What is techstep?

Techstep is the cold, machine-built strain of drum & bass. Synthetic and sampled sounds, hardstep kicks and snares, and a clinical, sci-fi mood pulled from industrial and hard Belgian techno. It’s dnb with the pretty parts stripped out.

The name was coined in 1996 by Ed Rush and Trace, working with engineer Nico at the No U-Turn label. DJ Trace’s 1995 remix of “Mutant Jazz” and Ed Rush’s “Killamanjaro” in 1996 set the template. It was a reaction against the jazzier, more virtuosic turn dnb had taken, and it became the dominant sound of the late 1990s.

Techstep is the root of neurofunk, the harder side of the family.