In 2023, ‘house music’ is a sprawling, multifaceted thing. Spanning from mainstream chart hits to outsider underground parties, house music is still a dominant force on dancefloors from Ibiza to Chicago to Japan. It’s split and cross-pollinated into a multitude of sub-genres, spanning electro house, deep house, micro house, lo-fi, booty house... We could go on and on.
So how to tackle the concept of making house music in 2023? This issue, we start by going back to the fundamentals – the classic sounds and techniques that form the backbone of house music in all its forms. We explore some of the general rules and classic sounds of house, which are useful to know – even if you ultimately decide to subvert them.
We’ve also handed over a considerable amount of our cover feature to artists pushing the genre forward, in the hope they can inspire with their innovative ideas, cross-genre DJ sets and fresh takes on classic house sounds.
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Interviews
House: The 2023 Guide – Producers and DJs Octo Octa, Cinthie and Josh Caffé each give us their insight on what house music means in 2023 and how they put their unique spin on the sound.
Hania Rani – The Polish composer and musician on embracing vocals and synthesisers for gorgeous new album, Ghosts.
Lukid – The London-based producer and NTS regular returns with his first album in 9 years.
Classic Album – Washington beat makers Fort Knox Five on their '00s classic Radio Free DC.
Produce Like: Paper Dragon – The Bristol based trio demonstrate the reamping techniques that breath life into their nostalgic take on D&B.
Technique
House: The 2023 Guide – Learn to recreate classic house sounds and staple songwriting techniques.
Producer's Guide to.. the 808 kick – We take a deep dive into the most famous kick drum in electronic music, and how to use it for both beats and bass.
Knowledge – The essential guide to transient shaping
Reviews
IK Multimedia UNO Synth Pro X
Intellijel Cascadia
Knobula Pianophonic
Kurzweil K2700
The t.bone RB 500
Focusrite Scarlett 4th Generation interfaces
Arturia Acid V
& more
Samples
House Chord Hooks – Need some ammo to accompany this issue’s cover feature? Look no further than this pack of ready-to-go house inspiration.
In Reverse – We flip reverse it for a pack of slippery FX, backwards beats and unique rhythmic patterns.
Access the FM sample archive: Download the ‘Archive’ packs and get over 18GB of loops, hits and instruments from our back catalogue of high-quality and royalty-free samples. From vintage synths and drum machines to esoteric instruments and FX – think of it as our best of. All the samples you need to create great music!
