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MUSIC

The Best Recording Studios Around the World

MUSIC, OLD /

You might be able to create whole musical worlds at home with just a laptop, software and good quality speakers, but sometimes  nothing beats being in a studio. With the best technology, musical equipment and the added inspiration and can’t-bottle-it magic of recording in the same space as one of your idols, which are the best recording studios in the world?

Including the beautiful scenic settings of Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios and Ocean Sound Recording Studio in Norway, mau5 House and Steve Aoki’s tech playgrounds, via the history-making Sun Studio, our picks span spaces from the most famous recording studios to high-end personal set-ups.

The Best Music Studios

  • Abbey Road Studios
  • AIR Studios
  • Muscle Shoals
  • Synchron Stage
  • Elfo Recording Studio
  • Capitol Studios
  • Metropolis Studios
  • Question de Son
  • Hansa Studios
  • Ocean Sound Recording Studio
  • Real World Studios
  • Onkio Haus
  • Electric Lady Studios
  • Studios 301
  • mau5 House
  • Hans Zimmer’s Studio
  • Sunset Sound
  • Sun Studio
  • Blackbird Studio
  • Steve Aoki’s Neon Future Cave

Abbey Road Studios – London

The crown jewel of the studio world, the HQ of pop music’s most groundbreaking bands, and undoubtedly the most famous recording studio in London – maybe the world. Originally built in 1829, Abbey Road Studios was just a large house, bought by the Gramophone Company in 1928 as a project studio. They then set out to build the world’s first-ever purpose-built pro studio and later merged with the Columbia Gramophone Company to create Electrical and Musical Industries – later known as EMI Studios.

In 1970, the studios were renamed as Abbey Road Studios after the legendary Beatles album. And in 2012, the studios changed hands once again, when Universal Music Group took over EMI.

Abbey Road’s original recordings were jazz and swing bands. But when it comes to icons, Abbey Road has hosted nearly all of them. Studio Two became famous for the albums The Beatles recorded there (Please Please Me, The White Album, Revolver and A Hard Day’s Night, among others).

As you’d expect from one of the world’s premier recording facilities, Abbey Road has embraced modernity and innovation, with an impressive array of in-house equipment. This includes Bricasti M7 studio reverb processors, Yamaha SPX 1000s, an AMS NEVE 88RS 72 channel recording console and the GML 8200 EQ for accurate frequency modification and frequency range. The studio is also diving into AI in music, VR/AR/MR, source separation and spatial audio, and has broken new ground in the field of de-mixing.

As well as offering these superb studio facilities and recording software, Abbey Road also offers an array of online services, such as music production, vocal tuning, mixing and mastering.

AIR Studios – London

London’s AIR Studios have been the home of Coldplay’s A Head Full of Dreams, Radiohead’s OK Computer, and Adele’s 21. They’ve also been used by some of the industry’s most successful commercial artists, such as Dua Lipa, Katy Perry, Jake Bugg and Ellie Goulding, together with indie names such as The xx.

AIR – the first independent studio – was founded in 1969 when visionary producer Sir George Martin saw the need for a London studio that could record pop. The original studio was in Oxford Circus, but when the lease came up in 1992, the team moved to Lyndhurst Hall and shifted its focus to cinematic film scores.

The Hall, which has recently undergone a stunning renovation, will hold a 60-70 piece orchestra and is a favoured spot for Hollywood composers, rock bands and pop stars. Studio 1 can accommodate up to 45 musicians and is ideal for bands.

Muscle Shoals – Alabama USA

Muscle Shoals Sound Studio (MS Sound) is one of America’s legendary studios. Founded in Sheffield, Alabama in 1969 by owner and producer Jimmy Johnson, together with three other session musicians known as the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section at Rick Hall’s FAME Studios, it helped to define the sound of Southern Soul. Who’s recorded there? Everyone from Aretha Franklin to The Rolling Stones, Willie Nelson, Wilson Pickett, Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Allman Brothers, Cher, Linda Ronstadt and Bob Seger, Rod Stewart and even George Michael.

Cher’s sixth album was titled 3614 Jackson Highway, and this became the informal name for the studio. That building closed in 1979, relocating to a larger, updated facility at 1000 Alabama Avenue.

MS Sound is now run by a foundation, which began privately fundraising to restore the original building after its purchase in 2013. Dr Dre and Jimmy Iovine from Beats Electronics saw a documentary about the project, Muscle Shoals, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and set up a philanthropic wing of Beats called Sustain the Sound to help to fund the restoration.

The studio reopened in 2017, and musicians can once more record there – it’s a working studio at night, with a Hammond organ, Wurlitzer electric piano and a baby grand piano, plus a recording console and an analogue tape machine, together with isolation booths for vocals and percussion, just as it was in its 70s heyday.

Synchron Stage – Vienna

Vienna’s Synchron Stage specialises in recording large orchestras and film music. The landmark protected building was constructed from 1939-41 for picture-synchronised sound recordings, hence its original name ‘Synchronhalle’. In order to shield it from outside noise and vibrations, the recording hall is isolated from the rest of the building by a custom foundation and insulated against air traffic by an elaborate roof structure.

In the mid-1960s, the complex was acquired by the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation and hosted eminent classical artists such as Herbert von Karajan, Yehudi Menuhin and Mstislav Rostropovich. The hall was purchased by the Vienna Symphonic Library in 2013 and developed into a globally unique music production facility. Its largest recording hall, Stage A is 540 square metres and can accommodate an orchestra of up to 130 people.

Since 2021, Synchron Stage Vienna has been an official Dolby Atmos studio and can offer Auro-3D in addition to stereo and surround sound. Plus, it offers four concert grand pianos, a Steinway D-274, a Bosendorfer 290 Imperial with CEUS performance reproducing system, a Yamaha Disklavier CFX EN PRO and a Fazioli F308.

Hans Zimmer’s Remote Control Productions chose the studios to record music for Ron Howard’s Inferno and the Netflix series The Crown. Film scores for Ad Astra, Promising Young Woman and Marvel miniseries including WandaVision and Ms Marvel have also been recorded at Synchron.

Elfo Recording Studio – Tavernago, Italy

Surrounded by tranquil countryside, Elfo Recording Studio’s triple-studio complex can house a 20-piece orchestra and 50-person choir in its main room. From a technical perspective, there’s an API 1608 console, plus DAWS. Studio 3 has an elliptical shape owing to a meticulous study of sound refractions, making it perfect for editing, composing and creating beats, while Studio 2 is ideal for overdubs, voiceovers, dubbing and film scoring.

Built in 2002, rock, classical and jazz musicians have all made it their home. Major names who have recorded at Elfo include Daniel Lanois, Van der Graaf Generator, Deep Purple and Greg Lake.

Capitol Studios – Los Angeles

Built in 1956, Capitol Studios was reserved for artists signed to Capitol Records until 1968. The building is 13 storeys high, with the studio in the rectangular part of the building on the ground floor, which is topped by a 150-foot tall cylindrical tower. The largest recording space, Studio A, has seen everyone from Nat King Cole to Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, the Beach Boys and Muse pass through its doors. It now has a NEVE 88RS 72 channel recording console, an EMT 140 plate reverb and 7.1 surround monitoring capability.

Plus, at the cutting edge, Capitol’s famous recording studios have eight custom-built ‘echo chambers’, which each have their own characteristic sound to perfect any desired frequency response. These are part of an underground concrete bunker designed by legendary guitarist and sound engineer Les Paul to get a better reverb sound.

Just a few of the Studios’ major hits have included Michael Jackson’s Invincible, Jay Z’s The Blueprint, The Black Parade by My Chemical Romance, Snoop Dogg’s Doggumentary and Miley Cyrus’s Bangerz.

Capitol Studios also does plenty of recording sessions for TV, for studios such as Warner Brothers and Universal, as well as film mixes. ‘Georgia’ from the film Ray, starring Jamie Foxx, was filmed at the Studios.

Metropolis Studios – London

Over the last three decades, Metropolis Studios has gained a reputation as one of Britain’s top tier studio hubs, having seen everyone from Queen (who recorded their last two albums, Made in Heaven and Innuendo there) to Madonna, George Michael (Listen Without Prejudice), The Rolling Stones and Ed Sheeran pass through its doors, plus Adele, whose chart-topping 25 was recorded at Metropolis, including the single ‘Hello’, winner of two Grammys.

Founded in 1993, high end recording studio Metropolis Mastering was set up with the aim of going beyond the standards of the day in terms of mastering. Featuring four main recording studios and mix rooms, it’s one of the most impressive mastering studios in the UK, with several leading mastering engineers based at the facility.

Studio A has a large stone and wood live room, a dead room and a stone room (modelled on the classic Townhouse Studio Two stone room). The control room is over 80 square meters with separate machine and amp rooms. The control room houses an SSL 9072 J series console with PMC main monitors. The live room is also used for concerts and album playbacks.

Studio B is based around the classic SSL 4064 G Series console and features Genelec main monitoring. The live area comprises a central live area surrounded by two spacious isolated areas that offer more controlled acoustics. As well as being a great tracking room, Studio B is one of the most sought-after mix rooms in London. Notable clients have included George Michael, The Stone Roses, U2, Elton John, The Verve, Rihanna and will.i.am.

Question de Son – Paris

Question de Son’s owners, Jordan Kouby and Frédéric Vectol, had both worked at large studios before setting up on their own, with the ‘philosophy of a big studio in a smaller place’. The former garment factory in the 10th arrondissement was built in the 1930s and had been empty for over a decade. Remodelling began in 2010 to create Studios A and B, plus editing and production suites.

Studio A has a live room with three acoustically variable zones: the main area, a stone room, and a separate booth. Its main feature is a vintage Neve desk. Commissioned in 1975 for EMI Mexico, its most notable features include a total of 24 1093 input modules and a pair of EMI TG12413 limiters. Outboard processors including a Gates SA-39 and a Gyraf Gyratec X complement the equipment collection.

