Ragtime Records

Electro swing fuses the timbres and rhythms of 1920s–1940s swing and big band jazz with modern electronic dance production. Producers sample or recreate vintage horn sections, clarinets, crooner vocals, and walking bass lines, then place them over four‑on‑the‑floor house grooves, syncopated breakbeats, and punchy electronic bass. Typical tempos sit around 110–128 BPM, with swung/shuffle hi‑hats, call‑and‑response horn riffs, and jazz harmony (ii–V–I cadences, extended 7ths/9ths/13ths). Vocals range from retro scat and cabaret‑style singing to contemporary rap or chopped vocal hooks. The result is a playful, dance‑forward sound that feels both nostalgic and fresh: gramophone grit and brass flair meeting club‑ready drums, sidechain swells, and modern sound design.

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.

Gypsy jazz (often called jazz manouche) is an acoustic, string-driven style of swing developed by Romani musicians in Paris in the 1930s, most famously by guitarist Django Reinhardt and violinist Stéphane Grappelli with the Quintette du Hot Club de France. Its signature sound pairs percussive rhythm-guitar strumming (la pompe) with virtuosic single-note lines, violin leads, and a walking double bass, typically without drums or horns. Harmonically, it blends American swing-era jazz changes with European influences such as musette waltzes and classical voice-leading, yielding rich dominant chords, diminished passing harmony, and chromatic approach lines. The result is a bright, agile, and highly danceable style that can be both exuberant and lyrical.

Pop is a broad, hook-driven style of popular music designed for wide appeal. It emphasizes memorable melodies, concise song structures, polished vocals, and production intended for radio, charts, and mass media. While pop continually absorbs elements from other styles, its core remains singable choruses, accessible harmonies, and rhythmic clarity. Typical forms include verse–pre-chorus–chorus, frequent use of bridges and middle-eights, and ear-catching intros and outros. Pop is not defined by a single instrumentation. It flexibly incorporates acoustic and electric instruments, drum machines, synthesizers, and increasingly digital production techniques, always in service of the song and the hook.