How to Write Drum And Bass Songs

You want that chest rattle and the head nod that makes floors heave and listeners text their ex out of spite. Drum and Bass, often written as DnB, is intense, fast, and weirdly melodic. If you want to make tracks that DJs drop and crowds remember, this guide gives you the exact building blocks. We go deep into beats, bass design, arrangement, mixing, and real release strategies so you stop making bedroom experiments and start making weapons of sonic mass destruction.

Everything here is written for musicians who want results quickly. Expect practical workflows, clear definitions for every acronym, and real life examples you can try tonight. We are loud, we are practical, and we are not here to discuss metaphors that do not translate to club impact. Let us begin.

What Is Drum And Bass

Drum and Bass is an electronic music style built around fast tempos and heavy low end. Typical listeners feel the rhythm in their chest and the groove in their knees. DnB evolved from older UK rave styles and jungle. It focuses on fast kick and snare patterns and big sub bass. That is the skeleton. Producers then add texture drums, atmospherics, and melodies for emotion.

Core characteristics

• Tempo around 170 to 175 bpm. This means everything feels urgent.
• Break oriented drums or tight punched drums that cut through the mix.
• Strong sub bass that sits under the drums and moves subtly.
• Energy peaks and drops arranged to work in DJ sets.
• Subgenres from liquid to neurofunk to jump up each with different attitudes.

Common subgenres explained

Liquid DnB is smooth and melodic. It uses soulful vocals and warm pads. Think of ambient late night coffees that somehow still make you dance. Neurofunk is technical and aggressive. Basslines twist like a living creature. Jump up is about the raw party moment. It hits with a simple riff that makes people chest bump. Jungle brings complex break patterns and reggae influenced bass and vocals. Each style uses the same tools but applies them differently.

Essential Tools You Need

If you are reading this on a phone in your bed you are already fine. Here is a list of gear and software that make life easier.

• DAW which stands for digital audio workstation. Examples are Ableton Live, FL Studio, Logic Pro, and Bitwig. This is the app where you build your track.
• Audio interface to get sound in and out of your computer with low latency. Think of it as your audio passport.
• Monitors and headphones for accurate low end decisions. Studio monitors are speakers. Use headphones to check details and monitors to feel the room.
• MIDI controller for hands on play. Keys, pads, and knobs speed up ideas.
• Sample library including drum breaks, percussion loops, vocal chops, and atmospheres. You will also need a few good bass presets.
• Plugins for synthesis and processing. Serum, Massive, FM synths, and sampler instruments are common. Also stock plugins will get you far if you learn them well.

Tempo Groove And Feel

DnB tempo creates the immediate sensation. Around 170 bpm gives urgency while still allowing space between beats. The trick is not the number. The trick is how you place hits inside that tempo to create pocket.

Imagine a skateboarder in slow motion. Each kick and snare is a foot plant. If the hits land where your body expects them the groove locks. If not you will have listeners flailing while trying to dance.

How to choose your tempo

Pick a tempo based on vibe. For chill listening pick lower end of the range. For club tear ups stick higher. Niches exist. If you want radio friendliness and vocal hooks consider slightly slower tempos with half time sections where the drums feel slower but still operate at DnB speed.

Drums And Programming

Drums are the signature. In DnB drums have to be punchy powerful and rhythmically interesting. There are two common approaches. One is to use classic break beats in original or chopped form. The other is to program tight drum kits that mimic the power of a break beat. Both work. Both require attention.

The break beat approach

Classic breaks such as the Amen break are a starter ritual for many producers. A break beat is a recorded drum loop sampled from older recordings. Producers chop and rearrange these loops to create new patterns. Chopping introduces human feel that sounds alive.

How to chop like a pro. Load a long break loop. Slice it into hits. Rearrange hits so the snare lands where you want. Layer a modern punchy snare on top of older snares to get the best of both worlds. Add velocity variation so hits are not identical. Use transient shaping to emphasize attack.