Prefer mixing through an SSL? Studio B is for you. It houses an SSL 4048 G+ desk, together with a pair of EAR 660 limiters, a Gates SA-39B, a GML 8200 EQ and a set of three Pultec EQH-2s, with a Martinsound MultiMAX surround controller available on request. A feature is the stompbox side rack, which holds dozens of pedals and offers all the functionality to combine them within a line-level mixing environment. There’s also a Yamaha C3 grand piano, Yamaha CP70B, Fender Rhodes and Wurlitzer pianos, a Hammond B3 organ, a modified Minimoog Model D and the entire Roland Juno family of synths.

Question de Son’s roster of recording artists includes notable French names and Kanye West, Frank Ocean, Babyshambles and Beck.

Hansa Tonstudio – Berlin

Hansa Studios started in the early 1960s as a small recording studio in the headquarters of Berlin’s Hansa Music Production, founded by brothers Peter and Thomas Meisel.

As the number of Hansa artists expanded, the Meisel brothers decided to found Hansa Tonstudio GmbH at the start of the 1970s, and built their own studio in order to be able to produce independently. Hansa Studio 1 opened in 1973, and in 1975 the brothers took over the former Sonopress Studio on Köthener Street, turning it into Hansa Studio 2. Further property purchases at the end of the 70s and the start of the 80s resulted in the brothers running five studios.

With a ‘factory’ ethos, hits from Mireille Mathieu, Drafi Deutscher, Peter Maffay, Udo Jürgens and Roland Kaiser came from the studio. But it was David Bowie who truly put them on the map. He wrote ‘Heroes’ there, and also recorded Low, Heroes and Baal.

Other major artists and albums include U2’s Achtung Baby, Depeche Mode’s Construction Time Again, and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’ The Firstborn is Dead, giving the studio near legendary status within the post-punk and synthpop genres.

Studio 1 remains active as Hansa Studio, while the Hansa building on Köthener Street houses independent studios and production companies from music to film scores and dubbing.

For a look inside, Anton Corbijn shot parts of the video for U2’s ‘One’ at Hansa.

Ocean Sound Recording Studio – Giske, Norway

Ocean Sound was first established in a small boathouse in 2005 as a private studio for Norwegian band The Margarets. In 2009, American sound expert Ric Vaughan designed the purpose-built Ocean Sound to be one of the best acoustically treated spaces to record music in. Ocean Sound has a large live room, twin ISO rooms and a large control room – plus, with a breathtaking view of the Atlantic Ocean, could there be a better place to hole up to record an album?

Having upgraded their Studio B mixing space in 2022, they’re now a Dolby Atmos Music Studio and have welcomed artists including Swedish House Mafia, Sigrid, a-ha, Kygo, Arcade Fire, Sampha and Travis.

They also offer analogue tape, with multi-track and 2-track tape machines, mixing and mastering. Tech on offer includes a Rupert Neve 5088 Shelford console, an Amphion 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos System and a mass of preamps, Eq, effects and digital equipment.

Real World Studios – Bath, UK

Set in stunning rural surroundings near the city of Bath, Real World Studios is a unique residential recording facility where artists, producers and engineers can escape their daily distractions and focus solely on making music.

Peter Gabriel conceived Real World as both a studio for technical excellence and an idyllic retreat in 1987. It’s been the location for many landmark albums by musicians from all over the globe, and is also home to the WOMAD festival and Real World Records.

Close to the water and with plenty of natural light, Van Morrison, Alicia Keys, Amy Winehouse, Björk, Coldplay, Paul Simon, Jay Z, Kanye and Beyoncé have all kicked back and chilled out at the idyllic location, designed by Gabriel so that the musicians aren’t separated from the engineer or producer.

The Big Room is a 2000 square foot live room and control room, with a custom wraparound 72 channel SSL 9000 XL K Series mixing console at its centre; it’s designed as one large collaborative recording space with no dividing walls. The Wood Room has a 24 channel SSL AWS 924 console and features a more lively acoustic character.

Onkio Haus – Tokyo

With over 40 years covering recording, mixing, mastering and post-production, Tokyo’s Onkio Haus is one of Japan’s most well-known studios – especially for Japanese pop songs and jazz music. Their tech includes an SSL SL9064J-64VU mixing console, a Sony PCM-3348 multitrack recorder and EVE Audio SC408 and SC207 monitors.

Electric Lady Studios – New York

In 1968, Jimi Hendrix and his manager Michael Jeffery bought a newly defunct nightclub called The Generation in New York’s Greenwich Village — a venue that Hendrix had frequented for impromptu performances and late-night jam sessions. Instead of renaming the club, Hendrix was persuaded into converting the space into a professional recording studio. It became the only artist-owned recording studio in existence at the time.

The grand opening was in 1970, with guests including Steve Winwood, Eric Clapton, Ron Wood, and Patti Smith. Electric Lady Studios was made famous by Jimi Hendrix and classic 70s sessions with The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Stevie Wonder, David Bowie, and Patti Smith, among others, and it’s the oldest working recording studio in New York City.

Recent projects include Kendrick Lamar’s Mr Morale and the Big Steppers, Bad Bunny’s Un Verano Sin Ti, Love for Sale by Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, plus albums by Frank Ocean, St. Vincent, Adele, Taylor Swift, and Lorde.

There are four studios (A-D), with Studio A the most sought-after, owing to its place in rock ‘n’ roll history. It’s home to a fully restored Neve 8078, a hand-wired analogue console, plus an impressive collection of vintage microphones, instruments and amps. Studio B features an SSL 9000J 80 channel console and a Yamaha U30a upright piano.

Mix engineer Tom Elmhirst works out of Studio C – he currently holds the record for most Grammys won by an engineer in a single year, having worked on Adele’s 30, James Blake’s Friends that Break Your Heart and albums by David Bowie and Amy Winehouse.

Studios 301 – Sydney, Australia

Australia’s most iconic recording studio lays claim to having the largest recording space in the Southern Hemisphere and being the only Tier One recording studio in Australia. The studios were established as a subsidiary of the Columbia Gramophone Company in 1926, later becoming EMI Records, then Studios 301, so it’s also Australia’s longest-running professional recording studio. They also have outposts in Stockholm and Byron Bay.

The current set up boasts music recording studios, production suites, mastering rooms and digitisation facilities and has hosted artists spanning every genre, including INXS, Elton John, Prince, Bob Dylan, Lady Gaga, U2, The Weeknd, Lizzo, Charli XCX and Migos, to name a few.

Despite its heritage, Studios 301 isn’t one to rest on its laurels; it’s been at the forefront of pioneering audio formats in Australia, and the 301 Academy offers new engineers and producers the experience of working within a professional recording studio environment.

mau5 House – Toronto, Canada

Deadmau5, aka Canadian DJ/producer Joel Zimmerman, has an enormous studio space stacked with a visual feast for techies. The Dolby Atmos-certified studio features nine custom-made ATC speakers, a top-secret black box, a $50,000 analogue recording console and more. Take the full tour with Linus Tech:

While you may not be able to book the studio yourself, it’s definitely something to aim for, if you’re planning your own home set up (you just might need to have a string of massive global hits first, in order to afford a custom Modcan Series A, five custom-built PCs and a near-limitless quantity of hard drive storage space.)

Hans Zimmer’s Studio – California

If you fancy a studio that could also double as a gentleman’s club with gothic tinges, then look no further than legendary film composer Hans Zimmer’s beautiful California studio, complete with comfy sofas, Persian rugs and gorgeous, warm lighting.

There’s vintage outboard gear, the Bosendorfer piano which has often provided the foundation for his epic scores, together with a 3M multi-touch screen workflow, with custom-made software to navigate Zimmer’s go-to DAW, Cubase.

Zimmer is perhaps best-known for being Christopher Nolan’s favourite composer (The Dark Knight, Inception, Interstellar), but he’s also created everything from themes for Pirates of the Caribbean and The Crown to scores for Dune and the synth programming for Top Gun: Maverick here.

Sunset Sound – California

Once an automotive repair garage, Sunset Sound was set up in 1958 as a recording studio for Disney. Bambi, Bedknobs & Broomsticks, Mary Poppins, 101 Dalmatians – these and dozens of others were recorded in magnificent mono.

Studio 1 eventually grew into a three-room complex and became a home for artists as well as soundtracks, including The Doors (The Doors and Strange Days), Janis Joplin, Van Halen, Whitney Houston, Crosby, Stills and Nash, Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis and Carly Simon. The Rolling Stones recorded Exile on Main Street here and it’s also the home of the Beach Boys’ iconic Pet Sounds. More recently, Macy Gray’s multi-million selling debut, On How Life Is, was recorded at Sunset.

Film scores as varied as My Best Friend’s Wedding and Dune, Rocky II and IV, Wayne’s World and The Big Lebowski have all been created at Sunset Sound.

The studios’ tagline is, ‘high quality in a historical custom setting’ and its 60-year history has produced over 300 gold albums. Studio 1 has a 68 x 16 Sunset Sound custom discreet console with flying faders automation, while Studio 2 has a 48 x 48 x 16 Class-A Discreet Neve 8088 console.

Sun Studios – Memphis, Tennessee

One of the most famous recording recording studios in the States – and known as the birthplace of rock ‘n’ roll – Sun Studios launched the careers of musical legends in the 50s from BB King and Elvis Presley to Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis, and genres spanning blues and gospel to country and rock.

Record producer Sam Phillips worked as a DJ in the 1940s in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, whose ‘open format’ of broadcasting music by white and black musicians alike would later inspire his work in Memphis. In 1950, Phillips opened the Memphis Recording Service, aka Sun Studio, which drew performers such as BB King and Howlin’ Wolf. Phillips launched his own record label, Sun Records, in early 1952.

Although it’s mainly open for tours now, you can still book a recording session there from 7pm, using a blend of Sam Phillips’ original analogue techniques, together with modern tech. There’s also a 1960s Ludwig drum kit, a 1950s Hammond B3, a 1950s Wurlitzer Spinet piano and a 1950s Kay double bass.

Blackbird Studio - Nashville

Music capital Nashville is home to the hallowed Blackbird Studios, which has welcomed everyone from Dolly Parton to Taylor Swift, Beck, Kesha, The White Stripes, Faith Hill, Neil Young and Kings of Leon through its doors.

