Dubstep

Dubstep is a genre of Electronic Dance Music that emerged in South London in the early 2000s, characterized by sparse, syncopated half-time beats set around 140 BPM with heavy sub-basses. It commonly relies on dark, nocturnal, spacious, and "urban" atmospheres, though its sound has varied over time. Dubstep has its origins in the “nu-dark swing” / “dark garage” scene of the turn of the millenium, which featured a style of dark, echoey mixes derived from instrumental 2-Step. It also traces its roots to Drum and Bass's bass drops and to Dub's rewind effects and spacious sound. Emerging at around the same time as the similarly UK Garage-derived Grime, the two often influenced each other, though dubstep is usually just instrumental or supplemented with vocal samples, only occasionally featuring MCs.