Tight kit programming

If breaks are old school, kit programming is modern surgery. Pick a clean hard kick and a snare with weight. Create a pattern that has ghost notes. Ghost notes are quieter snare or rim hits placed between main backbeats to give groove. Hi hats and rides add texture. Use subtle swing or groove quantize to humanize the pattern.

Example drum pocket. Kick on the downbeat. Snare on two and four. Add ghost snare hits before the main snare to create push. Layer percussion with different decay times to fill space without clutter.

Velocity and humanization

Make your drums breathe by altering velocity and timing a tiny amount. Humans are not machines. Small variations create life. Most DAWs let you randomize timing and velocity with a slider. Use it gently. Too much random makes a toddler banging pots.

Bass Design: The Heart Of DnB

Bass is where DnB shows identity. The sub is the foundation. The mid bass or growl is the personality. Together they must be married. The sub sits in mono low end and fills the chest. The growl lives in the mids and adds movement that you can hear even on small speakers.

Sub bass basics

Sub bass is a simple sine wave or low saw wave with very little harmonics. It needs space and should be mono under about 120 Hz. Use a high pass cut on other elements to keep sub clean. A classic trick is to tune the sub so it follows root notes of the chord or bassline. Use a simple sine generator or a clean wavetable on low octaves. Keep it consistent and avoid distortion in the sub band.

Mid bass and growl

Mid bass gives character. Use wavetable or FM synthesis to make growls and movement. Use automation on filters LFOs and wavetable position to create evolving sound. Distortion and band limited saturation add grit. Use multiband processing to keep low end stable while mid grows wild.

Common sound types. Reese bass is a detuned stacked saw or wavetable with heavy movement and filtered harmonics. Growl bass uses FM or heavy filtering with formant like movement to sound like a creature. Sub wobble uses LFO to modulate amplitude or filter slowly to create a bobbing effect.

Layering strategy

Layer a pure sub under a distorted mid bass. Make sure the sub is phase aligned with the mid. Use a high pass on the mid so it does not fight the sub. Sidechain the mid to the kick or to a short transient helper so the kick punches through.

Sound Design Techniques Explained

We explain terms you will see. First the acronyms.

• LFO stands for low frequency oscillator. It is a slow repeating control source used to move filters amplitudes or pitch over time.
• ADSR stands for attack decay sustain release. It controls how a sound evolves after a note is triggered. Attack controls how quickly sound appears. Release controls how long it fades away.
• FM stands for frequency modulation. It uses one oscillator to change the pitch of another which can create aggressive metallic tones useful for growls.
• Wavetable is a synthesis method where you move through a table of wave shapes to create dynamic timbres.
• Sidechain is routing a signal to control a compressor so one element ducks when another plays. It is useful to make bass give space to the kick or to let a vocal sit without clashing with the bassline.

Real life example of LFO use. Pretend you have a robotic fish that needs to breathe. Use an LFO on the filter cutoff to make the fish gulp air rhythmically. That gulp becomes a musical motion you can dance to.

Arrangement And Structure

A song is a ride. In DnB you must deliver points of impact that DJs and listeners can rely on. Build your track so it works in a DJ set without confusing the mix.

Typical structure you can steal

• Intro for DJs to mix in. Loop friendly and not complete in energy.
• Build that hints at the drop. Add risers and snare rolls and automation that increases tension.
• Drop with full drums heavy bass and main hook.
• Peak section to keep energy. This is the play moment.
• Break or halftime to give contrast and allow breath.
• Second drop that changes a little to keep interest.
• Outro for DJs to mix out. Reduce elements and keep a simple loop.

Think of the arrangement as creating signs for a DJ. The intro is a handshake. The drop is a punchline. The break is the breath after laughter. Use repeated motifs so DJs can find places to mix. A strong intro loop and a strong breakdown melody both help your track live in sets.

Energy mapping

Plan energy over time. Draw a simple curve where peaks are drops and valleys are breaks. The human ear likes patterns. The first drop should come early enough to hook a listener. A second drop should introduce a new twist such as a different bass riff or an added vocal hook.

Mixing Drum And Bass

Mixing for DnB is about clarity and power. The low end needs to be solid and the mid range needs to be angry without being muddy. The drums must snap and the bass must not fight with the kick.