Founded by sound engineer John McBride and his country superstar wife, Martina, in 2002, Blackbird Studio is known for its state-of-the-art production facilities and an impressive collection of vintage and modern recording equipment.

There are nine different recording studios, The Blackbird Academy, a post-secondary audio engineering school and Inside Blackbird, an online learning platform. Studio A has a Neve 8078 console and features a 1930 Hammond B3 organ and a Wurlitzer 200A. Studio B’s equipment list includes an API Legacy Plus console and a range of mic pres, equalisers and dynamics.

Steve Aoki’s Neon Future Cave - Las Vegas

If you want to have a good time, head to electro house DJ and producer Steve Aoki’s Neon Future Cave. Aoki’s debut album, Wonderland, received a Grammy nomination for Best Dance/Electronic Album and he’s collaborated with artists such as will.i.am, Afrojack, Iggy Azalea, BTS and Fall Out Boy.

This home-turned-studio – equipped with a foam pit, skate ramp and futuristic neon lighting – certainly isn’t your traditional studio and is set up according to Aoki’s belief that creating music, ‘shouldn’t be work. The best way we can create is when we’re in a really positive mood, and when there’s no pressure.’

Billboard described the studio – converted from the house’s former movie theatre - as ‘what the Jetsons would have if they were producing dance beats’. The ultra high quality recording studio is centred around a large workstation housing an ‘epic’ Slate Raven Z3C digital mix rack and Focal SM9 monitors. Plus there’s a prized Sony C800G microphone, a Universal Audio Apollo 16 interface with a DSP Accelerator and a combination preamp and compressor/limiter, the Universal Audio UA 6176, through which Aoki runs all his guitars and bass.

Audio Network and the World’s Best Studios

Much of Audio Network’s high quality original music, from a huge range of global artists, composers and producers, is recorded at the world’s most renowned recording and music mixing studios, including Abbey Road Studios, AIR Studios, School Farm Studios in Maplestead and Synchron Stage, Vienna.

Our music spans every genre and mood, and is ideal for licensing for TV, advertising and digital content. Explore our hand-picked playlists and collections, tailored for every possible production genre, together with our latest albums – we refresh our music every fortnight. From hip hop to trailer music, classical to global, we have everything you need when it comes to music made for sync. And if you’re a musician or composer who fancies becoming part of the Audio Network roster and potentially having a recording session at Abbey Road Studios, then find out how you can submit your music to us.

Need Music for Your Project?

At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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the power of music

THE POWER OF MUSIC: HOW TO MAKE YOUR BRAND STAND OUT

FEATURED, MUSIC, OLD /
Contents
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    Imagine a Christmas ad without the music – suddenly it’s much less heart-warming. Or a Nike campaign without an up to the minute soundtrack – would it miss its target market? Music has a very special place in storytelling and creating emotion for a viewer. It can tap into our sense of nostalgia during the holidays; a certain song can bring in a rush of romance, or make you feel suddenly sad. There are classical orchestral pieces that have been used in so many different ways that you feel an instant connection to them – and you’ll bring that connection to the brand or business that’s using it now. In short: music is an emotional language.

    How to Make Your Brand Stand Out

    • Why you need music
    • Hitting the right brand note
    • Can music make or break an ad?
    • How music can make you stand out as a brand
    • What is sync?
    • Why do I need a music licence?

    Why You Need Music

    Kantar, who test ads globally, point to the rise of radio in the 1920s as being fundamental to brands using their own music and sound to establish their identity.

    They suggest that the benefits of ‘sonic branding’ as an element of marketing strategy are:

    • Establishing an emotional connection with consumers
    • Conveying brand values
    • Differentiating brands from competitors
    • Increasing brand recognition

    Kantar’s BrandZ research shows that brands with strong brand assets achieve 76% higher brand power, and 138% higher perceptions of advertising strength – which includes ‘sonic assets’. And the world’s top 100 most valuable brands are currently worth an astonishing $6.9 trillion.

    Just think of McDonald’s ‘I’m Lovin’ It’ four-note sign off, Intel Inside’s audio jingle, or Coca-Cola’s ‘Holidays are comin’. When you hear those small pieces of sound, you automatically think of the brand. A brand’s sonic identity can include everything from jingles to voice overs, sound effects to background music.

    Hitting the Right Brand Note

    Kantar say that, ‘by leveraging the power of music and sound to evoke emotions and memories, brands can create a consistent image and increase brand recall.’ In an analysis of audio ads for Spotify by Nielsen, they found that listeners were more likely to enjoy audio ads than display ads across radio and streaming services – and that they drove 24% higher recall than display ads, and were twice as likely to lift purchase intent.

    However, brands need to choose their music carefully: ‘People have become increasingly discerning when it comes to music selection, and they can quickly spot insincere attempts to keep up with musical trends. If a brand’s choice of music seems too generic or out of touch with its audience, it risks eroding brand affinity.’

    Plus, as Forbes.com makes clear, ‘A logo would not be created without a deep dive into the goals, values and voice of a brand or without data driving the creative strategy; the same should go for a brand’s sonic identity. This exploration of which keys, chord progressions or beats per minute will best convey the tone of the brand will allow it to not only create a pleasant sound to connect with its audience, but also ensure that there is a much stronger ROI for this new sonic identity.’

    So, to stand out from the crowd, look for high quality, original music, as well as the music or sounds that will chime with your business or brand values, as well as your target audience and your messaging – a study by PHMG suggests that 74% of young adults develop a better understanding of a company’s personality through music.

    What’s your music identity as a brand and how is it creating a point of difference in today’s hyper-competitive environment?

    Can Music Make or Break an Ad?

    When you add music to advertising, it makes it more effective – and it’s been scientifically proven. According to a study by Leicester University, consumers are 96% more likely to remember the brands that use music aligned with their brand identity.

    Studies show that we use the same parts of the brain to process music that are responsible for emotion and memory. In a Nielsen study of over 600 TV ads, those with music performed better with regard to empathy, creativity, emotive power and information when compared to those without music.

    Music hits you at a neurological level: if it’s pleasing, the brain releases dopamine, aka ‘the happiness hormone’: music puts your body into a contented state. The neurotransmitter oxytocin is also activated – this is the bonding hormone; like dopamine, it’s released in interpersonal relationships and creates the typical ‘butterfly’ feeling of being in love.

    Experiments by a research team at the University of Zurich also showed that oxytocin can influence trust in other people and even change the behaviour of the test subjects as a result. In short, music can make people happy and influence emotionally-driven behaviour. Music also ensures that people remember this feeling: episodic memory associates music with the situation in which it was first heard. Hence, why it’s important for brands and businesses to harness the power of music.

    At Kantar, 84% of the ads they test globally have music, whilst for Ipsos, it’s 89%; 80% of YouTube ads include music and TikTok is one of the platforms where the sound – and therefore the music – is most definitely ‘on’, making music a key element.

    Beto Azout, SoStereo’s co-founder, told LLBOnline, ‘Brands are putting out more video content than before – there’s more pressure on musical decisions to be made cleverly. There’s more traffic on all of these platforms, but also the attention spans are shorter. That’s where music can play a very big role. It’s been proven that when someone likes a piece of music, they are twice as likely to continue watching the video and remembering it later. That’s where the concept of brand recall starts to become a real factor.’

    How Music Can Make You Stand out as a Brand

    A tailor-made signature sound or music score can definitely make you stand out. Netflix’s signature ‘Tudum’ – that three-second burst that plays when you open the streamer – captures the excitement and anticipation that comes with starting a new show or movie.

    It was created by a team of audio designers at the company and launched in 2015. Then, in 2020, Netflix decided to update ‘Tudum’, making it longer and more cinematic. Who did they commission? None other than Mr Hollywood Movie Score himself, Hans Zimmer. The new version, created for theatrical releases, was made with a full orchestra to give it maximum impact.

    This one sound has created an emotional connection with Netflix’s customers – it’s the sound that people associate with relaxation, entertainment, intrigue and enjoyment, so much so that they built a whole campaign around it, ‘Sounds like a good story’:

    There are brands that make music a more fundamental part of their identity. Taco Bell, for instance, gives out $500 gift cards to help subsidize the costs of touring bands through its Feed the Beat programme, and tapped up Lil Nas X, a former fast-food employee, as Chief Impact Officer to help connect music culture with the brand.

    Another food brand working with artists and making music a core part of its identity is Just Eat. They’ve worked with Snoop Dogg and Katy Perry, and their most recent campaign saw Latto and Christina Aguilera singing their praises.

    Both of these campaigns and collabs are great examples of finding the perfect artist and music to fit your brand personality – and your target audience – and then building on them.

    What Is Sync?

    So, now you know why you need music for your branded or business content, let’s look at how to get it. If you don’t have the budget to commission a composer to create unique music for your project, you’ll want to search out some sync tracks. ‘Sync’ is shorthand for a music licence that’s granted to synchronise (‘sync’) music with some kind of content. That could be anything from films to TV shows, ads to video games, YouTube content to podcasts or radio dramas and movie trailers.

    Why Do I Need a Music Licence?

    The rights to a piece of music are usually owned by a record label and/or the composer or songwriter. If you don’t have a licence to use the music, then you can be fined, or your content can be taken down on platforms such as YouTube because of copyright infringement.

    When you purchase a music licence, the contract will look at how the track’s being used, how much of the track you’re using, and whether it’s used as background music, or as a title track during the credits, etc. Licensing big names or tracks can be very expensive, so if you’re working to a limited budget, you can turn to dedicated music libraries.

    Companies such as Audio Network, which own the rights to their music, take the stress out of licensing. You know that whatever track you choose from the catalogue, it’s fully licensed, and you won’t have to worry about take-downs or fines.

    Instead of having to negotiate with labels or artists, it’s ‘one click’ licensing, which makes the whole process very straightforward – no matter what content you’re creating. Audio Network have hundreds of thousands of tracks, in every genre and to cover any mood.

    Music to Make Your Brand Sing

    Now you’ve seen how much impact music can bring to your brand or business, from emotion to recall and reinforcing brand loyalty, be inspired by how global brands have perfected their choices, with our deep dives on IKEA, Just Eat, and the best radio ads of all time. Or, be on top of the trends in music licensing to stay ahead of the crowd.

