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Music World History & Scenes

Choose a genre, move through countries and cities, then follow the scenes, artists, labels, releases, and contributors that shaped the sound.

Genre

Country

City

Bass / United Kingdom

London Timeline

London/Before 1990s-2020s

Roots of London Bass Continuum

Kingston dub, UK sound systems, jungle, garage, and Bristol's bass-weighted studio culture set the conditions. Follow it through Burial, Bonobo and Aphex Twin, labels like Ninja Tune, Hyperdub and Warp, and releases such as Untrue, Black Sands and Syro. The producer and contributor trail runs through Brian Eno and Nigel Godrich, while the later movement points toward London Grime, Bristol Trip-Hop and Kingston Dub and Roots Reggae.

Open scene profile

London/1990s-2020s

London Bass Continuum

A city-spanning trail through dub, jungle, garage, grime, dubstep, leftfield club records, labels, shops, and producers. The useful DYGR route follows how sound-system pressure, pirate radio, independent labels, record shops, and producers kept mutating London's low-end language across decades. Follow it through Burial, Bonobo and Aphex Twin, labels like Ninja Tune, Hyperdub and Warp, and releases such as Untrue, Black Sands and Syro. The producer and contributor trail runs through Brian Eno and Nigel Godrich, while the later movement points toward London Grime, Bristol Trip-Hop and Kingston Dub and Roots Reggae.

Open scene profile

London/After 1990s-2020s

London Bass Continuum Afterlife

Experimental club music, leftfield pop, global bass scenes, and new independent labels keep reworking the city's pressure systems. Follow it through Burial, Bonobo and Aphex Twin, labels like Ninja Tune, Hyperdub and Warp, and releases such as Untrue, Black Sands and Syro. The producer and contributor trail runs through Brian Eno and Nigel Godrich, while the later movement points toward London Grime, Bristol Trip-Hop and Kingston Dub and Roots Reggae.

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London/Before 2000s

Roots of London Grime

UK garage, jungle, dancehall, hip-hop, and sound-system practice shaped the vocabulary. Follow it through Burial and FKA twigs, labels like Hyperdub, XL Recordings and Ninja Tune, and releases such as Untrue and MAGDALENE. The producer and contributor trail runs through Brian Eno and Nigel Godrich, while the later movement points toward Kingston Dub and Roots Reggae and Bristol Trip-Hop.

Open scene profile

London/2000s

London Grime

Pirate radio, MC crews, spare synth pressure, local codes, and labels translating city urgency into records. The discovery path moves through radio sets, producers, MCs, white labels, bass labels, and adjacent club mutations. Follow it through Burial and FKA twigs, labels like Hyperdub, XL Recordings and Ninja Tune, and releases such as Untrue and MAGDALENE. The producer and contributor trail runs through Brian Eno and Nigel Godrich, while the later movement points toward Kingston Dub and Roots Reggae and Bristol Trip-Hop.

Open scene profile

London/After 2000s

London Grime Afterlife

UK rap, bass music, experimental club records, and global pop production absorbed the swing and aggression. Follow it through Burial and FKA twigs, labels like Hyperdub, XL Recordings and Ninja Tune, and releases such as Untrue and MAGDALENE. The producer and contributor trail runs through Brian Eno and Nigel Godrich, while the later movement points toward Kingston Dub and Roots Reggae and Bristol Trip-Hop.

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