Follow TV Tropes

Following

Trance

Go To

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/trance3_12112015.png

Primary Stylistic Influences:
Secondary Stylistic Influences:

"I try to explain this to people - trance is a feeling. You have this whole debate about EDM or electro, progressive, progressive house, trap, or whatever nonsense. Trance is an addiction and I think everyone listening right now would relate to that."

Trance is a genre of Electronic Music with many distinct subgenres. It is often composed with synthesizers, drum machines, and computer software programs, though certain variants and songs may incorporate instruments as well, and is characterized by a tempo typically lying between 125 to 150 beats per minute (BPM), repeating melodic phrases, and a musical form that distinctly builds tension and elements throughout a track often culminating in one to two "peaks" or "drops". While often purely instrumental, vocals in trance are just as common.

What sets trance apart from other genres of electronic music like Techno and House Music is its greater emphasis on melody and structure, aiming to evoke an emotional response and a feeling of being lost in the music from listeners (hence, feeling hypnotized, or in a trance) by mixing layers of different sounds with a distinctly foreshadowed build-up and release. A characteristic of virtually all trance music is a mid-song climax followed by a soft breakdown disposing of beats and percussion entirely, and leaving the melody and/or atmospherics to stand alone for an extended period before gradually building up again.

While trance's origins can be traced as far back as The '80s with certain acid house tracks and early electronic music produced in Europe, it's considered to really have begun in The '90s when a few tracks that focused on regular 4/4 time, 32 beat phrases and kick drums started seeping out of Germany. It was slightly faster than house music but it built up much more slowly while also mixing stylistic elements of ambient. Two tracks in particular, "We Came in Peace" by Dance 2 Trance and The Age of Love's self-titled song, stood out as the groundwork for the dance genre, which would go on to split into several different subgenres with different atmospherics and aims for what kind of state it wanted to induce in the listener.

The subgenres are as follows:

  • Psychedelic Trance
    • Also called psytrance or just "psy", it is easily the most recognizable form of trance alongside the Progressive and Uplifting varieties. Has a fast, energetic tempo (around 140-150 BPM), a very distinctive bass and percussion style that pounds constantly throughout the song, complex rhythmic overlays drawn from funk, techno, House Music, and Synth-Pop using drums and other instruments, and a more "manipulated" sound achieved by combining and overlaying various sound effects such as distortion, pitch bends, filter sweeps and flanger onto the riffs and melodies. Psytrance is notable for its heavier focus on sub-bass and binaural beats (low-frequency beats that arise from interfering bass frequencies played in unison over different stereo channels) than other trance styles. More modern releases often have Electro House, dubstep and neurofunk influences.
    • Notable artists include Astral Projection, 1200 Micrograms, Infected Mushroom, Astrix, and Syndrome.
    • Psytrance is also notable for its multiple spin-off genres which include Psybient (the Lighter and Softer variant, influenced by House Music and downtempo), Psycore (the Darker and Edgier variant influenced by Hardcore Techno, particularly gabber), and Psybreak (a fusion of psy and Drum and Bass).

  • Goa Trance
    • Tends to have a more "organic", spiritual and relaxing sound than psytrance, but is otherwise pretty similar. Draws influences from folk, tribal and world music, primarily traditional Indian Goa music, as well as EBM and Industrial. The tempo typically lies in the 130–150 BPM range, although some tracks may have a tempo as low as 110 or as high as 160 BPM. Generally 8–12 minutes long, Goa Trance tracks often have funky basslines and tend to focus on steadily building energy throughout, using changes in percussion patterns and more intricate and layered melodies as the music progresses in order to build a hypnotic and intense feel. Acoustic instrumentation is sometimes used, and sampling is frequent, with liberal use of Sanskrit chanting or vocal snippets taken from science fiction movies and documentary shows relating to mysterious or unconventional topics.
    • Notable artists include Goa Gil (considered the Trope Maker for the genre), Man With No Name, Hilight Tribe, Juno Reactor (earlier works, now also incorporates World Music), and Hallucinogen.

  • Full-on Trance
    • Generally has a more powerful, cerebral, explosive, and overwhelming sound in comparison to the aforementioned psy and Goa trance, as the name suggests. Distinguishing features of the genre include high tempos (often around 140-160 BPM), powerful bass, heavy use of supersaws and acid synths, extended leads that build into lush climaxes, multi-layered instrumentation that creates a massive wall of sound, and inclusion of all sorts of sounds from other electronic music genres like Electro House, Industrial, Eurobeat and Harsh Noise, to the point where the term "full-on" has become a catch-all term for psytrance fusions that do not fit the style-blending conventions of the genre
    • Notable artists include 1200 Micrograms, Astrix, Avalon, Electric Universe, Talamasca, GMS, Juno Reactor (later material), Protonica, and Sesto Sento.