    Our hand-picked playlists make finding music to license quick and easy, whether it’s for TV programmes, advertising, digital entertainment or branded content. Plus, we have collections, from orchestral to hip hop, and regular new releases of high quality, original music in any genre, to suit every mood.

    Need Music for Your Project?

    At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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    romantic albums

    ROMANTIC ALBUMS: THE BEST ALBUMS INSPIRED BY LOVE

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      When it comes to Valentine’s Day, the saying, “if music be the food of love, play on” should definitely be uppermost in your mind. But what are the best romantic albums and the most romantic love songs? From the albums inspired by love to iconic heartbreak albums (if Cupid has shot his arrow elsewhere this year…), here’s our pick for your playlists on 14th February.

      Whether you’re streaming or buying a CD or vinyl for your loved one, there’s a huge range of classics and contemporary love song albums, from record-breaking Adele and Whitney Houston to Father John Misty’s wit and wisdom, and iconic titles by Fleetwood Mac, Al Green and Marvin Gaye.

      Best Romantic Albums

      • Let’s Stay Together – Al Green
      • 69 Love Songs – The Magnetic Fields
      • Room for Squares – John Mayer
      • 21 – Adele
      • The Love Below – Andre 3000
      • Love Deluxe – Sade
      • I Love You, Honeybear – Father John Misty
      • Hounds of Love – Kate Bush
      • The Lexicon of Love – ABC
      • Come Away with Me – Norah Jones

      Let’s Stay Together – Al Green

      Rolling Stone noted that, ‘Green’s voice is something to marvel at. Let’s Stay Together is, like its predecessor, an indispensable treat.’ Included in Q magazine’s ‘Best Soul Albums of All Time’, in 1999, they wrote that the album, ‘shows him as the authentic voice of love’s pain and purity’ and ‘his cover of the Bee Gees’ song [‘How Can You Mend a Broken Heart’] took the soul ballad to new levels of artistry and refinement.’

      ‘Let’s Stay Together’ is the perfect track for a wedding playlist and has been a classic ever since it was released on the Hi label in 1972. The fourth album by soul singer Al Green was recorded in Memphis and claimed the No. 1 slot on the soul album chart for ten weeks. It was also reissued in 2003.

      Albert Leornes Greene, also known as The Reverend Al Green, scored his only Billboard No. 1 single with ‘Let’s Stay Together’, which praises unconditional love and sticking it out through good times and bad. Green’s signature warm delivery opens the album on a soulful, gentle, mellow note and the song pours straight from his heart. If you’re looking for an expert blend of soul, funk, R&B, pop, blues and jazz, then you won’t find one that’s stood the test of time as well as this 50-year-old classic.

      In the mood for heartbreak instead? Check out the grittier tracks, ‘So You’re Leaving Me’ and ‘What is This Feeling’, which references Green’s frustration about his relationship falling apart.

      69 Love Songs – The Magnetic Fields

      Want to really go big? This six-disc box set of 69 love songs is the one for you. The American indie poppers’ sixth studio album was released in 1999 by Merge Records. The three-volume concept album, comprised of the titular 69 love songs, was all written by Magnetic Fields’ frontman, Stephin Merritt.

      The inspiration for the collection came from Merritt sitting in a Manhattan piano bar, listening to Stephen Sondheim songs and deciding that he wanted to get into theatre music. Interestingly, Merritt has said that 69 Love Songs is ‘not remotely an album about love. It’s an album about love songs, which are very far away from anything to do with love.’ The album spans songs in genres as varied as country, punk rock (‘Punk Love’), Scottish folk (‘Wi’ Nae Wee Bairn Ye’ll Me Beget’), synth pop, free jazz (‘Love is Like Jazz’) and mournful ballads (‘Busby Berkeley Dreams’, ‘The Book of Love’).

      Music critics loved it – The Guardian hailed it as, ‘an album of such tenderness, humour and bloody-minded diversity, it’ll have you throwing away your preconceptions and wondering how you ever survived a broken heart without it.’ Others compared Merritt’s lyrics with Cole Porter and, proving its quality, in 2021, NME placed it at No. 213 on their list of all-time greatest albums.

      Merritt combined forces with four other vocalists, and brought in a dizzying array of instruments, from ukulele, banjo and accordion to cello, mandolin, piano, flute, guitars, a selection of percussion and his more usual synths and effects.

      Pitchfork described the huge variety of genres on the album: ‘As a prism refracts light into a spectrum of colours, 69 Love Songs not only refracts love into a spectrum of emotions, but also refracts the love song itself into a spectrum of musical forms. There’s a duet between a dysfunctional Sonny and Cher (‘Yeah! Oh Yeah!’), a country-gospel tune confusing religious and secular love (‘Kiss Me Like You Mean It’), and an amusingly light-hearted tale of a soldier’s drunken tryst (‘The Night You Can’t Remember’).

      ‘There’s giddy lust (‘Let’s Pretend We’re Bunny Rabbits’), romantic longing (‘Come Back from San Francisco’), sleazy leering (‘Underwear’), and resignation and despair (‘No One Will Ever Love You’).’

      Seems that whatever romantic mood you want to channel, 69 Love Songs will have you covered.

      Room for Squares – John Mayer

      Soulful guitar and a soft vocals ensure that Mayer’s melodic album about young love cuts straight to the heart of the matter. Whether you’re currently caught up in first love or reminiscing and going on a nostalgic rummage through your romantic memories, the tracks on Room for Squares make an excellent soundtrack.

      The American singer-songwriter’s debut album was released in 2001 on both Aware and Columbia Records. Single ‘Your Body is a Wonderland’ earned Mayer a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.

      There are sweeping, classical strings on ‘City Love’ and pure pop guitar on ‘Back to You’, plus some funky bass on ‘Neon’. The result? A slick collection of infectious tunes with moving vocals and honest sentiment.

      21 – Adele

      Well, you can’t have a run-down of the best albums inspired by love and leave out Adele’s record-breaking 21, can you? The singer-songwriter’s second album debuted in 2011 on XL Recordings in Europe and Columbia Records in the US.

      In the canon of heartbreak albums, has there ever been one that’s more ubiquitous than 21? Adele began writing the album when she was still in the relationship whose break-up subsequently inspired the record. The Queen of Breakup Belters collaborated with songwriters and producers including Rick Rubin, Paul Epworth, Ryan Tedder, Jim Abbiss and Dan Wilson.

      21 topped the charts in more than 30 counties and became the world’s best-selling album of the year for both 2011 and 2012. Want an even bigger stat? In the UK, it’s the best-selling album of the 21st century. Yes, you read that right, the whole century. It’s also the best-selling album by a solo artist of all-time and won the Grammy for Album of the Year.

      Adele’s performance of ‘Someone Like You’ at the BRIT Awards in 2011 blew everyone away and cemented her reputation not only as a performer, but also as the lyricist for the lovelorn.

      If Valentine’s Day is giving you grief, then channel either vengeful feelings through ‘Rolling in the Deep’ (‘don’t underestimate the things that I will do’), your inner piano-vixen lounge singer (‘Rumour Has It’) or, of course, go full-on ‘I’m not giving up without a fight’ and bellow ‘Someone Like You’ into your second tub of Ben and Jerry’s of the night. We’ve all been there.

      The Love Below – Andre 3000

      Looking for a jazzy, funky Valentine? This 2003 release on Arista Records by half of Outkast is just the thing. ‘The Love Below (Intro)’ is a gorgeously old skool piano piece that could easily have slotted into either the soundtrack for When Harry Met Sally or La La Land.

      The album, which Uncut magazine called, ‘an avant-soul concept album’ features guests including Rosario Dawson, Kelis, Norah Jones and Fonzworth Bentley, who examine the emotions of falling in love and of loving oneself. It was suggested that Andre 3000’s breakup with Erykah Badu influenced the album’s lyrics, many of which are concerned with the search for true love.

      The Love Below’s claim to ultimate Valentine’s day album? Well, track four is titled, ‘Happy Valentine’s Day’. Or why not have a joyous dance about to ‘Hey Ya!’ to celebrate the giddiness of love.

      Love Deluxe – Sade

      Sade’s fourth studio album was released by Epic Records in 1992. If you’re after an album that surges with emotion, but without all the bombastic bells and whistles, then this is the one for you. The first track ‘No Ordinary Love’, shows off Sade’s gorgeous voice, and the spare arrangements on the other tracks follow the signature style of earlier classics Diamond Life and Stronger than Pride.

      The lyrics are loosely inspired by the ups and downs of Sade Adu’s six-year marriage to Spanish film director Carlos Pliego. For evocative love songs, look no further than ‘Kiss of Life’ and ‘I Couldn’t Love You More’, or the soaring ‘Cherish the Day’, the final single released from the album, which Sade confessed was her favourite track on the album. ‘I think it’s really quite deep, but at the same time it’s a love song.’

      I Love You, Honeybear – Father John Misty

      If you find some aspects of Valentine’s Day a bit cloying, then Father John Misty is the perfect choice. I Love You, Honeybear is full of sardonic wit and is romantic almost in spite of itself.

      Folk musician Josh Tillman’s second album since his departure from Fleet Foxes came out on the Bella Union label in 2015 and was described by the artist as a concept album about himself. The songs explore his relationship with his wife, Emma, and aspects of his personal life that saw him ‘engaging in all manner of regrettable behaviour’.

      The album’s last song, ‘I Went to the Store One Day’, chronicles Tillman and his wife’s relationship from the day they met in a store and up to their deaths. Alexis Petridis of The Guardian particularly loved the album’s lyrics: ‘There are moments when, if you’re listening closely, the constant lyrical shifts from caustic irony to plaintive declarations of love can really knock you for six, not least on the title track.’

      Pitchfork called it, ‘an album by turns passionate and disillusioned, tender and angry, so cynical it’s repulsive, and so open-hearted it hurts.’ This is definitely an album for the ‘it’s complicated’ crowd.

      Hounds of Love – Kate Bush

      For everyone who’s discovered Kate Bush thanks to ‘Running Up that Hill’ on Stranger Things, Hounds of Love should definitely be on your playlist for Valentine’s Day.

