Trip-Hop Pop
tagStarted 1993Peak 1994-2001Last big hit 2008
Smoky, downtempo pop fusing hip-hop's slow boom-bap breakbeats with noir film-score strings, dub bass, crackling samples and torch-singer vocals. The mood is paranoid, sensual and cinematic, lit by neon and rain. It marries pop melody to a heavy, narcotic groove and a cold, late-night urban atmosphere.
History
Trip-hop emerged from Bristol, England around 1993, growing out of the city's Wild Bunch sound-system scene. Massive Attack's Blue Lines, Portishead's Mercury-winning Dummy (1994) and Tricky's Maxinquaye (1995) defined it; chart-leaning acts like Sneaker Pimps and Hooverphonic pushed its sound onto pop radio and film soundtracks.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trip_hop
- https://www.smoothradio.com/news/chill/trip-hop-bands-artists-ranked/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portishead_(band)