  • Tribal Psytrance
    • Sitting at around 138-140 BPM, Tribal Psy has an even more raw and organic sound than conventional Goa or psychedelic trance, achieved through very deep, dark basslines, intricate and layered percussion patterns derived from various folk music styles, an emphasis on more "natural" samples, and lush, traditional instrumentation. Tribal psy focuses more on peak moments in its composition, and drops often feature triplet rhythms and layered percussion rolls that aim to bring listeners into a state of primal ecstasy. As with Goa trance, chanting in exotic languages is very frequent and carefully selected to fit the mood of a particular track.
    • Notable artists include Blastoyz, Hilight Tribe, Mandragora, Omiki, Reality Test, Sagi Abitbul, Shanti People, and Vini Vici.

  • Uplifting Trance
    • Also known as "euphoric", "epic", "melodic", or "emotional" trance, Uplifting Trance is Exactly What It Says on the Tin, being much lighter in tone than the aforementioned psy, full-on and Goa. As a general rule of thumb, tempo lies in the 136-142 range. Tracks' chord progressions usually rest on a major chord, and the balance between major and minor chords in a progression will determine how "happy" or "sad" the progression sounds. Uplifting features longer major chord progressions in all elements (lead synth, bass, and treble), extended breakdowns, and relegation of arpeggiation (the melodic part of the song, usually consisting of sawtooth or square-wave synth sounds) to the background while bringing harmonic elements to the fore (the "background fill", usually consisting of wash effects, Echoing Acoustics, or synth choir/voice/string chord progressions). Occasionally, uplifting artists will employ harder sounds such as supersaws, distorted synths and powerful basslines to add energy to their tracks, but generally the style is characterized by an overall euphoric and flowing sound.
    • Notable artists include Super 8 & Tab, Armin Van Buuren, RAM, Above & Beyond, Tiesto, Daniel Kandi, Aly & Fila, and Ferry Corsten.

  • Dream Trance
    • Originating from Italy, Dream trance is a precursor of sorts to Uplifting (and one of the codifying sounds of modern EDM in general). Dream trance is very melodic with a moderate tempo (sitting at 130 BPM) with a calmer atmosphere meant to help ravers calm down after a night of raging out. Use of strings, piano, and other classical instruments is frequent.
    • Notable artists include Robert Miles (considered the dream trance producer), DJ Dado, Ian Van Dahl, Zhi-Vago, and W.P. Alex Remark.

  • Hard Trance
    • A loud, aggressive style originating in Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands, drawing inspiration from New Beat, Hi-NRG, and Hardcore Techno. It is characterized by high tempos (140-180 BPM), hard and downpitched (or even gated) kicks, fully resonant basslines, abrasive synths and an increased amount of sound effects applied in the composition. Early tracks are fairly simplistic and can sound like slowed-down Eurobeat or gabber tracks, while more modern tracks have a more polished sound that can incorporate hardstyle influences such as sidechaining and layered kicks.
    • Notable artists include Flutlicht, Cosmic Gate (early material), Indecent Noise, Mauro Picotto, Renegade System, Sunburst, DJ Scot Project, System D, and Technikal.

  • Eurotrance
    • The sound that brought trance, and EDM in general, to worldwide popularity. Also called "mainstream", "commercial" or "festival" trance, Eurotrance is a spin-off of the aforementioned hard trance, and is easily recognizable for an overall big and catchy sound that makes crowds dance like crazy for hours on end. Typically slower than hard trance with tempos ranging from 128-150 BPM and tends to use more supersaw with leads often layered on top of each other, and it is somewhat similar to uplifting trance but can be distinguished from it by its more abrasive sound. Primarily European (with most releases being of Dutch or German origin), but more popular elsewhere. The genre was, along with psytrance, hard trance, and tech trance, very popular during The '90s and the early 2000s before suffering due to being derided as "cheesy" and "generic", but in recent years its influence has gradually become more noticeable, backed by listeners' demand for more "pure" trance sounds.
    • Notable artists include Darude, Cascada, Basshunter, Dash Berlin, Alex M.O.R.P.H., Signum, Insomniac, Yuzo Koshiro, and Tiesto.

  • UK Hard Trance
    • A more recent stylistic development of hard trance that emerged in the United Kingdom and Ireland, it spun off from the Eurotrance and early hard trance sound and combines elements of both trance music styles. It is characterized by its brisk tempos (around 138-148 BPM), flowing Eurobeat-esque leads, pulsing or rolling basslines, use of complex musical accents and heavy use of vocal samples. While primarily a regional style, it is seeing interest elsewhere, especially in North America and Australia.
    • Notable artists include Technikal, AlexMo, Dean Zone, Carl Nicholson, Lab4, NG Rezonance, Jody 6, and Criostasis