      The album debuted way back in 1985 on EMI Records and as well as ‘Running Up that Hill’, there were three further singles, ‘Cloudbusting’, ‘The Big Sky’ and title track, ‘Hounds of Love’. Sounds called the album, ‘dramatic, moving and wildly, unashamedly, beautifully romantic’, while Spin hailed it as an, ‘art-pop classic’. Rolling Stone ranked it at No. 68 in their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2020.

      Dive into ‘Cloudbusting’s lush strings for full-tilt romance (‘you’re here in my head, like the sun coming out’) and use the album as a jumping-off point to segue into today’s big, bold artists such as Florence + the Machine, St. Vincent and Anohni.

      The Lexicon of Love – ABC

      Another concept album, this 80s debut from ABC tracks singer Martin Fry’s heartache as he tries and fails to have a meaningful relationship. If you’re currently in the throes of unrequited love, then mooning over the object of your affection on Insta seems a lot better soundtracked by ‘Tears are not Enough’, ‘Poison Arrow’, ‘All of My Heart’ and ‘The Look of Love’.

      You can particularly wallow in the talky bit on the latter: ‘And all my friends just might ask me / They say, “Martin, maybe one day you’ll find true love”/ And I say, maybe, there must be a solution to / The one thing, the one thing we can’t find’ – there’s a satisfyingly big sigh you can indulge in, if you’re feeling particularly dramatic.

      Come Away with Me – Norah Jones

      Come Away with Me celebrated its 20-year anniversary last year. At the time Norah Jones burst onto the international scene, she was an unknown artist. But her unique blend of jazz, blues, country, folk and pop instantly made her a global star.

      Blue Note Records’ newest chart-topper hit the No. 1 slot on the Billboard 200 and received Grammy Awards for both Album of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Album. ‘Don’t Know Why’ also won Song of the Year, Record of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Jones was supported by jazz musicians including Kevin Breit, Bill Frisell and Tony Scherr on the mix of jazz standards and folk infusions.

      If you’re yearning for relaxed romance on the 14th February, then chill out with Come Away with Me – it’s like a gorgeous, jazz-tinged caress.

      If Music Be the Food of Love…

      Can’t get enough romantic music? Listen to our hand-picked playlist, then dive into our selection of the most romantic movies and their soundtracks, together with the movies’ best love songs. Alternatively, explore our latest albums for the best in high-quality original music to license.

      Need Music for Your Project?

      At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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      sped up music

      THE RISE OF SPED UP MUSIC

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        ‘Life comes at you fast’, so they say, and now that’s more true than ever. With the option to watch everything from film and TV and listen to podcasts at 1.5 speed and in half the time, it was pretty much guaranteed that music would follow suit. But what’s behind the trend for sped up songs and fast music?

        The Popularity of Sped-up Songs: A Modern Music Trend?

        As with many trends, the rise of sped-up music can be attributed to social media: TikTok in particular. But do a slightly deeper dive, and you’ll find pitch-shifted, sped-up audio as far back as the 1950s. A novelty track called ‘Witch Doctor’ used vocals which were manually recorded at half speed and then sped up the tape so the voice of the ‘witch’ sang at a higher pitch.

        ‘Witch Doctor’s originator, Ross Bagdasarian Sr., recorded under the name of David Seville, who became the fictional character who was the adoptive father/producer of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Yes, our tiny, squeaky pals were there first, in the early 60s.

        Bagdasarian’s son explains in the video above that a DJ in Philadelphia on a graveyard shift in 1980 played Blondie’s ‘Call Me’ sped up to give it that Chipmunk sound. Sadly, instead of kick-starting a whole new way of Blondie making money, he announced it as a new Alvin record, which led to a record label commissioning Chipmunk Punk.

        What Are the Other Origins of Sped-up Music?

        Leaving Alvin and chums behind, let’s take a look at ‘nightcore’, a micro-genre that emerged in the early 2000s in Norway. Nightcore takes a core song and speeds it up by 30%, to around 160-190bpm – for vinyl fans, it’s essentially the same effect as playing a 331/3 RPM vinyl at 45 RPM.

        The genre is named after a Norwegian duo, Nightcore, who released pitch-shifted versions of trance and Eurodance tracks. They were influenced by German group Scooter’s pitch-shifted vocals in ‘Nessaja’ and ‘Ramp! (The Logical Song)’ – the pair later told SuperSuper! Magazine that, ‘Nightcore has become a style of music, a way to make the music happier – ‘happy hardcore’ as they say.’

        From the 2010s, nightcore crossed over into pop and hip hop, K-pop and electro house, but it’s undoubtedly TikTok’s massive popularity in the 2020s that’s led to the global appeal of fast bpm music.

        Sped up TikTok Audios: Changing the Pace of Social Media Entertainment

        So, what is the big appeal of sped-up tunes? Producer, performer and comedian Oliver Tree, whose nightcore track ‘Miss You’ was a hit, told the NME that, ‘The current state of living in a digital society, with the advent of social media and online dating, is that we’re all quickly swiping to see what’s better. This leaves us moving at an incredibly fast pace. Music’s a mirror of humanity, so no one should be surprised that sped-up music has become popular, when you look at the speed in which we’re living.’

        Fans and creators remixing songs is part of TikTok’s appeal – Clive Rozario, TikTok’s Global Music Programme Manager, highlighted the fact that people don’t just come to it to consume, but also to create: ‘Fans are empowered to become part of the music-making process, which often manifests in creators experimenting with their own sped-up or slowed-down versions.’

        Fan-First Fresh Takes

        When you speed up a track, you can transform it into a dance hit – and create an entirely fresh take on songs from any number of genres. There have always been remixes created and promoted by music labels, but the difference now is that social media’s making these new versions a fan-first activity, which the labels then jump on, officially releasing the sped-up versions. The result? Another chart boost for an already successful track – a sped-up remix of RAYE’s ‘Escapism’ was credited with helping her to top the UK Singles Chart.

        The Psychology Behind the Appeal of Fast Music

        Speeding up or slowing down tracks might have originated on YouTube as a method of creators trying to get their content past the platform’s copyright censors, but creators often enjoy sped-up TikTok audios because they’re just more energetic and interesting to watch. Plus, TikTok is notorious for tapping into people’s short attention spans – you have to grab them, and stop them from scrolling past your content.

        Sped-up remixes pack more emotion and lyrics into a shorter timespan: ideal for TikTokkers’ speedy swipe rates and the platform’s short videos. Look for the hashtag #spedup on TikTok and you’ll find videos that have racked up over 16 billion views. Related hashtags like #nightcore and #spedupsounds also have billions of collective views – it’s clearly a genre that’s not going anywhere fast (ironically).

        Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger

        Many acts, artists and label execs are getting proactive and automatically creating nightcore versions of their songs to boost streams (RAYE’s remix has more than 51 million Spotify streams), but TikTok songs are also resurfacing old tracks. Miguel’s 2011 hit ‘Sure Thing’ was just one instance of a massive TikTok smash in 2023 that was returned to Billboard’s Hot R&B Songs’ Top 20. Lady Gaga’s 2011 track ‘Bloody Mary’ didn’t even chart on its original release, but it debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 thanks to millions of people, including Gaga herself, recreating the viral Wednesday dance to the song.

        You can instantly see the crossover and influence on streamers such as Netflix from social media with this track – it wasn’t on the original Wednesday soundtrack, but a teaser trailer for the second season features the sped-up ‘Bloody Mary’ remix, alongside Wednesday’s voiceover dryly shouting out the fact she’s been ‘mimicked millions of times across the internet’.

        All of the biggest songs in TikTok in 2023 were sped-up remixes; according to its year-end report, ‘Collide (more sped up)’ by Justine Skye was top amongst its US users.

        Used in more than 4.2 million TikTok videos, this was another track that was nearly a decade old. K-poppers Fifty Fifty and ‘Favorite Song – Sped Up’ by Toosii were all more widely used than more obvious hits such as Taylor Swift’s ‘Cruel Summer’.

        You can instantly see the popularity of sped-up TikTok audios when you look at the stats for SZA’s song, ‘Kill Bill’. The original has been used for more than 100,000 TikTok videos – whilst the unofficial sped-up remix vastly eclipsed it, being used in more than 1.1 million TikToks.

        What’s the Downside of Sped-up TikTok Songs?

        In short, if you’re an artist or label and you’re not releasing your own sped-up versions, then fan-made remixes are costing you money. Forbes reports that digital rights company Pex found hundreds of millions of modified audio tracks were distributed on social media between July 2021 and March 2023, and in November, it identified at least a million tracks on streamers such as Spotify and Apple Music were unlicensed manipulated audio tracks. Pex’s senior VP pointed out that these tracks, ‘generate millions in cumulative revenue for the uploaders instead of the correct rightsholders.’

        Want to dive into fast bpm music? Spotify curates its own sped-up songs playlist:

        The Story Behind the Music

        Explore more music genres with our deep dives into the rise of microgenres, electronic music, the evolution of hip hop and the differences between synthwave and vaporwave.

        Need to license music for TikTok, YouTube and other social media platforms? Check out our Trending playlist to stay ahead of the curve.

        Need Music for Your Project?

        At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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        music for promotional videos

        MUSIC FOR PROMOTIONAL VIDEOS

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          Promotional videos come in all shapes and sizes, from brands to products, events to productions, interviews, reels and more. How do you make yours stand out, in an ever-increasing ocean of content? One key element is music; find the tracks that connect up your message with your audience, and half your work is done. We’re here to show you how, and share some inspirational playlists to make life easier.

          • What is a promotional video?
          • How long should a promo video be?
          • How can good music make a promo video better?
          • How to choose the best music for your project
          • Where can I find the best music for promotional videos?
          • Playlists for promotional videos

          What Is a Promotional Video?

          Also known as promo videos, they’re used for the purpose of promoting specific marketing initiatives, products, brands, services or events for businesses. You might also be making promotional videos for testimonials, employee training or as explainers (according to research from HubSpot, 72% of consumers would prefer to learn about a product or service by watching a video.)