Gain staging and headroom

Start with good levels. Keep your master bus no higher than minus six decibels to leave headroom for mastering. Think of gain staging as organizing your furniture before the party. If everything is loud from the start the party collapses into noise.

EQ and carving

High pass non essential elements to protect the sub band. Use a low shelf to gently manage muddy frequencies in the bass and a narrow cut to remove resonances in the mids. For drums, boost the attack region to add snap and cut frequencies that muddy the snare body. Use subtractive EQ first then additive where needed.

Compression and transient shaping

Compress drums to taste to glue them together. Use transient shapers on kick and snare to control attack and sustain. A small attack boost on the transient will make the hit cut through. Use parallel compression to add weight without destroying dynamics.

Sidechain and dynamic control

Sidechain the bass to the kick or to a short click transient so the kick reads clearly. You can use traditional compressor sidechain or volume automation. Use a fast attack and medium release to let the kick punch then let the bass fill the gap.

Stereo and low end management

Keep sub mono. Use stereo width on mids and highs to make the track feel wide. For heavy processing use mid side EQ to tame harshness in the sides. Keep important rhythmic elements focused in the center for DJ friendly mixing.

Production Techniques That Speed You Up

Workflows matter. Here are studio tricks that save hours.

Resampling

Resampling means you render a sound then process the audio to create something new. That allows you to record a bloopy synth then crush it and stretch it to make a new texture. It is fast creative recycling.

Automation

Automate filter cutoffs, wavetable position, reverb sends, and volume to keep repeated sections evolving. Live automation makes loops feel like a performance rather than a static pattern.

Templates and channel strips

Make a DnB template with routed buses a drum bus a bass bus and some common effects. Save time by starting with a known good layout so you can jump into sound design instead of building the mix from scratch every time.

Vocals And Melody In DnB

Vocals are optional but powerful. A simple hook sung over a drop changes the track from anonymous heater to radio ready. Use processing creatively. Chop the vocal resample it and re pitch to make it feel electronic. Layer with harmonies and use delay and reverb to make vocals fit in the dense DnB mix.

Melodies should be clear and simple. At high tempos a complicated melody can blur. Write a motif and repeat it with variation. Use instruments like pads or plucks that sit above the bass and weave around the drums rather than compete.

Common Mistakes And How To Fix Them

• Muddy low end Fix by cleaning other tracks under 120 hertz and using a mono sub. Check phase.
• Drums sounding flat Fix by adding transient shaping and layering a click transient to tighten the kick.
• Bass and kick fighting Fix by sidechaining the bass or using complementary EQ so each occupies its own frequency space.
• Mix too crowded Fix by removing elements that do not earn their place. Use automation to let elements appear and disappear.
• Over compressed master Fix by backing off limiting and restoring headroom for mastering.

Release And Promotion Tips

Great tracks do not spread by themselves. You need plan and hustle.

Mastering targets

Master for streaming. A good integrated LUFS target for loudness is around minus nine to minus eight LUFS for electronic club tracks but check each platform requirements because streaming platforms normalize differently. Deliver a high quality WAV and a ready to play MP3 for promos.

Press kits and DJ promos

Make a one page press kit with bio social links and streaming links. Send WAVs or 320 kbps MP3s to DJs and blogs with a short message that explains why the track works in a set. Include a DJ friendly intro loop and an instrumental version if your track has vocals.

Social previews

One minute clips for platforms like TikTok or Instagram with a memorable visual go a long way. Make hooks that stand alone. A simple clip of the drop with footage of a sweaty crowd will behave very well online.

Practice Exercises To Get Better Fast

Practice like a sprinter. Short intense sessions with one focus beat more than endless unfocused hours.

• Two bar drum challenge Draft two unique bars of drum pattern and loop them for 20 minutes. Replace one element every five minutes to see how tension changes.
• Sub and growl split Design a sub in five minutes then design a mid growl in five minutes. Layer them and fix phase issues for five minutes.
• Arrangement speed run Make a full song map with intro drop break and outro in 30 minutes using placeholders. Come back later and fill the holes.