  • Progressive Trance
    • Known for a tempo ranging from 128-136 BPM, long massive build-ups and subtle breakdowns, and eschewing the louder and more abrasive synth sounds of Eurotrance, hard, tech, and psy in favor of a subdued, deeper, more serious tone with greater emphasis on atmospherics, evolving sounds and musical motifs. Songs typically clock in at 7 minutes and longer, and is the genre of choice for extended sets. Commonly, many artists blend elements of uplifting and progressive trance together on their tracks, resulting in a softer and more ambient but still "happy" feeling sound, while others blend psy or Goa sounds with progressive trance, resulting in a dreamier and more hypnotic soundscape. Some artists also blend progressive trance and House Music elements to create even Lighter and Softer tracks that are commonly labeled as "trouse".
    • Notable artists include Nitrous Oxide, Above & Beyond, Sasha, Armin Van Buuren, Markus Schulz, Protoculture, Liquid Soul, Jorn Van Deynhoven, Paul van Dyk, Cosmic Gate, Oliver Smith and Grum.

  • Big Room Trance
    • An emergent trance subgenre that combines progressive trance musical aesthetics with the "big room" style of Electro House. Song tempos lie within the 125-136 BPM range and usually begin with a rhythmic drop before progressing into a typical trance build-up and release. While not as hugely popular as its house counterpart, it still has a large following among trance circles.
    • Notable artists include Markus Schulz, Tritonal, MaRLo, NWYR, Mark Sixma, Ilan Bluestone, Bobina and Shapov. Several progressive and uplifting trance artists such as Ferry Corsten and Orjan Nilsen have incorporated big room elements in their works as well.

  • Nitzhonot Trance
    • Originating in Israel, Nitzhonot is a faster, harder, and more stripped-down form of Uplifting, and often incorporates elements of psy and Goa trance. Tempo lies in the 145-155 range, and songs feature pitched offbeat basslines and exotic-sounding melodies. The genre ended up suffering due to many cheap, rushed, and similar-sounding songs that more or less crippled it through saturation. It, however, paved the way for psytrance's rise to popularity in the mid-2000s and the breakout of the Israeli trance movement into the global EDM scene.
    • Notable artists include Eyal Barkan, Mihabra, and Cyan.

  • Dark Psytrance
    • Obscure genre originating in Germany. Exactly What It Says on the Tin - a Darker and Edgier version of psytrance. Elements such as sparse instrumentation, use of minor keys and liberal use of mysterious-sounding samples are often used to create a suspenseful feeling in listeners.
    • Notable artists include Xenomorph (the original dark psy artist), Dark Soho, and Para Halu.

  • Suomisaundi
    • Originating in Finland (hence the name), Suomisaundi is an underground trance style that combines modern trance production with a decidedly freeform and "retro" aesthetic. Tracks range from 135-145 BPM and are often very melodic, drawing inspiration from acid and psychedelic trance, as well as including elements derived from synthwave, chiptune, funk and smooth jazz, to create a sound vaguely reminiscent of 80's electronic music hits.
    • Notable artists include James Reipas, Troll Scientists, and Puoskari

  • J-Trance
    • Trance music from Japan, with stylistic roots in the harder trance subgenres (Euro, hard, tech and psy). Identifiable in many cases by a persistent unison lead playing the melody, the Truck Driver's Gear Change, heavy Eurobeat influences or by Japanese vocals. Especially huge with fans of anime music, with most releases being remixes of opening/ending themes from popular series; original compositions are just as plentiful.
    • Notable artists include Tetsuya Komuro (credited as an early pioneer of the subgenre), Yuzo Koshiro, Yoji Biomehanika, Satoshi Yaginuma (known for his J-pop projects fripSide and ALTIMA), I've Sound, globe, savage genius, livetune, NAGO, Hiroyuki Oda (as well as his HSP alias), kors k, Nhato, and Plutian.

  • Balearic Trance
    • Originating from Spain (particularly the party destination of Ibiza), Balearic trance has a typically more moderate tempo, averaging around 130 BPM. Expect warm, wistful and atmospheric vibes perfect for sunset listening sessions, liberal use of guitars with a Spanish flavor, and use of seaside elements like the sound of seagull calls and ocean waves to evoke the sensation of a beachside party.
    • Notable artists include Roger Shah, Chicane, Energy 52, Solarstone, and Humate.

  • Tech Trance
    • Originating in Germany, tech trance, as the name implies, draws influences from both techno and trance with complicated electronic rhythms and dirtier, harder, more synthesized, and generally more "robotic" sounds than the other, more mainstream subgenres. There's more delay and distortion, coupled with repetition, a bold 4/4 beat with pitched sub-bass, precise rhythms, glitching and scratch effects, and minimal vocals. Rose to popularity alongside Eurotrance and psy in the early 2000s and later diversified alongside other trance subgenres. It is commonly played alongside hard trance or psytrance at peak moments during extended sets.
    • Notable artists include Oliver Lieb, Darude, Humate, Marcel Woods, Marco V, Indecent Noise, Simon Patterson, Heatbeat, Timo Maas, EverLight and Genix.