          Video is at the forefront of most companies’ digital marketing – videos can increase conversion rates by 80%, just by putting them on a landing page, so it’s vital to get it right. Promo videos can also be very useful tools when it comes to creating brand loyalty (think of creating a series when you’re evolving your marketing strategy) and trust in a brand. Many smaller, or entrepreneur-led companies might feature their founder and employees, which can increase buy in on social media, and with customers who prioritise authenticity.

          Think of your promotional videos as the content which shows the world what you – and your business or product – is all about.

          How Long Should a Promo Video Be?

          This type of video content is best kept under the 2-minute mark, meaning that you may have to pack in plenty of important information, key sales points and a CTA (Call to Action). Keeping it short and punchy will encourage engagement and make your message more memorable. Focus on what the viewer really wants to know: what can your business or product do for me? How will it make my life better? What problem is it solving?

          With this kind of video promo, a big plus is that it doesn’t have to take long to make – and it doesn’t need to claim a huge amount of your budget, either.

          How Can Good Music Make a Promo Video Better?

          Adding music can improve your video content in a variety of ways:

          • Pick tracks or genres that will make the viewer feel how you want them to: from excited to thoughtful, invested or intrigued to know more
          • Use tracks with different tempos or lyrics to break up the sections of your video
          • Choose music that chimes with your target audience and represents your brand/product

          How to Choose the Best Music for Your Project

          For inspiration, look at the way global brands tell their stories through their ads, and the way they use music to create an atmosphere, or connect with their target audience. Our deep dives on IKEA, Virgin Media and trends in music licensing  for TV ads will give you valuable pointers. Or get some extra tips on music for production – from adding atmosphere to creating soundscapes.

          Where Can I Find the Best Music for Promotional Videos?

          That’s where Audio Network comes in. Our catalogue of over 200,000 tracks is fully licensed – meaning that you won’t have to worry about content take-downs on YouTube or any other copyright claims. Whatever platform you’re using for your content, our licensing has you covered.

          So, what promotional songs are you looking for? Our tracks cover every genre from pop to hip hop, orchestral to world music. But to make it even easier, you can search through our dedicated playlists, which span everything you could possibly want, from sports to gaming, cookery to travel and lifestyle, together with the tracks that will create excitement and drama, bring the LOLs or just give your promo video a bit of added ambiance.

          Playlists for Promotional Videos

          Explore these playlists from our playlist hub, with hand-picked tracks from our in-house experts, to really ramp up your promo video quality this year:

          We’ve also got collections including the best classical music, dramedy and the all-important music that resonates, so you’ll never be short of promotional songs. Get started with music licensing and take your promotional video music to the next level.

          Need Music for Your Project?

          At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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          A GUIDE TO BACKGROUND MUSIC & WHY IT’S IMPORTANT

          FEATURED, MUSIC, OLD /
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            Why is background music so powerful? Imagine a Christmas ad without any music? Or a huge blockbuster trailer without its soundtrack? Unthinkable, right? Music touches our emotions in a different way from visuals alone – whether it’s a song that you already know and love, combined with a scene that moves you, or a track used in a completely different way. It could be something you’ve never heard before, which becomes indelibly linked with a story or character. Something used in such a quirky way that it’s instantly memorable, and you’re desperate for a repeat viewing. So, how do music supervisors and creatives best use background music on both big screens and small?

            If you need to know where and when you could use background music, and how to find the very best, read on. Here’s what you’ll find out:

            • What is background music?
            • What might you need background music for?
            • Background music in TV shows
            • How music can help your production
            • Tips on choosing background music
            • Types of background music
            • Where to get background music
            • Where can I find music for…
            • Hand-picked playlists

            What Is Background Music?

            Put simply, background music – sometimes known as ‘bgm’ – is either instrumental or vocal music played in the background of any audio, audiovisual or media content. It’s used to enhance the mood or create an atmosphere or emotion, without distracting the audience.

            What Might You Need Background Music For?

            In short – any kind of content! The best TV and radio advertisements all have either memorable music – everything from the ‘Old Spice’ music (aka classical piece ‘Carmina Burana’) to the McDonald’s or Intel’s ‘audio signatures’, which are just a few notes.

            Kantar reports that 84% of the ads they test globally have music. Why is music used in TV commercials? Well, it makes it way harder to connect with your audience on an emotional level if you omit music in ads, for one.

            Kantar’s research found, ‘a strong relationship between consumers who enjoy the music in an ad, and those who feel an emotional connection through our “feel-good” metric. Our Link database shows a 63-point increase in the average feel-good factor between those who enjoyed the music most and those who didn’t enjoy it. Further, when people enjoy the music in the ad, we see a 20-point increase in the average involvement score when the music is also well-known.’

            And when you’ve only got 30 seconds to tell a story, the music can get you at least halfway there.

            When you’re looking for background music for ads, first work out what kind of story you’re telling, and what emotions you want the viewer to feel. Is it quirky, like the IKEA ‘Wonderful Everyday’ ads? Or full of triumph, passion and drama, like the best sports ads? Are you trying to tug on the viewer’s heartstrings? If so, you’ll probably want something slower and calmer – think of the John Lewis Christmas ads, which use slow, acoustic versions of well-known hits. Also bear in mind your brand identity and your target audience.

            Background Music in TV Shows

            A carefully-curated soundtrack can be a key criteria for making a great TV series – hence why there’s now an Emmy for ‘Outstanding Music Composition for a Series’. If you’ve ever Shazammed a song whilst watching a show and added it to your playlist, you know how impactful music can be. One that recently made a big splash online is Kate Bush’s ‘Running up That Hill’, which was used in a pivotal scene in Stranger Things.

            Under threat from villainous Vecna, Max’s friends realise that music might be the key to breaking her out of a potentially fatal trance. They blast her favourite track, ‘Running Up That Hill’, through her Walkman’s headphones.

            Nora Felder, the series’ music supervisor, told Variety that, ‘In the face of Max’s painful isolation and alienation from others, a “deal with God” could heart-wrenchingly reflect Max’s implicit belief that only a miracle of unlikely understanding and show of support could help her climb the hills of life before her.’ It was a perfect choice, and the track was such a hit with fans that it went to No. 1 in the charts – a mere 37 years after its initial release.

            TV programmes can be full of atmosphere and tension, romance or comedy, and music can be used to enhance the effect or guide the audience’s reaction.

            Documentaries can use music to enhance key sequences, launching them into ‘modern classics’ status. For one of the best examples, look no further than Planet Earth II’s most celebrated sequence. Baby iguanas have to run the gauntlet across a sandy beach to the safety of the rocks, whilst chased by a cascade of beady-eyed, super-fast racer snakes.

            The final iguana’s near-miraculous escape is soundtracked by blockbuster supremo and Oscar-winner Hans Zimmer, who expertly ramps up the tension. When it came to writing the music for it, Zimmer said, ‘Imagine you’re a Hollywood composer, and so you know a lot of Hollywood directors who are all doing their car chases and whatever. Nobody ever had as exciting a chase, as exciting footage, as that. It’s incredibly emotional stuff. All the music is trying to do is shine an additional light onto things. Make it something that gets under your skin.’

            How Music Can Help to Improve Your Production

            Let’s illustrate just how background music can help to improve a movie scene. We’re all used to seeing a film’s final cut – it’s been edited, the sound is balanced so you can hear the dialogue, all the SFX are in place. But how does music affect the mood of what you’re watching? Watch this classic ‘throne room’ scene from Star Wars:

            It’s got gravitas, with all those epic strings, orchestrations and the fanfare trumpets creating a suitably regal feel for the sequence of Han, Luke and Chewbacca being recognised for their heroism.

            Now watch it without the music:

            It’s just a long walk, a lot of awkward looks, an extra coughing in the background and what sounds like six people clapping. Zero atmosphere and not much of a way to finish the movie on a high.

            However, you don’t need to blow the budget by getting movie legend John Williams to compose an impressive score from scratch. Using background music from a catalogue like Audio Network’s is cheaper and quicker. You can search by genre, by mood, by production type and even by instrument and bpm to find exactly what you need.

            Tips on Choosing Background Music

            Background music for videos can improve your content by giving it polish, making it unique (you’re not using that same Dua Lipa track that everyone else has been trying to license) and, as we’ve shown, creating atmosphere and emotion. You can also use music as a narrative device to push a story along, whether it’s in a documentary or a drama.

            Background music can also help you to stand out from the crowd in terms of video content – whether it’s a big presentation, a YouTube how-to or a reaction video.

            Types of Background Music

            A key element in choosing any background music, whether it’s for TV, ads, films or YouTube is: who is my audience, and what types of music are they most likely to respond to? If your production is set in a particular era, like Stranger Things (80s), then your background music will either come from that era – or sound as though it does (heavy on the synths, for a start.) When it comes to other choices, though, you could go down a genre route.

            To create a mood that’s big, sweeping and epic, explore the huge array of classical and cinematic music on offer. It’s powerful, and great for underpinning and evoking a swell of emotion. For the kind of ‘Hollywood sound’ made famous by movies such as Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning and Top Gun: Maverick, check out their soundtrack composer, Lorne Balfe – he’s put together an expert collection with hundreds of spectacular tracks to choose from.

            Ambient Music

            If you want the music to take more of a backseat and push your message harder, then ambient is ideal: it’s a genre that adds interest, without dominating. Soothing ambient sounds are great for videos with lots of information, or for teaching videos.

            Acoustic music is equally adaptable, suiting everything from lifestyle content to montages, inspirational videos or how-tos.

            Search through our catalogue for everything from pop to indie, heavy metal to jazz, to create whichever mood you need.

            Where to Get Background Music

            Licensing either specially-commissioned music, or pre-existing tracks, can be very expensive, and getting permission to use it can also be notoriously difficult and time-consuming. A production music library owns all the copyright of its music. Thus, it can be licensed without getting the composer’s permission separately.

            As a dedicated production music company, Audio Network’s is one of the best. Audio Network commissions original, high-quality music from 1,000+ artists and composers from every corner of the world, in every possible genre. Often recorded at the iconic Abbey Road Studios, all our music is written and performed by the world’s best musicians and recorded with renowned producers.

