Minimal House
A stripped-back house style that uses only a few sounds and lots of space.
History
Minimal house grew in Europe in the late 1990s s1. Producers removed extra sounds and left space between the drums, so the groove became the main focus s1. The style is close to microhouse but is aimed more at the dance floor and is less busy s2. Ricardo Villalobos became one of its widely known artists with tracks such as '808 The Bassqueen' (1998) s1. Steve Bug and his label Poker Flat Recordings released many minimal house records in the 2000s s1. Herbert's 'The Audience' (2001) used a soft, detailed style that was also part of the same scene s1. By the mid-2000s minimal house was one of the most popular sounds in European clubs s2. It then influenced Romanian minimal and the wider minimal techno scene s1. The style was played in Berlin clubs such as Watergate and at after-parties across Europe. Producers often used very few sounds and let a track run for many minutes s1. Ricardo Villalobos became one of the style's widely known artists s3.
Sound
- Very few sounds at once
- A soft, steady house beat
- Long gaps and space in the mix
- Small clicks and soft percussion
- A smooth, rolling bassline
Key figures
- Ricardo Villalobos — Chilean-German producer and key minimal house artist
- Steve Bug — German producer and label owner
- Herbert — British producer who worked in a detailed minimal style
- Zip — German producer and co-founder of Perlon
Labels
- Perlon — Berlin , 1997
- Poker Flat Recordings — Berlin , 1998
- !K7 Records — Berlin , 1985
Defining tracks
Connections
Came from: Microhouse , Minimal Techno , Deep House
Led to: Rominimal
Sources
- Minimal house — Wikipedia
- A guide to microhouse — Bandcamp Daily
- Ricardo Villalobos — Wikipedia