  • Hands Up
    • A more mainstream derivative of tech trance that emerged in the early 2000s. It fuses the tech trance sound with elements derived from Eurodance, synthpop, and, in newer releases, hardstyle, and is mainly characterized by fairly high tempos (around 140-146 BPM but can go as high as 160 BPM), booming bass with a distinctive bouncy timbre, liberal use of hoovers, square waves and other abrasive sounds, short build-and-release cycles, repetitive supersaw leads and autotuned vocals. It is often confused for the similar-sounding Nightcore.
    • Notable artists include DJ Manian (Cascada / Tune Up!), Groove Coverage, Pulsedriver, Rob Mayth, Alex Megane, and Special D.

  • Hi-Tech
    • Another tech trance offshoot that emerged in the 2010s, it has a noticeably fast-paced and "choppy" sound achieved through complex basslines, syncopated 4/4 rhythms, heavy sampling and an overabundance of glitching "beatgrid" effects. It is commonly associated with the UK and Japanese trance scenes, though artists in the global "138" movement dabble in it as well. It should be noted, that "hi-tech" is also used in psytrance circles to describe psy-infused Hardcore Techno, otherwise known as psycore.
    • Notable artists include Simon Patterson, Sam Jones, Shugz, and Richard Tanselli for the UK scene, as well as kors k, lapix, and Camellia for the Japanese scene. Other artists who produce this style include Blastoyz, Chris Schweizer, Impulse Wave, and Waio.

  • Acid Trance
    • Originating in Belgium, acid trance uses the "acid" sound created on the Roland TB-303, by playing a sequenced melody while altering the instrument's filter cutoff frequency, resonance, envelope modulation, and accent controls, resulting in soft, deep, bouncy basslines and piercing riffs. Shares many similarities with acid house, but can be distinguished from it by its slower approach to song progression and more melodic sound. Nowadays, artists fuse acid with hard, psychedelic, or tech trance, resulting in a more abrasive sound than early acid trance tracks.
    • Notable artists include Art of Trance, A*S*Y*S, Electric Skychurch, Hardfloor, Hennes & Cold, Kai Tracid, Ultraform, and Warp Brothers.

There are also various artists who are harder to pin down, such as S.U.N. Project, which could only be described as "rock trance", and Gareth Emery, whose style is akin to a mix of trance, progressive house and pop music, which the artist himself calls "simples".

Trance has also influenced various other genres. For instance, from 1999 to the early 2000's, the Industrial scene began to incorporate various influences from trance resulting in a subgenre called "Futurepop." The modern strains of Eurobeat and Hardcore Techno (hardstyle and happy hardcore in particular) often utilize trance-based melodies, beats and song structures. Some Melodic Death Metal and Metalcore bands have also incorporated elements of the trance genre into their music. Even Dubstep has shown influences of trance, namely the Lighter and Softer chillstep subgenre, though some brostep tracks can feature certain elements to contrast with the dirty drops. More ambient/softer-leaning House Music tracks have elements of trance to them as well.

Something to keep in mind is there is a lot of overlap with these subgenres. To make matters worse, many artists have dabbled in and blended the subgenres even to a point where prog-Goa, prog-psytrance, uplifting psy, psy-tech, prog-tech, uplifting tech ("upliftech"), and uplifting prog ("proglifting") have become recognized as standalone microgenres.

Not to be confused with the movie.

Tropes associated with the genre:

  • Ambient: Trance began with DJs attempting to fuse the genre's stylistic elements with house music, and since then, trance has grown to incorporate influences from the genre in varying degrees, from the ethereal and atmospheric sounds of dream trance, prog and uplifting to the Echoing Acoustics and sonic trickery of psy and Goa and the layers of effects applied to the harder, techier strains.
  • Auto-Tune: Like many other electronic genres, trance sometimes utilizes the software to go for a more "distorted" sound or to add audio effects to vocals rather than to correct pitch. It's much more prevalent in psytrance and tech trance, where the sparse vocals are made to sound more alien or robotic to add to the Mind Screw effect.
  • Boléro Effect: Perhaps the most distinguishing element of the genre. Songs will often start with a light intro or a drum beat, slowly adding in more instruments as the musical progression builds up before releasing all the tension and shifting into a new song movement. Some styles such as psy, tech, Euro, or hard trance employ multiple build-and-release cycles to maintain an air of excitement and drive dancers crazy, while other genres such as uplifting, Goa and prog approach musical progression more slowly, gradually adding new sounds and building up tension before a massive release. Extended sets are also known for evoking this, taking their time first building up with calmer, ambient songs playing for some time before steadily building up the energy throughout and then playing heavier, faster tracks at the last hour or so.
  • Broken Base: Trance is quite possibly one of the most divisive genres in electronic music with arguments mainly centering on what qualifies as "true" trance. The fandom continues to schism at an alarming rate due to the ever-increasing number of trance variants in the current scene and the many different directions the genre has been going, especially in the increasingly commercialized climate of the 2010's Electronic Music scene.
  • Classical Music: It's either an in-joke or a serious comment amongst fans that trance, especially uplifting and (to a lesser extent) progressive trance, is the Spiritual Successor to classical. Some artists are known to incorporate classical instruments (mainly violins and other string instruments) into songs, and the two genres share many common characteristics such as attention to songwriting and arrangement (as with classical, virtuosity is strictly observed), long tracks that (usually) eschew the usual verse-chorus-verse formula for song structures based around extended movements, and the same goal of evoking an emotional response (the "immersive" or "trance" state) among listeners.
  • Doing It for the Art: A lot of trance artists tend towards this, often making music as an artistic outlet or simply to entertain. This is also something of an Enforced Trope in the scene due to its greater emphasis on musical exploration and individuality than other popular electronic subgenres.
  • Electronic Music: For the most part. Trance can incorporate traditional non-electronic instrumentation such as strings, woodwinds, and tribal percussion but the genre is mostly characterized by a generally electronic sound.
  • Epic Riff: A common feature of most trance music is its emphasis on long, flowing melodic synth riffs that build up in intensity over the course of a particular track. A great number of trance tracks have enjoyed lasting popularity thanks largely to their memorable main riffs, and genres like Eurotrance and uplifting trance have made riff-driven compositions a requirement.
  • Epic Rocking: Many trance songs go on for 6 minutes or longer, focusing on long build-ups before going into a breakdown. Trance DJ sets and mixes are also known for going for hours on end, intending to take the listener on a musical journey.
  • Ethereal Choir: Vocals on uplifting trance songs are often this, with soprano singers (usually female) belting out grand, soaring and operatic vocals. Some of the darker trance tracks, meanwhile, go for Ominous Latin Chanting or, in the case of psy or Goa trance, Sanskrit chants or similarly styled singing in less familiar foreign languages.
  • Follow the Leader: The so-called "138" movement in contemporary trance, so named after a Running Gag in the A State Of Trance radioshow where tracks from hard, psy, and tech trance producers, which typically had a tempo of 138 BPM or higher, would be played at the latter half of each episode as a reaction to slower progressive and big room trance tracks that were popular in the early 2010s. The faster and more powerful sound proved hugely popular among newer trance fans, and many artists began producing harder-tinged tracks at that tempo. By the latter part of the decade a new wave of artists producing trance at 138 BPM or higher has emerged, with labels such as Armada and Black Hole Recordings widely promoting the uptempo style, and dedicated labels such as Outburst and VII almost exclusively catering to the demand for 138 BPM or higher tracks.
  • Genre-Busting: Goa trance is basically electronic trance music mixed with Indian Goa music and all sorts of folk sounds. Uplifting trance meanwhile is known for its near-seamless fusions and similarities with European classical music. Many producers are known to mix several different trance subgenres in songs and sets together, and trance is generally known for being easy to mix with other genres of music, electronic or otherwise.
  • Genre Popularizer:
    • Klaus Schulze was credited as an early pioneer of the genre during The '90s, his album Trancfer being a Trope Codifier for what would later become the signature trance sound.
    • Younger generation fans, meanwhile, cite Armin Van Buuren's A State Of Trance radio show as a driving force in bringing trance music into mainstream acceptance, ultimately inspiring several other trance-centric broadcasts such as Aly & Fila's Future Sound of Egypt and Ferry Corsten's Countdown.
  • Genre Roulette: Extended sets tend to invoke this, with most artists transitioning between different trance styles throughout their sets, depending on the audience's overall energy or mood. For example, a DJ might start off with progressive or dream trance, then slowly build up to a more uplifting sound, then raise the energy with some Goa, psy, or tech, and then peaking with harder and faster tracks at the last hour or so.
    • It is also not uncommon for trance artists to change their preferred trance style throughout their career, either to keep up with trends within the subgenre or as an artistic outlet for ideas that find better expression in a style other than what they normally produce. For example, an artist who started out playing uplifting or progressive trance may later shift to (or dabble in) harder styles like tech, acid, or psy, and conversely some artists who started out in the harder styles can experiment with more uplifting or progressive material later on.
  • Germans Love David Hasselhoff: While the genre has its origins in Germany and surrounding countries and is popular all over the world, it's especially huge in the Netherlands, Japan, the United Kingdom, Egypt, and Australia.
    • The psychedelic and full-on varieties are very popular in Israel with many big name acts like Astral Projection, Future Prophecy and Infected Mushroom coming from there. Psytrance scenes have also popped up in South Africa, northern Europe and India (thanks to its history with the Goa rave scene).
    • Latin America has a growing underground trance scene largely fueled by the rise of the "138" movement, with genres such as uplifting, progressive, and tech being popularized by artists such as Heatbeat, Chris Schweizer, Scorz, Impulse Wave, and many others.
    • Zigzagged in the USA - trance is arguably one of the most well-loved genres of electronic dance music, even though commercially, it falls behind its harder sounding brethren. Nevertheless, the genre's steady growth since the years of the American "EDM Boom" has surprised even the biggest names in the business.
  • I Have Many Names: Many of the artists listed here are either going by stage names or have numerous alter-egos that they release material that deviates from their usual productions under.
  • Instrumentals: Like most forms of electronic dance music, trance places greater emphasis on beats and melody. In fact, so many songs and artists are instrumental that Vocal Trance became its own genre.
  • Limited Lyrics Song: Combining Epic Rocking with a heavier emphasis on instrumentals, and what results are lyrics on the simpler side. Uplifting will have emotional lyrics about subjects such as love, happiness, and other positive emotions; psy meanwhile will have samples or sentence-length lyrics talking about strange topics (be it supernatural, paranormal, extraterrestrial, scientific, etc) to enhance the psychedelic effect.
  • Long Runners: Many of the artists featured on this page started their music careers around The '90s, some even earlier. Many of them also maintain dedicated followers going as far back as the beginning of their careers.
  • Mind Screw: Most psytrance and Goa tracks are known for invoking this by taking relatively simple dance tracks and adding in all sorts of random noises, samples, melodies and effects to throw off the listener's expectations of how the music is supposed to sound, and in the latter's case, sounds from acoustic instruments (particularly traditional Indian instruments) to up the ante.
  • Minimalism: Psytrance has a lot of influences drawn from minimalism, mainly focusing on pounding rhythms, wobbling basslines, repetition and ambient noises in the background. Some mainstream psy artists such as Infected Mushroom and Vini Vici deliberately go for a simpler sound to increase fan appeal and create a more danceable sound. Several hard and tech trance artists such as Mauro Picotto and Indecent Noise also opt for a minimal sound in their releases.
  • Orchestral Bombing: Very common in uplifting trance, and sometimes used in other trance styles to create a more powerful, bombastic sound.
  • Periphery Demographic:
    • The genre as a whole is popular with Rhythm Game players, and many trance artists have produced music for such games.
    • The uplifting, progressive, Hands Up, and Eurotrance subgenres are very popular among Otaku and fans of Japanese Pop Music, as many J-trance artists have had their songs featured in various anime and Visual Novel productions.
    • Psytrance and Goa trance enjoy great popularity among stoners and New Age enthusiasts, thanks in part to the Goa rave scene's historical association with hippie culture, mysticism and recreational drug use.
