UK garage (also known as
UKG or simply
garage) is an umbrella term that refers to several different varieties of modern
electronic dance musicElectronic dance music is electronic music that is produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered upon dance-based entertainment...
generally connected to the evolution of
houseHouse is a style of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American and Latino American communities, first in Chicago, then in New York City, New Jersey, Detroit and Miami...
in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
from early/mid-1990s.
The evolution of house music in the UK in the mid 1990s led to the term, as previously coined by the
Paradise GarageThe Paradise Garage was a nightclub notable in the history of modern gay and nightclub cultures and in dance and pop musics. It was founded by Michael Brody, its sole proprietor, and was located at 84 King Street, New York City. It operated from 1976 to 1987 and was the base for DJ Larry Levan. Its...
DJs, being applied to a new form of music also known as speed garage. In the late nineties the term
UK garage was settled upon by the scene. This style is now frequently combined with other forms of music like
hip hopHip hop music is a musical genre which developed alongside hip hop culture, and is commonly based on concepts of loop, rapping, freestyle, DJing, scratching, sampling and beatboxing. The music is used to express concerns of political, social, and personal issues...
,
rapRapping is the rhythmic spoken delivery of rhymes, wordplay, and poetry. Rapping is a primary ingredient in hip hop music, but the phenomenon predates hip hop culture by centuries. Rapping can be delivered over a beat or without accompaniment...
and
R&BContemporary R&B is a music genre of western popular music. Although the acronym “R&B” originates from its association with traditional rhythm and blues music, the term R&B is today most often used to define a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in the 1980s...
, all broadly filed under the description
urbanMainstream urban is a term used to describe a radio format similar to an urban contemporary format. The format differentiates itself due to two factors: playlist composition and target demographic...
music. The pronunciation of
UK garage is , rather than American
gə-, as this is the most common pronunciation of the word in the
British IslesThe British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include Great Britain, Ireland and numerous smaller islands. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Ireland...
.
Artists like
The Artful DodgerArtful Dodger are a British R&B & UK garage band from the city of Southampton, who became famous through their 2-Step hits and gave Craig David's career a boost after he appeared on their #2 hit "Re-Rewind" in December 1999....
,
So Solid CrewSo Solid Crew is an electronic and urban musical collective whose hits include "Oh No " and "21 Seconds", the later of which reached number one in the UK Singles Chart in August 2001. Another hit, "They Don't Know", reached number three in November 2001 and "Haters" got to number eight in January...
,
Heartless CrewHeartless Crew is a British UK garage sound system from London consisting of three members MC's Bushkin, Mighty Moe and DJ Fonti. Mighty Moe started out as a hip-hop DJ. His parents are from the Middle-East. Bushkin and Fonti have West Indian backgrounds....
,
The StreetsMichael Geoffery Skinner , more commonly known by his stage name The Streets, is a rapper from Birmingham, England.-Early life and beginnings:...
,
Shanks & BigfootShanks & Bigfoot were a British duo of dance music/UK garage producers Steven Meade & Danny Langsman, best known for their hit single "Sweet Like Chocolate". They were originally known as Doolally, recording the pirate anthem "Straight from the Heart" under this name in 1998. It was the first...
,
DJ Luck and MC NeatLuck & Neat are a London based musical duo composed of Joel Samuels and Michael Rose , mainly performing a combination of House music and UK garage....
, Sunship (Ceri Evans),
Oxide and NeutrinoOxide & Neutrino is a DJ and MC Electronic & Hardcore hip hop duo from London, consisting of Alex Rivers and Mark Osei-Tutu ....
and numerous others have made garage music mainstream in the UK, whilst
Dizzee Rascal'sDylan Kwabena Mills , better known by his stage name Dizzee Rascal, is a British rapper, songwriter and record producer of Ghanaian and Nigerian descent. His music is a blend of garage MCing, conventional rap, grime, ragga, and electronic music, with extremely eclectic samples and more exotic styles...
and
Wiley'sRichard Kylea Cowie , better known by his stage name Wiley is a British music producer and MC who was one of the original founders of the Roll Deep Crew...
arrival raised the profile of grime, an offshoot of garage. However on the
East London underground scene garage is distinctly different, it has a much more raw sound, placing a greater emphasis on electronic beats and rhythms.
Female garage artists include
Lisa MaffiaLisa Finch Maffia is an English singer-songwriter, model, musician and presenter, who originally came to the public's attention as the main female member of So Solid Crew. Whilst in So Solid, the singer notched up 5 top 20 hits, including a platinum selling single "21 Seconds" and a platinum...
,
Ms. Dynamite Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley and popularly known as Ms. Dynamite is a double Brit Award and three time MOBO Awards winning R&B, UK garage, and hip hop singer and rapper.-Biography:...
