Trance Music: Love and Hate, Rhythm and Ritual
Do you like Trance music? If not, you may join me in the ranks. I am a bass player, producer, and musician who loves a wide range of music, from reggae, drum and bass, jungle, and house to classic rock and even modern genres like acid jazz and smooth jazz. This range of musical enjoyment doesn't extend to Trance, however, as I find its rhythm and beat tiring and devoid of groove. Yet, there is much I enjoy about Trance, and in this article, I will explore the reasons why I adore some aspects of it while utterly despising others.
The Heartbreak of Trance
Nah. I hate the beat. There. I said it.
Trance music … I hate the beat.
The rhythm is a constant, monotonous four-on-the-floor kick and a monotone bass line often on the off-beat. It's rhythmically too fast, lacking the funk and groove that make other genres so enjoyable. It's repetitive, tiring, and pointless to me. It's a shame, as I like everything else about Trance. The imagery, the carnival atmosphere, the way people dress, and the natural and psychedelic references all speak to me. The synth sounds are pleasant, some of the trippier acid vibes are lovely, and PsyDub is something I thoroughly appreciate.
A Personal Journey with Trance
Trance music has been a part of my life for over two decades. Even before it was called Trance, I enjoyed the synthpop and new age roots that were its influences, along with the original acid house, techno, and even industrial sounds. Learning to program and sequence synthesizers with MIDI was a passion of mine. I can still remember composing and performing an anthemic track with a breakdown in a high school talent show in 1988. Trance is in my blood.
It wasn't until a business trip to Dusseldorf and Essen, Germany, in the late 1990s that Trance captured my attention. My fatigue from a week of travel was lifted by the taxi driver playing this energizing, melodic, and complex music. In a moment of pure serendipity, the taxi driver gave me two handwritten CDs titled "Trance" with the words "Ein Geschenk für meinen neuen Freund. Musik für deine Seele." This gift has fed my soul ever since. It has shown me the power and emotion of Trance, transcending mere dance or club music.
The Heartbeat of Trance
Trance music is not just dance music or electronic music or club music or techno music. It is a form of music that defies simple labels. At its core, it evokes the most basic human tribal rituals of rhythmic chanting, dancing, and singing around a nighttime bonfire, simultaneously celebrating life, love, pleasure, and community while defying the fears of the darkness. The repetition, emotional roller coaster, and layers of tension and release serve to awaken primal instincts of protection, security, and mutual recognition and reflection. We are never alone, and we face everything together, as the energizing message of peace and hope is modulated through emotional compositions and narratives of common experience.
The motifs in Trance are universal, releasing us into an auditory human landscape of melodic archetypes and monoamine-releasing musical phrases that return us to ourselves: Earth, renewal, life, community, hope, and spirit. Despite the technological elements like synthesizers, drum machines, and electronic signal processing, Trance, more than any other form of modern music, is truly organic and natural. It is a reconnection to the human soul in an alien society, reaffirming our connections through the lens of machine and wetware.
Trance music is a journey, a ritual, and a celebration. It's a love-hate relationship that resonates on a deep, instinctual level. For those who enjoy it, Trance music is a profound and life-affirming experience. For others, like myself, it's a mix of fascination and frustration, but ultimately, a fascinating exploration of the human condition and our connection to the world around us.