Colour Bass
around 2015 to 2017 · United Kingdom and online bass communities
A vibrant reaction to dubstep's darkness: colour bass injects melodic, prismatic chords directly into heavy mid-range bass growls, coined around 2015 by UK producer Chime and built out by Ace Aura and Au5 (Rushdown, Monstercat).
The sound
140 to 150 BPM half-time with swung, syncopated hi-hats, and its hallmark: heavy bass patches processed through vocoders, resonators, granular synthesis, and pitch-mapping plugins like Zynaptiq Pitchmap so an atonal growl carries a bright melodic chord.
Listen for: Bass that is also a chord. Instead of one snarling note, the growl rings out a full major or minor harmony, prismatic and tuneful where riddim stays dark and atonal.
Things to know
Colour bass injects melody straight into the bass: producers run heavy growls through vocoders, resonators, and pitch-mapping plugins like Zynaptiq Pitchmap so an atonal patch rings out a full major or minor chord.
Colour bass was coined around 2015 by UK producer Chime as a vibrant reaction to the dark, atonal trends dominating dubstep and riddim at the time.
Colour bass is closely tied to melodic riddim and future riddim, all of which experiment with harmonic processing and off-kilter rhythms, and it was carried by labels like Rushdown, Disciple, and Monstercat.
Key tracks
Interdimensional by Chime & Ace Aura · 2019
Coma by Ace Aura · 2019
Alien Weapon by Au5 · 2020
Family tree
- Riddim: Colour bass grew out of riddim's heavy mid-range but added harmony. Chime and the Rushdown crew ran the growls through pitch-mapping and resonators so an atonal bass patch could ring out a full chord, turning riddim's darkness prismatic and tuneful.