Writer: Maniak, (A.K.A. Atrocious)









Gabba, Hardcore, Hardstyle, Speedcore, Terrorcore, and etc. are some of the names and subgenres that describe essentially music with a very special characteristic a bass drum sound. This comes out by getting a TR-909 kick and sending it though distortion units and transforming to a clipping point and in practice the kick from just covering some lower frequencies it becomes something that covers the whole spectrum of sound! The second, essential part of the harder styles, is the hoover synthesisers, a typical distorted synth sound.





Gabba was the grandfather of all the subgenres that followed thereafter, and it started somewhere in the early 90s in the neighbourhoods of Rotterdam (Netherlands). Its stylistic origins came from Detroit techno, Hardcore Techno, and industrial. The first to create such sound and music was the producer Paul Elstak. After surviving in the underground for over a decade, hard producers managed to elevate their production skills and made it to the mainstream Dutch popular culture in the early 2000s.

While harder styles where becoming mainstream it was inevitable to become a victim of its own culture, due to the stylistic approach of bald heads it raised the attention of neo-fascists that unfortunately entered the scene. The response from the hard producers to these unfortunate following was loud; tracks were produced that in their vocals spoke out against Nazism and fascism. At the same time there are many hardcore producers that are not white like The Viper, Bass-D, RTC, and others.









Hardcore while, down here in our small island is almost non-existent, apart for the couple crews that create hard music, in the Netherlands and in the Western region of Europe is quite prominent with all year around parties happening with thousands of guests participating. Some of the most prominent names of the Harder styles producers are Headhunterz , Zatox , Angerfist , and N-Vitral . And if you find yourself liking this madness I would suggest to visit some of the numerous festivals that happen throughout the year with Defqon.1 being one of the biggest of Summer festivals with over 50.000 guests every year and Masters of Hardcore being one of the most prominent festival for the winter season!





Closing this little introduction to my beloved hardcore music I would like to share with you some of my favourite tunes to guide you through this amazing music and lifestyle so close and yet far from what you have loved in metal music.





Headhunterz & Sub Zero Project – Our Church

Sub Zero Project & Keltek – Break the Game

Miss Hysteria & Ophidian – Nothing waits