Analysis of how and where the influence of bass culture has occurred in the United Kingdom
Name
Institution

Introduction Bass culture began as one of the key musical paradigm shift of the rave and breakbeat hardcore in the United Kingdom in the early years of the 1990. Since its introduction in the 1980’'s, bass culture has undergone significant transformation in terms of style and incorporating dance elements from different music genres such as dancehall, hip hop, funk, and electro music among other music genres. Some of the pioneers considered having brought the bass to the UK between the years 1980-1990 include Joey Beltram, CJ Bolland, L.A. Style, and Richie Hawtin. However, historical analysis shows the period 1898 to 1992 as the period of “cross pollination” of the bass culture. This period saw the incorporation of the UK hard-core sound into the bass culture. The process included incorporating hard-core sounds from different countries such as the Belgium, Germany, and the Holland. Therefore, this essay discusses the ways in which the bass culture had developed in the UK and period when it witnessed greatest significant influence on the culture. How the Bass Culture occurred in the United Kingdom over the Last 6 Decades The bass culture was introduced in the UK by the influx of the Jamaican reggae musicians in the early ages of the 1950’s. However, it did not emerge as expected due to constraints such as violence against minorities. In the year 1980, a larger population of the UK was exposed to the reggae with core intentions of spreading the message of rebel against the state. Introduction of the industrial techno and the hard house or the happy hardcore brought new scenes into the bass culture in the years 1985 and 1990. The breakbeat hardcore of the United Kingdom memorial scene (the acid house rave scene of the year 1980) produced significant transformations in the UK’s drums and bass. The process included the introduction of the Roland TB-303 one of the electronic synthesizer that facilitated the incorporation of the hip hop and dance styles into the bass culture. However, it is appreciable that, the earlier ages of the growth of the bass culture faced significant resistance from the UK population. Britain kept a distance from the Jamaican immigrants while the skinheads welcomed the Jamaican style of music. Desmond Dekker, Princess Buster, Max Romeo, and Lauren Aitken are some of the Jamaican musicians who introduced significant changes in the UK’s bass culture in the 1980. They formed rebel lyrics and dedicated some of their songs to the faithful audience such as the “Skinhead Don’t Fear” of the 1970. In the year 1975, the skinheads (from the Jamaican musicians) expanded their upsurge into the political field in the form of National Front that was actively targeting the past and the present of the minority communities. Later in the 1978, the skinhead split into the non-racists and Neo-Nazi giving rise to similar branches across the world, more so in the Europe and the US. In 1977, the reggae movement influenced the punk movement, forming a significant basis for the growth of the bass culture. Don Letts, a DJ, introduced dub and reggae into the punk rock music scene. This influenced other British punk music bands such as “The Sex Pistol” and “The Clash.” Resultantly, this led to the mixing of the reggae and punk rhythms forming a basis of cultural exchange between the Jamaican style of music and the UK system of music/dance. Throughput the years 1970 and 1980, the Jamaican reggae influenced the British electronic music leading to the rise of trip-hop, jungle, drum, and bass. Apart from this, the sound system subculture affected significantly on the British electronic music promoting the growth of the bass culture in Britain. It is apparent that, the Jamaican music has played a great role in influencing the UK reggae and bass bands. Emblematic figures such as the UB 40, Steel Pulse, Maxi Priest, and Bitty Mclean are some of the Jamaican legends that influenced the shape of the UK music and promoted the growth of the bass culture in Britain. In addition, political forces in the late 1970’s facilitated the spread of the bass culture across the UK. For example, a collaboration between different artists such as Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and several prominent politicians such as Jamaican political leaders fueled the growth and spread of bass culture in the UK. Therefore, this implies that, various forces including the social and political played a significant role in influencing the spread and growth of the bass culture in the United Kingdom during the years 1950 to the present. Where the influence of the Bass Music Occurred in the United Kingdom Scholars recognize that, the 1990’s saw a significant change in the growth and spread of bass culture in the UK. The real dub of the 1990 formed a significant basis for the transformation of the UK bass culture. Events such as the growing oppression of the minority groups promoted the spread of the bass culture. The increasing use of the skinhead music to spread the need for recognition of the minority groups in the UK facilitated the spread of the bass culture. It is also inarguable that, the development of the jungle sound in response to the growing dominance of the UK American hip-hop styles promoted the process of the introduction of the bass culture into the United Kingdom’s musical genres. The mobilization of the UK blackness in the 1980’s was accompanied with the realization of the role the importance of the role of the bass culture among the UK population underpinned the overall growth of the genre. This provided different sounds including the bass music a hegemonic dominance and centrality of the United Kingdom and American expression of the African heritage in these states. While most of the focus shifted from the music arena into the fight against street violence in the United Kingdom in the 1980’s and 1990’s, rave sound grew its strengths to impact the use of the bass culture and style in the Caribbean and African migration. The combination of the heavy bass sound with the patois and toasting driven styles in the 1990 created a new dimension of the bass culture in the UK. It resulted in the development of the bricolage and sonic collision that incorporated the stylistic genres from the hip-hop music and those of the native UK music styles. The UK social, political, and cultural environment bears the traces of origin of the bass culture. Political recognition of the blacks in the UK led to the central recognition of the black culture in the UK’s political and cultural fields. The representation of the youth population in the 1990 incorporated the use of the bass culture. This resulted in geographical and cultural representation iconic principles of drum bass alongside that of other music genres such as the Caribbean and the US music. The underground system represented subterranean orientation of the enhanced acknowledgment of the importance of the bass culture in promoting its spread in the UK. In addition, the increasing recognition of the sounds of blackness in the UK in the year 1987 promoted the spread of the bass culture and genres. The universal recognition of the drum bass as a key factor for identifying the black population reduced their marginalization. This resulted in acceptance of the bass culture as the key determinant of the social relationship among the UK populations. The rival of the popularity of the bass culture in the year 2000 led to diversification in the subgenre, increasing its dominance in the UK societies. Release of hits such as the “liquid funk” influenced the spread of the drum bass culture since the house and the disco incorporated its use in their vocals. Revival of the jump-up bass lines in the year 2004 introduced new dimensions in the compression of the bass music. This led to the development of other cultures such as the “dub wise” that incorporates the techniques of modern production methods of bass music with the traditional jungle styles of the native population of the United Kingdom. The evolution of different bass cultures has also played a role in influencing the growth of the bass culture in the United Kingdom. For example, the jazz and drum “n” bass fusion that characterized the bass music in the 1990 to 2000 led to the introduction of drum and bass having unique features from the earlier styles.
Consequently, these factors influenced the spread and recognition of the bass culture and genres across the UK over the last six decades. However, it is highly recognizable that, the last two decades has witnessed a significant change in the bass culture. Among the factors contributing to the rapid transformations witnessed include the increasing acceptance of the bass culture in almost all fields including the social, political, and religious fields. In addition, the increasing adoption of the technology has played a significant role in shaping bass culture in the UK and other countries across the world.

Reference
Giordano, R. G. (2010). Country & western dance. Santa Barbara, Calif: Greenwood.