,
Gemma FoxGemma Fox was born on 2 December. She is a UK urban artist, best known for her album Messy which was released in May 2004. The lead single, "Girlfriends Story", was released in April of that year and featured MC Lyte...
,
Kele Le RocKele Le Roc is a British pop, UK garage and R&B singer.-Career:Le Roc began singing at the age of three, and she attended Langdon Comprehensive School in East Ham. She first found widespread acclaim in 1995 with the underground hit "Let Me Know"...
,
Shola AmaShola Ama is an English singer who scored her biggest hit in 1997 with a cover of Turley Richards' "You Might Need Somebody".-Early life and career:...
,
Sweet Female AttitudeSweet Female Attitude was a UK garage duo consisting of Leanne Brown and Catherine Cassidy, who are considered a one-hit wonder in the United Kingdom. Their April 2000 single "Flowers", with music video directed by Pete Nilsen and Ryan Davids, made it to number two in the UK Singles Chart...
,
Mis-TeeqMis-Teeq was a British R&B girl group, comprising singers Alesha Dixon, Su-Elise Nash and Sabrina Washington. Originally a quartet which included Zena McNally, the group was formed in 1999 and released three major studio albums and seven consecutive UK top ten singles, including international hits...
and Ladies First.
"'Garage' is one of the most mangled terms in dance music. The term derives from the Paradise GarageThe Paradise Garage was a nightclub notable in the history of modern gay and nightclub cultures and in dance and pop musics. It was founded by Michael Brody, its sole proprietor, and was located at 84 King Street, New York City. It operated from 1976 to 1987 and was the base for DJ Larry Levan. Its...
itself, but it has meant so many different things to so many different people that unless you're talking about a specific time and place, it is virtually meaningless. Part of the reason for this confusion (aside from various journalistic misunderstandings and industry misappropriations) is that the range of music played at the garage was so broad. The music we now call 'garage' has evolved from only a small part of the club's wildly eclectic soundtrack."
-- Frank Broughton/Bill Brewster in Last Night A DJ Saved My Life
History
In the UK, where
jungleOldschool Jungle is the name given to a style of electronic music that incorporates influences from genres including breakbeat hardcore, techno, rare groove and reggae/dub/dancehall. There is significant debate as to whether Jungle is a separate genre from Drum and Bass as some use the terms...
was very popular at the time, garage was played in a second room at jungle events. DJs started to speed up garage tracks to make them more suitable for the jungle audience in the UK. The media started to call this tempo-altered type of garage music "
speed garageSpeed garage is a type of music, associated with UK garage and hard dance scenes.-Characteristics:Speed garage has sped-up NY garage 4-to-the-floor rhythms. Snares are placed as over the 2nd and the 4th kickdrums, so in other places of the drum pattern. Speed garage tunes have warp, heavy...
",
4x44x4 garage is an umbrella term, associated with the UK garage scene. It can refer to:* Speed garage, a genre of undeground music, popular in mid-late 1990s....
and
2-step's2-step garage, or simply 2-step, is a typically British style of modern electronic dance music, and a relatively popular subgenre of UK GarageA transcription of this article is available as a PDF file..-Characteristics:...
predecessor. DJs would usually play dub versions (arrangements without vocals) of garage tracks, because pitch-shifting vocals could sometimes render the music unrecognizable (although sped up and
time stretchedTime stretching can refer to:* Audio timescale-pitch modification, in audio* Slow motion#Time stretching, in video* Time dilation, in physics * Time stretch analog-to-digital converter, in electronics...
vocals were an important part of the early jungle sound, and later played a key role in speed garage). The absence of vocals left space in the music for
MCsRapping is the rhythmic spoken delivery of rhymes, wordplay, and poetry. Rapping is a primary ingredient in hip hop music, but the phenomenon predates hip hop culture by centuries. Rapping can be delivered over a beat or without accompaniment...
, who started rhyming to the records. Since then MCs have become one of the vital aspects of Speed and UK garage parties and records. Early promoters of speed garage included the
Dreem Team and
Tuff Jam and
pirate radioPirate radio is illegal or unregulated radio transmission. Its etymology can be traced to the unlicensed nature of the transmission, but historically there has been occasional but notable use of sea vessels – fitting the most common perception of a pirate – as broadcasting bases...
stations like London Underground, Ice FM, Magic Fm, Mac Fm, Upfront Fm, and Freek Fm. During its initial phase, the speed garage scene was also known as "the Sunday scene", as initially speed garage promoters could only hire venues on Sunday evenings (venue owners preferred to save Friday and Saturday nights for more popular musical styles). Labels whose outputs would become synonymous with the emerging speed garage sound included Confetti, Public Demand, 500 Rekords, Spread Love and VIP. Debate continues to rage over the first true speed garage record; contenders include "So More (I Refuse)" by Industry Standard, "Love Bug" by Ramsey and Fen, 'RIP Groove' by Double-99, and
Armand van HeldenArmand Van Helden is an American record producer and remixer whose biggest commercial successes came from his remixes of the 1996 Tori Amos song "Professional Widow" , which reached number 1 in the UK Singles Chart in January 1997, and his own track "You Don't Know Me ," which was...
