Early 1990s
Jungle
A breakbeat and bass-heavy UK sound shaped by rave energy, reggae, dancehall, dub and sound-system culture.
- Chopped Amen and Think-style breaks
- Sub-bass pressure
- Ragga vocals and MC influence
Sound map
Find your D&B sound
Filter by mood, era and pressure. Some names overlap in real scene usage, so the cards describe tendencies rather than treating every tag as a sealed category.
Find a sound
18 genres
Late 1990s onward
Liquid Drum & Bass
A warmer, melodic approach to D&B built around rolling drums, soul influence, vocals and smooth bass movement.
- Melodic pads and chords
- Soul, jazz and funk touches
- Rolling but approachable energy
Late 1990s
Liquid Funk
A named liquid branch associated with musicality, vocals and funk or soul references inside fast drum & bass structure.
- Vocal hooks
- Soulful samples
- Smoother basslines
Mid-1990s
Atmospheric Drum & Bass
A spacious, pad-led strain of D&B where ambience and depth sit beside intricate break programming.
- Long pads and airy textures
- Floating melodies
- Subtle, detailed drum edits
Mid-1990s
Intelligent Drum & Bass
A historically loaded term for more atmospheric, jazz-influenced and listening-focused D&B. Many artists disliked the implication that other forms were less intelligent.
- Jazz and ambient influence
- Home-listening appeal
- Associated with Good Looking and similar labels
Late 1990s
Neurofunk
A technical, bass-design-led branch that grew from techstep and favours precise funk motion, dark texture and engineered impact.
- Complex bass modulation
- Tight, clinical drums
- Dark science-fiction atmosphere
Mid-1990s
Techstep
A darker, more minimal and futuristic form of D&B with hard drums, stripped arrangements and cold bass pressure.
- Industrial and sci-fi mood
- Harder drums
- Less vocal sweetness than jungle or liquid
Late 1990s
Darkstep
An aggressive dark D&B term often used for intense, distorted and horror-leaning tracks.
- Harsh bass tones
- Horror or industrial mood
- High-impact drum programming
Mid-1990s onward
Jump-Up
A direct, club-focused style built for obvious bass hooks, rowdy drops and fast crowd response.
- Simple and memorable bass riffs
- Big drop energy
- MC-friendly arrangements
2000s onward
Dancefloor Drum & Bass
A broad modern label for D&B designed around clear hooks, festival energy and accessible club impact.
- Large melodic hooks
- Clean drops
- Strong crossover appeal
2000s onward
Minimal Drum & Bass
A restrained D&B approach where negative space, sub movement and small rhythmic details do more of the work.
- Sparse arrangements
- Deep sub pressure
- Precise percussion detail
2000s onward
Deep Drum & Bass
A scene term for rolling, understated and bass-rich D&B that often sits between minimal, liquid and atmospheric styles.
- Rolling grooves
- Subtle mood
- Club function without obvious anthem writing
Late 1990s onward
Drumfunk
A breakbeat-focused style where the drum edits are especially intricate, foregrounded and often more important than a simple drop.
- Detailed break editing
- Complex syncopation
- Often linked with sample archaeology
Early to mid-1990s
Ragga Jungle
A jungle branch strongly marked by reggae and dancehall vocals, bassline pressure and sound-system references.
- Dancehall vocal samples
- Reggae bass influence
- High-energy break edits
2000s
Sambass
A Brazilian-rooted fusion of samba and drum & bass, usually marked by Latin percussion and warm melodic movement.
- Samba percussion
- Brazilian scene association
- Bright, rolling rhythm
2010s onward
Halftime
A related bass-music tempo feel where D&B energy is reduced to a slower perceived pulse, often sharing sound design with neuro and minimal scenes.
- Half-speed groove feel
- Heavy bass design
- Strong overlap with experimental bass music
1990s
Old-School Drum & Bass
A practical umbrella for early D&B and jungle-era production values before later subgenre lines became more fixed.
- Raw breaks
- Sampler-led production
- Pirate radio and dubplate culture
Mid-1990s
Jazzstep
A jazz-influenced strain often overlapping with atmospheric and intelligent D&B rather than operating as a fully separate scene.
- Jazz harmony and samples
- Live-instrument feel
- Smooth, spacious arrangements
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