            Where Can I Find Music For…

            If you’re looking for background music for a specific type of content, then we have you covered! First, head to our main discover hub. Or check out these production areas:

            Hand-Picked Playlists

            At Audio Network, we want to make sure that finding music is quick, easy and fun – and that you have plenty of choice. So, our expert in-house team selects the best of our original music and assembles the tracks into playlists that you can browse, meaning that most of the work has already been done for you.

            Here are some of our most useful and versatile playlists:

              • Drama – music for drama can span literally any genre and mood. You might want an orchestral ballad, or an intense track to soundtrack a chase sequence. On the hunt for exciting background music? Our selections are incredibly versatile.
              • Dramedy such as Succession needs a balance of music that combines both dramatic elements and comedy, depending on which accent you’re focusing on in a particular scene.
              • True Crime – background music can be crucial for true crime podcasts or shows, adding atmosphere, suspense and emotion, including beds and soundscapes.
              • When it comes to music for sport, we have a huge array. You’ll have everything to conjure sport’s emotion at your fingertips, from music showcasing determination and anticipation, to the joy of victory and the heartbreak of a narrow defeat.
              • Reality – aka factual entertainment – is now one of TV’s most popular genres. Dating shows, celebrity, cookery and travel, 24 Hours in A&E: literally all human life is here. So we have all the reality show music you need – from uplifting and easy-going to tension-building for shows like Bake Off and Masterchef, which have a competitive element, or the huge variety you need for a show like Love Island.
              • Current Affairs – from hard news to investigations and the weather forecast, our news and current affairs playlist has stings, themes and beds with pulses, tension builds, dynamic, exciting orchestra tracks and bright, positive marimba for lighter news stories.
              • Documentaries – bring diverse stories to life with this expansive playlist, including dedicated picks for historical, international and travel-based documentaries, plus tracks to add atmosphere.
              • Trailer – these mini masterpieces are fantastic for film, TV, video and advertising. Inspiration, excitement, anticipation – these tracks have it all.
              • Drones – drone footage can be truly magical, as you float high above a scene. From cinematic to minimalist and even menacing, this drones playlist has the perfect mix of moods.
              • Beds – music beds are there mainly to add atmosphere or a particular mood. Our beds, ideal if you’re looking for background music for videos, are split into ‘light beds’ and brooding, unnerving beds to add tension.
              • Transitions – need the perfect accompaniment to a scene change? Take your pick from this expansive playlist.

            Looking for More Inspiration?

            So, now you know about background music and where to find it! If you want an expert view on creating standout soundtracks, then read our interview with Hollywood composer Lorne Balfe; or explore award-winning ads and see how their soundtracks and background music help to tell their story.

            We have new releases every fortnight, so there’s always more background music to choose from!

            Need Music for Your Project?

            At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

            SIGN UP

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            best indie artists

            THE BEST-SELLING INDIE ARTISTS AND BANDS

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              In 2024, indie-rock is still doing brilliant business, with modern indie rock bands like Wet Leg and The 1975 achieving the holy grail of wild critical and commercial successs. But who are the best selling indie artists of all-time? And which indie solo artists are smashing it? In this article we run down the biggest players in the game, from Oasis and Radiohead to the Arctic Monkeys.

              What Is Indie Music?

              First things first: what is indie? Indie is a subgenre of rock music that first emerged in the mid-80s in the UK and New Zealand. Initially the term was used to describe DIY, guitar-based music released through independent record labels, usually created by artists who pitted themselves in direct opposition to the mainstream. But as the popularity of the scene grew, indie artists were soon snapped up by the major labels, meaning that by the 1990s “indie” simply became shorthand for a specific sound.

              Within the umbrella of indie music there are now a huge range of distinct subgenres, from grunge and shoegaze to Britpop and dreampop via new rave and alternative dance and hip hop. Read on to find out more about some of the key players.

              Who Are the Bestselling Indie Artists?

              • Oasis
              • The Cure
              • Radiohead
              • Florence + The Machine
              • Arctic Monkeys
              • The White Stripes
              • Blur
              • The Smiths
              • Bon Iver
              • The Strokes
              • Arcade Fire
              • Pixies
              • The 1975
              • Vampire Weekend

              Oasis

              Boasting a staggering 40 million albums sold worldwide, Oasis are far and away the biggest indie-rock group of all-time. Based around the famously combustible creative partnership between brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher, the Manchester-formed Britpoppers dominated music for an 18-year period, beginning in the early 90s.

              Amongst their many accolades are two Ivor Novellos and six BRIT Awards, including one for the best album since 1980 in the shape of their 1995 masterpiece (What’s The Story) Morning Glory.

              The Cure

              Few indie bands boast the enduring appeal of The Cure. Formed in Crawley in 1978, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019 and have been cited as a key influence for artists as diverse as Nine Inch Nails, Deftones and Phoebe Bridgers.

              Transfixing listeners with their deeply melodic mix of gothic rock, post-punk and new wave, the Robert Smith-fronted outfit have sold more than 30 million albums worldwide, and they’re set to release their 14th studio album, Songs Of A Lost World, imminently. Until that drops, why not reacquaint yourself with a classic:

              Radiohead

              Formed at school in Abingdon, Oxford, in 1985, Radiohead are widely agreed to be one of the best indie artists of all time. Over the course of nine studio albums, the Thom Yorke-fronted five-piece have evolved immeasurably, moving from the angsty alt sounds of Pablo Honey and The Bends to art-rock inspired by prog (OK Computer), IDM (Kid A) and folk (A Moon Shaped Pool).

              This chameleonic approach has paid off commercially too: to date, they’ve sold over 21 million albums – including nine million in the US and 5.3 million in the UK – and boast over 24 million monthly listeners on Spotify.

              Florence + The Machine

              With more than 8.1 million albums sold since 2009, Florence Welch is the most successful indie solo artist in the UK. Blending magical realist imagery with barnstorming choruses, her distinctive musical style has won her BRIT and Ivor Novello nods plus a coveted headline slot at Glastonbury in 2015.

              Her most recent album was 2022’s Dance Fever, which DIY magazine dubbed “a welcome shot of fairy-tale hedonism ripe for post-pandemic dancefloor indulgence.”

              Arctic Monkeys

              From indie-rock upstarts to sophisti-pop superstars, over the course of two decades Alex Turner and co have become one of the UK’s biggest indie bands, with the record sales to prove it. So far they’ve shifted over 8 million albums, including 1.5 million in the US and 5.6 million in the UK via their long-time label, the prestige indie Domino. Nominated for the Mercury Prize for last year’s LP The Car, the Sheffield band’s biggest album remains 2013’s AM.

              The White Stripes

              Fronted by Jack White and featuring Meg White on drums, Detroit duo The White Stripes formed in 1997 and built a huge following before disbanding in 2011. Their minimalist take on garage rock and blues revival has sold over seven million albums, with 2003’s Elephant shifting 3.6 million units alone and spawning a football chant for the ages in the shape of ‘Seven Nation Army’.

              Jack continues as a hugely successful solo artist and label boss to this day, running his own indie imprint Third Man Records.

              Blur

              Famously pitted against Oasis in the battle of Britpop, Blur have more than proven their worth as one of the UK’s most successful indie bands, not to mention one of very few to keep their original line-up.

              Over the last four decades, the quartet’s irresistible guitar-pop has incorporated influences from gospel, shoegaze and electronic music, with their originality winning them five BRIT Awards and record sales in excess of seven million albums. And after a 14-year hiatus, Damon Albarn and co reformed in 2023 for the release of their ninth studio album The Ballad of Darren, which was praised by the NME as a “tear-jerking, soaring epic.”

              The Smiths

              AKA the band that began it all. Built around the legendary musical partnership of guitarist Johnny Marr and singer/lyricist Morrissey, and backed by bassist Andy Rourke and drummer Mike Joyce, The Smiths were the original poster boys for the UK’s fledgling independent music scene. Formed in Manchester in the early 80s, the quartet pioneered a distinctly British strain of rock music, pairing jangling guitar lines with infinitely quotable lyrics.

              The quartet were together for just five years but are responsible for one of the most iconic discographies in the history of modern rock, featuring classics such as The Queen Is Dead and Meat Is Murder.

              Bon Iver

              The nom de guerre of US singer-songwriter Justin Vernon, Bon Iver are one of this century’s biggest musical phenomena, with a total of 3.29 million albums sold. A large part of that success can be laid at the door of the tender indie-folk on their 2007 debut album, For Emma, Forever Ago.

              Released in the UK through 4AD, it was recorded in a remote cabin in Wisconsin and has gone on to sell more than 1.46 million copies, largely thanks to the success of breakout single ‘Skinny Love’. Since its release, Vernon has gone on to share a further three albums as Bon Iver, and collaborate with A-listers like Kanye West, Travis Scott and Taylor Swift.

              The Strokes

              The Strokes were nothing short of a phenomenon in the early 00s, ushering in a garage-rock revival and becoming a by-word for New York cool. The band’s seminal 2001 debut Is This It? has sold over 1.75 million copies, closely followed by 2003’s Room On Fire with 1.5 million units sold.

              Today, they boast over 12.9 million monthly listeners on Spotify. And when the likes of ‘Last Nite’ and ‘Reptilia’ still sound so fresh, who can blame them?

              Arcade Fire

              With 3,046,000 albums sold, one Grammy win and a further nine nominations, Arcade Fire are unquestionably one of Montreal’s biggest musical exports. Blending indie-rock with baroque-pop, the Canadian collective’s biggest seller remains The Suburbs (2011) but their last LP, WE, received rave reviews, with the Evening Standard declaring there was “no better soundtrack for the apocalypse.”

              Pixies

              Famously cited by Kurt Cobain as one of his biggest inspirations for Nirvana, Pixies were formed in Boston in 1986 by songwriter Black Francis and guitarist Joey Santiago, with Kim Deal joining on bass/vocals and David Lovering playing drums. Their original line-up lasted for just five years, in which time they established a fearsome reputation for fusing abrasive guitars with indelible melodies and surreal lyrics incorporating references as diverse as Native American animism (‘Caribou’) and Spanish-Mexican filmmaker Luis Buñuel (‘Debaser’).