's remix of Tori Amos's "Professional Widow" . Speed garage tracks were characterised by a sped-up house-style beat, complimented by the rolling snares and reverse-warped basslines that were popular with the drum & bass producers of the time.
Speed garage already incorporated many aspects of today's UK garage sound like sub-bass lines,
raggaRaggamuffin music, usually abbreviated as ragga, is a sub-genre of dancehall music or reggae, in which the instrumentation primarily consists of electronic music...
vocals, spin backs and reversed drums. What changed over time, until the so called
2-step2-step garage, or simply 2-step, is a typically British style of modern electronic dance music, and a relatively popular subgenre of UK GarageA transcription of this article is available as a PDF file..-Characteristics:...
sound emerged, was the addition of further
funkFunk is an American music genre that originated in the late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, soul jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
y elements like
R&BContemporary R&B is a music genre of western popular music. Although the acronym “R&B” originates from its association with traditional rhythm and blues music, the term R&B is today most often used to define a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in the 1980s...
vocals, more shuffled beats and a different drum pattern. The most radical change from speed garage to 2-step was the removal of the 2nd and 4th bass kick from each bar (see "Characteristics" for more details). Although tracks with only two kick drum beats to a bar are perceived as being slower than the traditional four-to-the-floor beat, the listener's interest is maintained by the introduction of syncopating bass lines and the percussive use of other instruments such as pads and strings.
Among those credited with honing the speed garage sound,
Todd EdwardsTodd Edwards is a house music and UK Garage producer.-History:Todd Edwards began his musical career around 1992. He employs vocal reconstruction techniques to his songs, creating a unique vocal collage set to a four to the floor beat...
, is often cited as a seminal influence on the UK garage sound. The producer from New Jersey introduced a new way of working with vocals. Instead of having full verses and choruses, he picked out vocal phrases and played them like an instrument, using sampling technology . Often, individual syllables were reversed or pitch-shifted. This type of vocal treatment is still a key characteristic of the UK garage style.
The UK's counterpart to Todd Edwards was MJ Cole, a classically trained oboe and piano player, who had a string of chart and underground hits in the late 1990s and early 2000s, most notably with
"Sincere" and
"Crazy Love".
Arguably one of the earliest examples of a
2-step2-step garage, or simply 2-step, is a typically British style of modern electronic dance music, and a relatively popular subgenre of UK GarageA transcription of this article is available as a PDF file..-Characteristics:...
track is 'Never Gonna Let You Go' by Tina Moore. Jess Jackson was responsible for many garage records but one which stood out was "Hobsons Choice". The B Side of this record changed the UK garage scene from funky and soulful to dark and bassy.
The producer duos
Shanks & BigfootShanks & Bigfoot were a British duo of dance music/UK garage producers Steven Meade & Danny Langsman, best known for their hit single "Sweet Like Chocolate". They were originally known as Doolally, recording the pirate anthem "Straight from the Heart" under this name in 1998. It was the first...
with
Sweet Like Chocolate"Sweet Like Chocolate" is a number 1 hit single by the musical duo Shanks & Bigfoot with vocalist Sharon Woolf. The track was later added to the duo's album Swings and Roundabouts....
and The Artful Dodger, aka Pete Devereux and Mark Hill, who (together with
Craig DavidCraig Ashley David is an British R&B singer-songwriter. He has released four studio albums: Born To Do It, Slicker Than Your Average, The Story Goes..., Trust Me and a Greatest Hits album. The singer has sold over 13 million albums worldwide.-Early life:David was born in Southampton, the son of a...
) were very successful with the track
"Re-rewind", which became an anthem for the 2-step scene. After the platinum-selling success of Shanks & Bigfoot's
Sweet Like Chocolate"Sweet Like Chocolate" is a number 1 hit single by the musical duo Shanks & Bigfoot with vocalist Sharon Woolf. The track was later added to the duo's album Swings and Roundabouts....
released the year before, the floodgates had been opened. Although Re-rewind was denied a #1 position by
Cliff RichardSir Cliff Richard OBE is a British singer-songwriter and entrepreneur.With his backing group The Shadows, Richard dominated the British popular music scene in the late 1950s and early 1960s, before and during The Beatles' first year in the charts...
