythm.

Brostep is a high-intensity, EDM-leaning strain of dubstep that foregrounds aggressively modulated midrange basses, dramatic builds, and arena-sized drops. Where classic UK dubstep emphasizes sub-bass weight, spaciousness, and dubwise minimalism, brostep shifts the focus to bright, distorted, and highly articulated bass sound design, often supported by festival-ready structures and glossy, loud mastering. Typical tempos sit around 140 BPM (often presented in half-time), with snare on beat 3, punchy kick patterns, and dense fills. Signature sounds include vowel/formant "talking" basses, metallic growls, comb-filtered screeches, and heavy multiband distortion, arranged in call-and-response riffs that drive the drop.

EDM (Electronic Dance Music) refers to the mainstream, festival-oriented wave of electronic dance styles that rose to global prominence in the early 2010s. It emphasizes high-energy drops, ear-catching toplines, and crowd-pleasing arrangements designed for large stages and mass audiences. Musically, EDM typically sits around 124–130 BPM with a strong four-on-the-floor kick, wide supersaw leads, bright plucks, and heavily sidechained pads and basses for a pumping feel. Tracks are structured around tension-and-release: intros and builds lead to explosive drops, followed by breakdowns that rebuild energy. Vocals and pop-style songwriting frequently appear, enabling crossover success on radio and streaming platforms.

Electronic is a broad umbrella genre defined by the primary use of electronically generated or electronically processed sound. It encompasses music made with synthesizers, drum machines, samplers, computers, and studio/tape techniques, as well as electroacoustic manipulation of recorded or synthetic sources. The genre ranges from academic and experimental traditions to popular and dance-oriented forms. While its sonic palette is rooted in electricity and circuitry, its aesthetics span minimal and textural explorations, structured song forms, and beat-driven club permutations. Electronic emphasizes sound design, timbre, and studio-as-instrument practices as much as melody and harmony.

Frenchcore is a high‑tempo subgenre of hardcore techno characterized by heavily distorted, punchy kick drums, straight 4/4 rhythms, and anthemic, often euphoric melodies. Its typical tempo ranges from about 180 to 210 BPM, with modern tracks frequently around 190–200 BPM. The signature sound is a hard, saturated kick with a short, clipped tail that drives the groove, accompanied by aggressive leads, rave stabs, and energetic risers. While rooted in the roughness of gabber and industrial hardcore, frenchcore often adds a melodic, even uplifting edge—sometimes drawing on classical motifs or emotional chord progressions—making it well suited for peak‑time festival moments as well as free‑party systems.

Future bass is a melodic, drop-focused style of electronic dance music built around lush, detuned saw-tooth chords, dramatic swells, and emotive, pop- and R&B-leaning progressions. It typically runs at 70–90 BPM (or 140–180 BPM in double-time), uses trap-inspired drums (808 kicks, crisp snares on the third beat, syncopated hi-hats), and features heavy sidechain compression for a breathing, "pumping" feel. Producers often layer shimmering supersaws, pitch-automated leads, and chopped/pitched vocal snippets to create euphoric, weightless drops that contrast with airy verses and cinematic builds. A hallmark is its glossy, future-leaning sound design—gliding chords, LFO modulation, wide stereo images—paired with catchy, sentimental melodies that make it equally club-ready and radio-friendly.

Future core is a high-energy, hyper-melodic branch of hard dance that fuses the speed and euphoria of hardcore with the shimmering sound design and lush harmonies of contemporary EDM. Typical tempos sit around 160–175 BPM, with pounding four‑on‑the‑floor kicks, bright supersaw leads, and sidechained chords delivering an intense yet uplifting rush. Stylistically, it draws on trance-like progressions, festival‑scale builds, and glossy, game/anime‑influenced aesthetics. Vocal chops (including Vocaloid or J‑pop hooks), rapid-fire arpeggios, and dense FX fills are common. Production is crisp and digital, emphasizing tight low‑end, sparkling highs, and vivid, technicolor textures that feel both nostalgic and futuristic.

Hardstyle is a high-energy form of electronic dance music built around a hard, four‑on‑the‑floor kick, tempos around 150 BPM, and a signature "reverse bass" that drives the groove. Sound design centers on heavily distorted, layered kicks that are pitched melodically, alongside harsh screeches and bright supersaw leads. Emerging at the turn of the millennium from the Netherlands with parallel scenes in Belgium and Italy, hardstyle fuses elements of techno, new beat, and hardcore/gabber with the euphoric breakdowns of trance. Over time it split into distinct currents, from euphoric, melody‑forward anthems to raw, industrial‑edged variations that emphasize aggression and texture.