  • Popularity Polynomial: The genre began in the early 90s, and grew to popularity within the then-growing European club and party scene through the decade, splintering off to several different subgenres. Trance continued to maintain a very dedicated fandom that gradually grew more and more through the Turn of the Millennium all over the world, eventually peaking in popularity from 2002-2004 and still remaining big up until 2009, but at the same time it was being written off by house, hardstyle, Drum and Bass and techno fans as being cheesy and sappy, with numerous think-piece articles proclaiming trance had become a Dead Horse Genre. Then The New '10s came in and an EDM explosion took over the world, starting with America, and while trance wasn't quite as commercially successful as Electro House, Trap Music and dubstep, it still benefited greatly from the exposure, and several DJs, new and long-established acts alike, began experiencing a major surge of new fans. The immediate selling-out of tickets for Insomniac's 2015 Dreamstate festival (which primarily featured smaller-name producers in its lineup) firmly silenced those calling the genre dead. The continued (and renewed) success of trance artists in large festivals such as Electric Daisy Carnival, Tomorrowland, Transmission and Ultra helped maintain the genre's relevance in the modern EDM scene, and many DJs and promoters have spoken glowingly of the genre's growth stateside. While progressive and uplifting trance are still the predominant styles in the mainstream, the harder styles such as acid, hard, psy, and tech are also growing in popularity thanks to better-quality production techniques and an increasing demand for "pure" trance sounds driven in part by fans of the "138" movement
  • Public Medium Ignorance: Mixed with a little Pop-Culture Isolation, to the non-electronic listener, trance is generally known as either "that cheesy European club music" (for uplifting and progressive) or "that trippy-sounding EDM played in weird hippie-inspired raves" (for psy and Goa). The genre is also confused with Electro House and Hardcore Techno by listeners who are unfamiliar with the less-mainstream variants.
  • Sensory Abuse: Full-on, hard trance and most festival/mainstage trance sets can come across as this, with performances focusing on creating a massive wall of sound synced to flashing lights, pyro, and hypnotic visuals in bright colors to further reinforce an "immersive" experience among concertgoers. In the increasingly competitive climate of the modern EDM scene, this is more or less an Enforced Trope among DJs as they strive to entertain ever-younger crowds. There are occasional aversions to this, such as Gaia's debut performance at Ultra 2014, with subdued visuals and more atmospheric tracks, and due to restrictions brought about by the global pandemic, many performing artists have taken to playing live sets in their homes or in closed-off locations such as abandoned warehouses, thereby also largely averting this trope.
  • Silly Love Songs: Many uplifting vocal trance songs are this, with very heartfelt and emotional lyrics to reinforce the euphoric effect.
  • Start My Own: Many trance artists are known for having founded and maintaining their own record labels/imprints in addition to producing and playing music. Some have even founded more than one record label.
    • Paul Oakenfold's Perfecto is probably the ur-example, having been founded in 1989, before the genre was codified, and carrying a wide variety of electronic music before focusing more exclusively on trance.
    • Ferry Corsten co-founded Tsunami in 1997, then founded Flashover Recordings in 2005.
    • Tiësto co-founded Black Hole Recordings in 1997, then founded his own imprint Magik Muzik in 2001, and then founded Musical Freedom in 2010.
    • Armin Van Buuren started the Armind imprint in 1999 on United Recordings, then later co-founded Armada Music and moved his Armind productions under the Armada umbrella.
    • Paul van Dyk founded Vandit Records in 1999.
    • Anjunabeats started in 2000 as both a record company and a production alias for Jono Grant and Paavo Siljamaki. They released only one track using Anjunabeats as a producer name before rebranding themselves Free State. (Tony McGuinness joined the duo to form Above & Beyond in 2002.)
    • Markus Schulz founded Coldharbour Recordings in 2005, after the street in London where he had a studio.
    • Andy Moor founded AVA Recordings in 2006.
    • Aly and Fila founded Future Sound of Egypt Recordings, named after their radio show, in 2009.
    • Solarstone founded Pure Trance Recordings in 2014.
    • John Askew and Simon Patterson's VII was founded in 2016, originally with a fixed lineup of seven artists, but the label later went on to feature other artists as well.
  • Supergroup: A common way for two or more notable trance artists to collaborate is to co-produce tracks under a different brand/alias instead of being jointly credited for producing tracks/songs. Many such collaborations are short-lived, project-based affairs, however a few such groups have achieved Long Runner status, examples being Gaia (Armin van Buuren & Rank 1's Benno de Goeij), Key4050 (Bryan Kearney & John O'Callaghan), and the VII Crew (a more or less Revolving Door Band with John Askew and Simon Patterson as its core members)
  • Trope Codifier: Jam and Spoon are considered to be the ones who set the standard for what trance is all about.
  • Trope Maker: Depending on who you ask, it's either The Age of Love's "Age of Love", the remix by Jam and Spoon, or Dance 2 Trance's "We Came in Peace".
  • Ur-Example: Either Klaus Schulze's album Trancfer or Jean Michel Jarre's album Oxygène.
  • Watch It Stoned: Averted. While the genre is very popular with stoners, acid heads, and ecstasy lovers, it's widely agreed upon that drugs are not needed to enjoy it, even by drug users themselves, as the music alone can evoke emotions and sensations similar to those associated with certain recreational drugs.

