House Music Genres

What is “House Music”

House Music is a genre of music recognized by having a dominant 4-on-the-floor kickdrum beat and hi-hats that are often on the off-beat between 115 and 130 BPM.  Originating from turn-table DJs in Detroit, Chicago, and New York spinning repetitious kick drum and hi hat heavy beats mashed up with other popular songs and samples, the genre evolved to be largely electronic by the 2000s and 2010s, taking some influence from the more traditionally electronic and synthesizer driven “techno” of the 90s European techno scene.  People who do not know house music at all often see no difference between Techno, House, Trance, EDM, etc, but the differences are in fact distinct.

House Music is really comprised of a whole segmented world of sub-genres that the fans gravitate towards to and learn to recognize as very distinctly different than the rest of the types of house music.  Whether it’s minimal house, tech house, disco house, garage, bangers, bass, or other more obscure types of house music, fans will find their favorite “flavor” of house music and often prefer it over the rest, as it develops set lists of tracks that all have the same primary values and likewise the scenes that develop at their events will also have commonalities in the vibe, attire, and type of people that attend.

Though people who are not knowledgeable about this type of music it may seem like overkill or like “it’s all the same”, people who love house music can hear the differences very clearly, like a wine connoisseur tasting the clear difference between a Merlot and a Pinot Noir though they’re both red wines, both will find the differences well-defined and a big part of how they find more of what they love, honing in on certain aspects that they love that help define each sub genre.  Check out this list of genres and their characteristics below, along with some examples to listen to so you can hear the difference for yourself.

Genres and Sub-Genres of House Music

Some of the main House music genres and sub-genres include (but are not limited to):

1. Minimal House
   1. Min-Tech
2. Tech House
   1. Microhouse
3. Acid House
   1. Hypnotic House
   2. Trouse
   3. Psychedelic
4. Deep House
   1. Jazz House
   2. Soul House
   3. Funky House
   4. Slap House
5. Chill House
   1. Lounge
   2. Ambient House
   3. Dream Trance
6. Disco House
   1. Nu-Disco
   2. Future Funk
7. Electro House
   1. Glitch House
   2. Fidget House
   3. Complextro
8. Big Room House
9. Pop House
   1. Vocal House
10. Bass House
11. Progressive House
12. Techno
13. Classic House
    1. Chicago House
    2. Detroit House
    3. Garage House
    4. UK Garage
    5. French House
14. Electro House
    1. Fidget House
    2. Glitch House
15. Hard
    1. Hardstyle
    2. Hardbass
    3. Hard Bounce
    4. Scouse House
    5. Chicago Hard House
    6. UK Hard House
16. Hip House
    1. G-House
    2. Booty House
    3. Rap House
17. Latin House
18. Tropical House (Trop House)
19. Jungle House
20. Tribal House
21. Trance
22. Moombahton

Keep in mind that this is not ALL of the sub-genres of house, and there are lots of combinations, like Trouse being half Trance, half house, and many other hybrids that combine multiple sub-genres of house styles together.  Trance fans will also not like being grouped in with the rest of “house” music because of it’s own distinct sound and scene, but it is in fact a 4-on-the-floor type of house music, too.  Still, it is recognized as it’s own world of electronic music that does stay somewhat separated from the rest of house music with its own raves and festivals where the entire lineup is entirely Trance without much in the slightly lower BPMs that more characterize House.

This list will continue to evolve and we welcome your feedback.