, it was also a platinum seller, one of the garage scene's first and last.
2002 saw an evolution into two main directions: the first being that, 2-step was moving away from its funky and soul-oriented sound into a darker direction called
grime (now a genre in its own right - generally no longer considered or classified as UK garage but retaining BPMs which usually range from 138-143 beats per minute, a common element in modern garage). During this period traditional UK garage was pushed back underground amongst the bad publicity emanating from the tougher side of the genre, and publicized violence surrounding members of the
So Solid CrewSo Solid Crew is an electronic and urban musical collective whose hits include "Oh No " and "21 Seconds", the later of which reached number one in the UK Singles Chart in August 2001. Another hit, "They Don't Know", reached number three in November 2001 and "Haters" got to number eight in January...
.
In 2007, DJs such as DJ Nabstar, DJ Charma, DJ Elski, MistaPlum and Matt Farley have been involved in the promoting and revival of UK garage's popularity, with producers like Delinquent, Ayklogic, Control-S, DJ Ade, Marvel, Solution, Duncan Powell and Danny Dubz producing fresh new UK garage, also known as "new skool" UK garage.
So called "old skool" UK garage producers MJ Cole, Sunship, Wideboys- to name a few, have produced new UK garage to give the scene a huge push, which also provides a nostalgic link to the "old skool" UK garage scene that everybody remembers.
The end of 2007 saw "new skool" UK garage push to the mainstream again with notable tracks like Delinqent's "My Destiny", T2's "Heartbroken" (which some class as Bassline rather than UK garage) and Wideboys' "Snowflake", reaching the mainstream charts. This was topped by
DJ EZDJ EZ is a DJ from Tottenham, North London, specialising in UK garage music. He is referred to as "UK's Number One" within the UK garage scene.- Biography :...
releasing "
Pure Garage Rewind Back to the Old SkoolPure Garage is a successful series of UK garage compilation albums mixed by DJ EZ.In January 2000, Warner Music chose Kiss 100's DJ EZ to mix Pure Garage, a new garage compilation CD. Pure Garage...
", which contained three CD's of "old skool" UK garage and a fourth CD with fresh "new skool" UK garage.
The end of 2007 and beginning of 2008 has seen the rising popularity of an off-shoot of UK garage, called
basslineBassline is a type of music related to UK garage that originated from speed garage, and shares characteristics with fellow subgenres dubstep and grime for their emphasis on bass. The style originated in Sheffield around 2002....
. Artists like DJ Q, Riplash and Sus, DJ BDM & Ender MC, MC Bones, Northern Line Records, Brett Maverick, T2, Delinquent have been producing fresh new bassline, and currently the UK garage scene contains a significant number of bassline producers, who are strongly promoting and pushing this sub genre of UK garage.
2009 See's the revival sounds of "old skool" UK Garage with a track by DJ Oxide (So Solid) releasing his new single "You Know" Featuring Spencer which is taking the old "publicized violence" and any bad taste out of the mouth of any Uk Garage fan and giving life back to the scene.
One popular mutation of UK Garage is
DubstepDubstep is a genre of electronic music that has its roots in London's early 2000s UK garage scene. Musically, dubstep is distinguished by its 2step rhythm, or use of snare sounds similar to 2step garage and grime, and an emphasis on bass, often producing "dark" sounds, but just as frequently...
, originally a dark take on the 2step Garage sound, is now the sound of underground bass music in many UK towns and cities. Dubstep was originated by Garage producers such as Wookie, Zed Bias, El-b and Artwork (Arthur Smith of DND), who inspired a new generation of producers such as Skream, Benga, Kode9 and Digital Mystikz to create what is now known as Dubstep.
A current scene of people offshotting from Dubstep, taking it back to it's UK Garage roots and fusing 2step beats with influences from Wonky, Chiptune, Skwee and more is often called
Future Garage"Future Garage" is a catchall term for producers/DJs, mostly associated with the Dubstep scene, creating new sounds with the UK Garage template. Other names such as Psychedelic Garage and Detroit 2step were also used on forums to described these artists, but Future Garage has recently stuck and has...
.
Some UK Garage/Grime/Bassline/Dubstep producers are leaning towards a newer evolution called UK Funky, often misnamed Funky House, a term for commercial House music. UK Funky takes production values from many different shades of UK Garage music and blends them, at a standard
House MusicHouse is a style of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discothèques catering to the African-American and Latino American communities, first in Chicago, then in New York City, New Jersey, Detroit and Miami...
tempo, with tribal style percussion. There are many different takes on Funky, including producers such as Apple, Lil Silva, Roska and Scratcha DVA, who have a harder, more syncopated sound, and other producers aiming for a more commericial, RNB friendly audience, such as Crazy Cousinz.
External links