With or without substances, raving can put you into a trance. The hypnotizing beats of electronic music are conducive to flow states, deep reflection, and connecting the mind and body. The aptly named genre of trance especially aims to evoke such states, with strategically timed drops and peaks along with fast-paced rhythms and repetitious vocals your mind can get lost in.
Trance music originated primarily in Germany in the ‘90s, and since then, it has branched out into several subgenres. Here are a few of the major categories to check out if you want to expand your horizons.
Goa Trance
Goa, India has been a popular destination for partiers for decades. People from around the world would gather to dance to psychedelic rock music in the ‘60s and ‘70s, and then to electronic music in the ‘80s. Goa trance contains influences from the psychedelic rock scene and the European electronic music scene, with pioneers like Hallucinogen and Astral Projection spreading it throughout the world in the ‘90s.
Psytrance
Psytrance, also known as psychedelic trance, emerged from the Goa trance scene. The chords and refrains tend to be fast-paced, and the melodies are layered for a trippy experience. Now, ravers all over the globe sway side to side to artists like Astrix, Shpongle, and Infected Mushroom, the sparkles of the cosmos filling their ears.
READ: What Is Progressive Psytrance?
Progressive Trance
Combining components of house, ambient, and techno music, progressive trance tends to evoke a darker feeling, with loud kicks and long buildups. The genre rose to popularity during the late ‘90s in the U.K., where it has held mainstream appeal in clubs. Examples of well-known artists in this category include Above and Beyond and BT.
Uplifting Trance
This is the form of trance music many of us know and love, including artists like Armin van Buuren, Dash Berlin, and Tiësto. True to its name, this genre is full of dreamy, upbeat, synth-filled sounds that lift up listeners. You can hear the high-inducing rush characteristic of uplifting trance in songs like Van Buuren’s “Freefall” and Berlin’s “Are You With Me?” remix. Originating from Germany in the late ‘90s, it’s popular in TV soundtracks and film scores and derives some of its influence from cinematic and classical music.
READ: 10 of the Best Psytrance Artists
Hard Trance
Also stemming from ‘90s-era Germany, along with Belgium and the Netherlands, hard trance includes artists such as Sunbeam and DJ Scot Project and can be split into two sub-subgenres: Original, which centers melodies and moves at a fast tempo of 150 beats per minute or more; and New, which is slightly slower and harder with aggressive kick drums, basslines, and reverbs. Hard trance became popular at large European raves in the late ‘90s but has fallen out of favor since the turn of the millennium—yet it continues to influence other genres, such as hardstyle.