A list of well-known trance artists, bands and musical projects:

  • 1200 Micrograms
  • 4 Strings
  • A*S*Y*S
  • Above & Beyond
  • Abstract Vision
  • Ace Ventura (not to be confused with the movie)
  • Airwave
  • Bjorn Akesson
  • Alex Di Stefano
  • Alex M.O.R.P.H.
  • Allen & Envy
  • Alstroemeria Records (Experiments with Trance from time to time.)
  • Aly & Fila
  • Andy Moor
  • Arctic Moon
  • Arty
  • Davey Asprey
  • Astral Projection
  • Astrix
  • John Askew
  • ATB
  • Will Atkinson
  • Avalon
  • Azax
  • Barakuda
  • Gai Barone
  • Basshunter (mixed with hardstyle)
  • Ben Gold
  • Ben Nicky
  • Binary Finary
  • Blastoyz
  • BLiSS (mixes trance with Eurobeat, contemporary EDM and Noise Rock)
  • Ilan Bluestone
  • Bobina
  • BT
  • Captain Hook
  • Cascada: Trope Codifier for Eurotrance
  • Chicane
  • Chris Schweizer
  • Christina Novelli
  • Cold Blue
  • Coming Soon!!!
  • Cosmic Gate
  • Daddy DJ
  • Matt Darey
  • Darude: Best known for his 1999 release "Sandstorm", which became a rave classic in the early 2000s and later went on to achieve Memetic Mutation status on the web.
  • Dash Berlin
  • Thomas Datt
  • deadmau5 (sometimes, with progressive house elements)
  • Jorn van Deynhoven
  • Mike Dierickx: Best known for his aliases M.I.K.E. Push, Solar Factor and Plastic Boy.
  • John Digweed
  • DJ Tatana
  • DRYM
  • Richard Durand
  • James Dymond
  • Electric Universe
  • Adam Ellis
  • Gareth Emery
  • Emok
  • Factor B
  • Fady & Mina
  • Faithless (mixed with Hip-Hop)
  • Ferry Corsten
  • Ferry Tayle
  • Fisherman & Hawkins
  • John '00' Fleming
  • Freedom Fighters
  • Martin Freeland (also known by his aliases Man With No Name and Positiv Noize)
  • Gabriel & Dresden
  • Gaia (Supergroup consisting of Armin Van Buuren and Benno de Goeij of Rank 1)
  • Goa Gil (Trope Codifier for Goa trance)
  • GMS
  • David Gravell
  • Groove Coverage
  • HANA
  • Maria Healy
  • Heatbeat
  • Tomas Heredia
  • Hilight Tribe
  • Humate
  • Hybrid
  • Indecent Noise
  • Infected Mushroom (later releases fuse psytrance with Drum and Bass, Electro House, dubstep and Hard Rock)
  • Insomniac
  • I've Sound (mixed with Japanese Pop Music)
  • Jam & Spoon (Trope Codifiers)
  • Jean-Michel Jarre: His albums "Oxygène" (1976) and "Equinoxe" (1978) are considered to be predecessors.
  • Sam Jones
  • Menno de Jong
  • Judge Jules
  • Juno Reactor (fuses trance with cinematic score and world music)
  • Bryan Kearney
  • Key 4050 (collaboration project between John O'Callaghan and Bryan Kearney)
  • Tetsuya Komuro (the Trope Maker for J-trance)
  • Kors K
  • Yuzo Koshiro
  • Kyau & Albert
  • Lange
  • Christopher Lawrence
  • Liquid Soul
  • Lisa Lashes
  • livetune (overlaps with Electro House)
  • Marco V
  • MaRLo
  • Roman Messer
  • Robert Miles: His 1995 composition "Children" may not be the first dream trance track, but it's almost certainly the Trope Codifier for that subgenre.
  • Myon & Shane 54
  • Neptune Project
  • New World Punx: Supergroup consisting of Markus Schulz and Ferry Corsten
  • Nhato
  • Robert Nickson
  • Nifra
  • Ørjan Nilsen
  • John O'Callaghan
  • Paul Oakenfold
  • Hiroyuki Oda (also known by his Vocaloid producer alias HSP)
  • Omnia
  • Omiki
  • Orkidea
  • Giuseppe Ottaviani
  • Outsiders
  • Pakito
  • Simon Patterson
  • Photographer
  • Mauro Picotto
  • Darren Porter
  • Simon Posford: Known for his material as Hallucinogen and Shpongle (alongside Raja Ram). Considered the Trope Codifier for mainstream psytrance and its fusions.
  • Eric Prydz (mixed with progressive house, Trope Maker for the "Pryda Snare" sound used in many modern trance and EDM tracks)
  • Pure NRG (supergroup consisting of Solarstone and Giuseppe Ottaviani)
  • RAM
  • Ranji
  • Rank 1
  • Nate Raubenheimer (known for his stage names Protoculture and Shadow Chronicles)
  • Andrew Rayel
  • Will Rees
  • Manuel Reuter
  • Rex Mundi
  • Rinaly
  • Ritmo
  • Rodg
  • Ruben de Ronde
  • Mike Saint-Jules
  • Sash!: Best remembered for "Encore Une Fois" and "Ecuador".
  • Sasha (not to be confused with the above)
  • Markus Schulz
  • Klaus Schulze (the Genre Popularizer)
  • Scot Project
  • Sesto Sento
  • Roger Shah
  • Mark Sherry
  • Signum
  • Simon O'Shine
  • Mark Sixma (mixed with Electro House)
  • Snap!: Mixed with techno, house and eurodance, best remembered for "The Power" and "Rhythm Is A Dancer".
  • Sneijder
  • Solarstone
  • Sonique
  • Standerwick
  • Jordan Suckley
  • Sunny Lax
  • Super8 & Tab
  • Susana (big-name trance singer known for her numerous collaborations)
  • System D
  • Talamasca
  • Talla 2XLC
  • Tenishia
  • The Thrillseekers
  • Tiësto (earlier material, crosses over into House Music)
  • Tokyo Ghetto Pussy
  • Kai Tracid
  • Tritonal (mixing progressive trance with Electro House before genre shifting to the latter completely)
  • Sean Tyas
  • UCast
  • Underworld
  • Union Jack
  • Armin Van Buuren
  • Paul Van Dyk: His 1993 remix of Humate's "Love Stimulation" is considered to be the groundwork for uplifting trance in general.
  • Sied Van Riel
  • Veracocha (collaboration between Ferry Corsten and Vincent de Moor)
  • Vibe Tribe
  • Vini Vici (also incorporates world music and big room elements)
  • W&W
  • Waio
  • Marcel Woods
  • Satoshi Yaginuma (known for his musical supergroups fripSide and ALTIMA)
  • Yuuhei Satellite

Top