J-core is a Japanese take on hardcore techno that fuses high-BPM club structures with otaku culture, game/anime sampling, and brightly melodic writing. It typically sits in the 160–200+ BPM range, using pounding four-on-the-floor kicks, gabber-style distorted low-end, or layered breakbeats. The style is defined by hyper-melodic leads (often supersaws), euphoric trance harmonies, and chopped/processed voice clips from anime, games, denpa songs, or Vocaloid. Aesthetically it leans kawaii/cute but can swing toward intense, chaotic, or even speedcore extremes. J-core flourished in Japan’s doujin scene and rhythm-game ecosystem, with circles and labels releasing compilations and event-driven tracks.

Jersey club is a high-energy, club-oriented dance music from Newark, New Jersey that evolved in the early 2000s. It is known for punchy three-kick patterns, chopped vocal stabs, stop‑and‑go drops, and a relentless, call‑and‑response party ethos. Typically around 130 BPM, the sound blends house and breakbeat drum programming with hip‑hop sampling aesthetics. Producers often flip R&B hooks, sprinkle in signature effects (notably the "bed squeak" timbre popularized in 2000s rap), and build arrangements around short, repeatable phrases designed for coordinated dance routines.

Rawstyle is a darker, more aggressive offshoot of hardstyle characterized by heavily distorted "raw" kicks, abrasive screeches, tense atmospheres, and high-energy drops around 150 BPM. Compared to euphoric hardstyle, it favors harsher sound design, minor tonalities, and cinematic, ominous breakdowns over big melodic climaxes. Tracks typically feature punchy, multistage distorted kick-tails that are pitched to the key, frenetic kickrolls, and screech leads built from resonant filtering or FM synthesis with wide pitch bends. The overall aesthetic is gritty, intense, and built for large festival sound systems, emphasizing impact and dancefloor aggression.

Techno is a four-on-the-floor, machine-driven form of electronic dance music that emerged in mid-to-late 1980s Detroit. It is characterized by steady 4/4 kick drums, repetitive and hypnotic rhythmic patterns, synthetic timbres, and an emphasis on texture, groove, and forward momentum over elaborate harmony. Producers typically use drum machines, sequencers, and synthesizers to build layered percussion, pulsing basslines, and evolving motifs. While often dark and minimalistic, techno spans a wide spectrum—from soulful, futuristic Detroit aesthetics to hard, industrially tinged European strains—yet it consistently prioritizes kinetic energy for dancefloors and a sense of machine futurism.

UK hardcore is a high-tempo, euphoric branch of the hardcore dance continuum that crystallized in the UK during the 2000s out of happy hardcore, hard trance, and hard house influences. Characterized by 4/4 kicks at roughly 165–175 BPM, big supersaw leads, bright melodic hooks, and pitched-up or anthemic vocals, it aims squarely at hands-in-the-air rave energy. Tracks typically feature trance-like breakdowns, dramatic risers, and explosive drops, often with singalong choruses and glossy, uplifting chord progressions. While it inherited the positivity and speed of 1990s happy hardcore, UK hardcore modernized the sound design (sidechained pads, layered kicks, contemporary EDM processing) and tightened the song structures for large-scale raves and compilation culture (e.g., Clubland X-Treme Hardcore).

Hardcore (often called hardcore techno in its early form) is a fast, aggressive branch of electronic dance music characterized by heavily distorted, punchy 4/4 kick drums, tempos ranging from roughly 160 to well over 200 BPM, and a dark, high‑energy aesthetic. It emphasizes percussive drive over complex harmony, using clipped and saturated kick-bass sound design, sharp hi-hats, claps on the backbeat, and harsh synth stabs or screeches. Vocals, when present, are typically shouted hooks, sampled movie lines, or crowd chants processed with distortion and effects. Originating in the Netherlands in the early 1990s, the style quickly splintered into related scenes and subgenres such as gabber, happy hardcore, Frenchcore, terrorcore, speedcore, and later hardstyle. Its culture is closely associated with large-scale raves, specialized labels, and distinctive visual branding.

Hard dance is an umbrella term for a family of high-energy club styles that fuse the drive of techno with the euphoria of trance and the punch of house. Emerging from the UK club circuit in the mid-to-late 1990s, it is characterized by tough 4/4 kicks, bold lead synths, acid lines, and big breakdowns that resolve into emphatic drops. Tempos typically sit around 135–150 BPM, with arrangements built for DJ mixing and peak-time momentum. The name commonly covers UK hard house, hard trance, hard NRG, and adjacent sounds that emphasized harder percussion, rolling basslines, and euphoric hooks while remaining distinctly dancefloor-focused.