Real Life Scenarios And Examples

Scenario one. You are producing in a small bedroom with thin walls. You need to check the low end without annoying neighbors. Solution. Use headphones for low end translation and use reference tracks you know translate well. Export small sections then test on a phone speaker or car system. If it slaps there you are on the right path.

Scenario two. You are writing for a DJ friend who asked for a drop for their set. Solution. Make a shorter track with a long DJ friendly intro and a clear loop that they can mix. Keep the main drop hook strong and repeatable so the DJ can play it twice in a set without fatigue.

Scenario three. You want to collaborate but live across the planet. Solution. Send stems with 24 bit WAV files and a project notes document. Label files clearly with tempo key and suggested structure markers. Use shared cloud storage and keep exchanges focused. One clear question per message will keep momentum.

Workflow That Makes You Finish Tracks

1. Start with a two bar drum groove and a sub note. Commit to these for the session.
2. Add a mid bass patch and design a small riff that complements the drums.
3. Build an intro loop and a raw drop. Keep arrangement flexible but mark drop times.
4. Mix the drums and the sub. Make sure they work together before adding extras.
5. Add FX transitions a breakdown and a second drop variation.
6. Export a demo and sleep on it. Come back with fresh ears and tweak one element per session.

FAQ

What tempo should I use for Drum And Bass

Most DnB sits around 170 to 175 beats per minute. Use the number as a starting point. The pocket you create inside that tempo matters more than the exact number. Try small tempo variations to see how the energy moves. Slightly slower tempos can feel heavy. Slightly faster tempos feel urgent.

Do I need expensive plugins to make DnB

No. You need a good ear and time. Stock plugins in modern DAWs can do bass and drum work if you learn them. Paid synths like Serum and FM synths speed up sound design and offer presets but they do not replace skill. Spend time learning one synth well and you will be more effective than chasing every shiny plugin.

How do I make the bass cut through club systems

Design a clean mono sub and separate your mid growl from the sub. Use sidechain and transient shaping to let the kick breathe. Check in mono and on multiple playback systems like headphones car and small Bluetooth speakers. Use a reference track to compare low end energy.

Should I use classic breaks or program drums

Both are valid. Breaks give character and human feel while programmed kits give consistency and punch. Many producers use a hybrid approach by layering a break with modern drum samples to get both attitude and power. The choice depends on your aesthetic and the specific track goal.

How long should a DnB track be

For club play aim for four to six minutes. For streaming and playlists you might prefer three to four minutes. DJs appreciate a longer intro and outro for mixing. Make different edits if you aim for radio or promotion where shorter versions perform better.

What are common mixing mistakes in DnB

Common mistakes are muddy low end over compressed masters and unclear kick sub relationships. Fix these by carving space with EQ using mono for subs and leaving headroom for mastering. Remove elements that do the same job rather than stacking everything louder.

Action Plan You Can Use Today

1. Set your DAW tempo to around 174 bpm. Start simple.
2. Create a two bar drum loop with kick snare and a few ghost notes. Add a hi hat pattern.
3. Design a mono sub sine that follows one root note. Keep it basic.
4. Make a mid bass patch using wavetable or FM. Automate a filter to make it move.
5. Build an intro and a drop. Mix drums and sub until they feel punchy and clean.
6. Export a demo and play it on headphones a phone and a car. Note what changes in each system and adjust.
7. Send the demo to one trusted DJ or producer. Ask one precise question. What moment makes you nod first. Use feedback to tweak the hook.

Get Contact Details of Music Industry Gatekeepers

Looking for an A&R, Manager or Record Label to skyrocket your music career?

Don’t wait to be discovered, take full control of your music career. Get access to the contact details of the gatekeepers of the music industry. We're talking email addresses, contact numbers, social media...

Packed with contact details for over 3,000 of the top Music Managers, A&Rs, Booking Agents & Record Label Executives.

Get exclusive access today, take control of your music journey and skyrocket your music career.

Unlock Instant Access