Mission 007
Genres and BPM Reference
Know your genres — what plays at what speed.
BPM is a starting filter. Two tracks at the same BPM can be unmixable if they're from different worlds.
+40 XP
// WHAT IT DOES
Different styles of dance music live at different tempos. Knowing the rough BPM range of each genre lets you plan a set, find compatible tracks, and decide when to gear-shift the energy.
Rough reference: Hip-hop / RnB 70–100, Reggae / Dub 80–100, House (most flavours) 118–128, Techno 125–140, Disco 110–125, Drum & Bass 160–180, UK Garage 130–140, Trance 130–145, Dubstep 138–150 (often felt at 75 half-time), Hardcore 150–180+.
Within a genre, sub-styles cluster around specific BPMs — Deep house ≈122, Tech house ≈124–127, Peak-time techno 130–138, Liquid DnB 170–175, Footwork 160.
Think of it like → Like cycling — there's a comfortable gear for each terrain. You can shift, but you do it on purpose, not by accident.
▸ WHY YOU CARE
- • Mixing a 124 BPM track into a 128 BPM track is easy. 124 into 138 is a gear change you have to plan for.
- • Knowing the genre's pocket means you can prep playlists by BPM bucket, then by key and energy.
- • Helps you predict the crowd's mood — a 140 BPM crowd is in a different physical state than a 122 BPM one.
// SEE & HEAR IT
No simulator for this mission — read & quiz only.
▸ HOW IT WORKS
▸ Signal flow — watch the dot
▸ SIGNAL FLOW
Glowing dot = your signal travelling through Live.
▸ LISTEN FOR
- • The 'sweet spot' of a track — most have a 2–4 BPM window where they sound best, not just where they were written.
- • Half-time vs. double-time feel on detection — if your detected BPM seems wrong, halve or double it and check.
- • Genre boundaries blur at the edges — 128 BPM is 'fast house' or 'slow techno' depending on production.
▸ WALKTHROUGH (5 steps)
- 1. DO: In rekordbox, sort your collection by BPM ascending.▸ LISTEN: You'll see your library cluster around tempos that map to the genres you actually play.
- 2. DO: Pick a target tempo (say 124) and select all tracks within ±4 BPM.▸ LISTEN: These are easy blends without needing key lock — your immediate-neighbour pool.
- 3. DO: Engage Key Lock / Master Tempo on a deck and stretch a 124 track to 128.▸ LISTEN: Vocals stay in tune but you hear a slight 'shimmer' — that's the algorithm.
- 4. DO: Try the same stretch with Key Lock off.▸ LISTEN: Now the pitch rises with tempo. Vocals sound chipmunked — clearly audible above +3%.
- 5. DO: Find a 70 BPM hip-hop track and play it under a 140 BPM techno track (kicks on alternating beats).▸ LISTEN: If the rhythmic feel matches, that's a half-time bridge — useful for genre transitions.
▸ COMMON MISTAKES
- ✗ Pitching tracks more than ±6% without Key Lock — vocals and melodic content become obviously processed.
- ✗ Programming a set entirely at one tempo — listenable, but it feels static after 45 minutes.
- ✗ Trusting auto-detected BPM on DnB / footwork / dubstep without verifying half/double.
- ✗ Mixing tracks across a 10+ BPM gap by aggressive pitch instead of using a half/double-time bridge.
// QUIZ (QUICK)
Question 1 / 40 correct
Standard house music runs at approximately