Deep House
A warm, smooth house style with soft chords and a relaxed, soulful mood.
History
Deep house grew out of Chicago house in the mid-1980s s1. Larry Heard, recording as Mr. Fingers, helped create the sound with records like 'Mystery of Love' (1985) and 'Can You Feel It' (1986) s3. He used soft synthesizer chords, a round bass and slow, spacey melodies s3. The word deep described the warm, thoughtful feeling of these tracks rather than their volume s1. The style slowed down a little compared with harder house and left more room for harmony s1. In the early 1990s, producers in New York and New Jersey added soulful singing and jazz-like chords s1. Labels such as Strictly Rhythm released many deep house records, including Hardrive's 'Deep Inside' in 1993 s1. In Europe, deep house was mixed with lounge and jazz in the 2000s s2. Later generations returned to the sound, and it remains one of the most common forms of house music s2. By the late 2010s, the word deep was sometimes used loosely for several bass-driven house styles s1.
Sound
- Soft, jazzy keyboard chords
- A warm, round bassline
- Relaxed, steady drum patterns
- Spacious reverb and echo
- Soulful or breathy vocals
Key figures
- Larry Heard (Mr. Fingers) — Chicago producer who shaped the style
- Kerri Chandler — New Jersey deep house producer
- Masters at Work — New York duo who mixed deep house with soul
- Louie Vega — Producer and DJ in the deep house scene
Labels
- Strictly Rhythm — New York City , 1989
- Alleviated Records — Chicago , 1985
Defining tracks
Connections
Came from: Chicago House , Garage House , Funk and Boogie
Led to: Afro House , Deep Tech , Future House , Lo-Fi House , Minimal House , Organic House , Pop Deep House , Tech House , Melodic House and Techno
Sources
- Deep house — Wikipedia
- A history of deep house — Toolroom Academy
- Larry Heard lecture — Red Bull Music Academy (2018)