              Having reformed in 2014, Pixies have now sold nearly three million albums.

              The 1975

              Another British band formed at school, The 1975 delight in defying stylistic categorisation. Over the course of five albums, the Manchester-formed four-piece have explored indie, emo, synth-pop and new wave, blending irresistible melodic hooks with extremely self-aware – and often satirical – lyrics courtesy of frontman Matty Healy.

              Alongside four BRIT wins and two Grammy nominations, they’ve sold over 2.7 million albums and boast more than 13 million monthly listeners on Spotify.

              Vampire Weekend

              Infusing indie-rock with influences from African pop, 70s folk and ska, Vampire Weekend were a unique proposition when they first emerged in early 2006. A decade and a half on, they remain one of the US’s most idiosyncratic and acclaimed bands, boasting record sales in excess of 2.9 million and two Grammys for Best Alternative Music Album (for 2014’s Modern Vampires Of The City and 2020’s Father Of The Bride).

              Brand New Indie Music To Love

              Love indie-rock? Check out the latest release from Sydney-duo Racing Birds.

              Blending alt-country, rock ‘n’ roll and bohemian blues, Bobbie Lee Stamper and Jeremy Strother evoke the sights and sounds of a late-night drive through Southern California in 1969. On their latest album, Let The Sunbirds Fight Till The Death, the duo evolve their sound across a gritty, retro-inspired album recorded with vintage gear. Expect a range of up-tempo foot-stompers and slow-burning heartbreakers.

              Discover More

              Looking for indie music for your project? Well, look no further. We’ve got a host of high quality music from artists including Jake Shillingford, Gareth Johnson and Tribes-lynchpin Johnny Lloyd. Check out our playlist hub, which features hand-picked indie and indie-rock selections.

              Want to read a little more about indie music to gain some inspiration? Head to our Blog, where you’ll find an array of articles including What is Indie Music? and The Best Indie Background Music.

              Need Music for Your Project?

              At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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              microgenres

              THE RISE OF MICROGENRES IN MUSIC

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                How many music genres are there in the world today? No-one truly knows – and thanks to the internet, streaming services and accessible, affordable software, there’s been a massive upsurge in micro-genres, or niche subgenres, in recent decades.

                Music is more fluid than it used to be in the heyday of jazz, rock ‘n’ roll, blues and pop. The evolution of music means that there’s now more crossover than ever – music has few geographical boundaries, as demonstrated by the global success of Latin music genres, but how do micro-genres emerge, and which are the ones you should know about?

                Then and Now: Micro-Genres Through Time

                You can date the origin of micro-genres to around the 1970s when people started coining words to describe highly specific subgenres of literature, film, art and song genres. In music, most examples cover the myriad subgenres of heavy metal and electronic music – though some were coined by record dealers and collectors as a way to pump up the value of certain, original records. Think of 70s phenomenon Northern soul, or freakbeat, garage punk and sunshine pop. Northern soul, with its roots in mod culture, was a dynamic, 360° culture of fashions, dance moves, vinyl obsession and more – not just a music style.

                In the 90s, electronic and dance music producers created specialised descriptions of their music as a way to assert their individuality – so trance branched out into progressive trance, Goa trance, deep psytrance and hard trance. House, drum and bass and techno also spawned a large number of micro-genres.

                Subgenres such as dubstep, reggaeton and hyperpop hit the mainstream. But because there were fewer ways of being exposed to and consuming music – radio and TV, largely, and then latterly MTV and YouTube – the more ‘micro’ differences between certain tracks would be filtered out. However, as Pitchfork points out, ‘now streaming services help to codify them into neverending playlists and see-what-sticks genre tags.’

                Lo-fi, melodic dream-pop Chillwave was one of the first music micro-genres to formulate online – gaining mainstream recognition in early 2010 when it was picked up by the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. Journalist Emilie Friedlander identified chillwave as, ‘the internet electronic micro-genre that launched a hundred internet electronic micro-genres (think: vaporwave, witch house, seapunk, shitgaze, distroid, hard vapor).’

                Pitchfork identified its appeal: ‘As America reeled from the collapse of entire sectors of the economy, young folks across the country burrowed into their bedrooms, fired up their laptops, and worked out their nostalgia with woozy new-wave synths, tape-warped samples, narcoleptic drum patterns, and hazy vocals hiding more than a smidgen of ennui beneath all that blissed-out reverb.’ It might have been relatively short-lived, but its sound ‘paved the way for everything from Tame Impala to lo-fi study beats.’

                From DIY to Digital: The Role of Social Media in Propelling Micro-Genres

                Theorist Mark Fisher wrote, as far back as 2004, that genre naming, ‘is not a neutral act of referring. Naming produces surplus value, something that wasn’t already there in the first place.’ He argued that a genre label has the potential to create an instant mythology for a sound. 90s jungle, grime, trap, UK garage – evocative names that conjure a feel for the music and where it’s come from.

                He also argued that, ‘when there’s a threshold shift in sound, there has to be a new name.’ But who is in charge of naming micro-genres now? Increasingly, it’s not critics or music journalists, but the artists themselves. In a world of SoundCloud and Spotify, how do you stand out? By claiming your own micro-genre.

                Glenn McDonald is a data analyst whose Every Noise at Once project tracks all genres of music he can identify on Spotify (as of August 2023, there are 6,275 listed). Micro-genres are driven online by like-minded people wanting to seek each other out and connect – plus, with a proliferation of platforms, forums and blogs, there’s far more discourse around music. As McDonald says, ‘we almost never make up genres, but we could. With great power comes great responsibility.’

                How do specific micro-genres take off? Largely through word of mouth, tags and online communities.

                Innovation or Fragmentation? Understanding the Impact of Micro-Genres on Music

                Micro-genres can help to point you to eras within a genre, for example 60s garage rock, 80s glam metal and Modern metal (an umbrella term that incorporates further micro-genres melodic death metal, metalcore and cyber metal), or a regional scene – Norwegian, American or French, say – and then through specific styles. It’s arguable that micro-genres are where the true music aficionados hang out – and where music tastes become most tribal.

                In terms of the industry itself, the fragmentation may mean that consumers are searching for smaller and smaller niches – but they may also be the groups that the industry depends upon most heavily. They’re the ones who go to gigs and buy the merchandise to support the artists they’re fans of – and identify themselves to other members of their ‘tribe’.

                Whilst the proliferation of micro-genres can lead to innovation, as The Fader says, ‘The internet has also sped up the process of hype and backlash, shortening our collective attention spans and forcing us to move on to the next thing with little ceremony… these specialised styles [are] like snapshots of a zeitgeist that’s being constantly redefined.’

                What Is an Example of a Micro Genre?

                Electronic music is a world that’s ever-evolving, with new micro-genres continually emerging to shape both sounds and scenes. Stutter House, also known as Tremor, Tremolo or Flutter House, is based on a production effect: a pulsating or stuttering vocal, lead or synth pad. It’s a micro-genre that’s largely been driven by producer Fred… Again, who’s worked with Stormzy, Ed Sheeran and FKA Twigs, and played a Glastonbury set this year that critics and fans alike were raving about.

                Bedroom Pop

                The clue’s in the name with bedroom pop – as one of its stars, Maia, aka mxmtoon, who recorded her indie folk-pop in her parents’ guest room says, ‘Anyone can make music, and I think that is the ideology behind bedroom pop. It’s more of an idea, of a person sitting in a small space and using whatever resources you have to make songs that you’re proud of.’

                The queen of bedroom pop? Surely Billie Eilish. Her early tracks epitomised bedroom pop: recorded at home and then uploaded to YouTube, Spotify, TikTok and SoundCloud, where she built a following. And when she and her brother Finneas accepted their first Grammy for ‘Bad Guy’, they really put the genre on the map. As Finneas said in his speech, ‘We just make music in a bedroom together. We still do that. This is for all of the kids who are making music in their bedroom today. You’re going to get one of these.’

                Check out Clairo, girl in red, Gus Dapperton, Cuco and beabadoobee for more bedroom pop – it’s a micro-genre that blends pop, indie, lo-fi and psychedelic.

                Witch House

                Witch house, sometimes referred to as drag, is an electronic music micro-genre with high-pitched keyboard effects, heavily layered basslines and trap-style drum loops. Its dark, dreamy sound also features pitched-down vocals and slowed-down tempos, dense reverb and creepy samples, a combination that Flavorwire described as, ‘generally, the feel of being trapped inside a haunted house – both exhilarating and terrifying.’

                Its roots are in ambient, dark-tinged synth-pop, trance and drone metal, together with 1980s ethereal wave bands such as the Cocteau Twins. Aesthetically, as you’d expect, there are plenty of occult and gothic-inspired themes (think The Blair Witch Project and Twin Peaks.)

                Names associated with witch house are Oneohtrix Point Never, Grouper, GFCF, Salem and Laurel Halo – the title was apparently coined by Travis Egedy, aka Pictureplane, as a joke in an interview for Pitchfork, but the term took off when it was picked up by other music journalists.

                Witch house has gone on to influence everything from Katy Perry’s ‘Dark Horse’ to Kanye West’s ‘Yeezus’ and Billie Eilish’s dark aesthetic.

                Dubstep

                Dubstep is an EDM genre that originated in South London in the early 2000s, an offshoot of UK garage that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production with bass-heavy, rhythmic loops and glitchy sound effects. It also brought in elements of broken beat, grime and drum and bass.

                Kick-start your dubstep journey with ‘I Can’t Stop’ by Flux Pavilion or Skrillex’s remix of ‘Cinema’ by Benny Benassi.

                Other dubstep artists to check out include Bassnectar, Magnetic Man, Flux Pavilion, NERO and Chase & Status.

                Dubstep has, in turn, spawned its own micro-genres, including glitchstep (heavier on the glitchy sounds), chillstep, deathstep (give it a listen if you’re a heavy metal or deathcore fan) and ganjastep (ideal if you enjoy original reggae, with beat buildups and heavy beat drops.) Brostep emerged in the early 2010s and uses a blend of hip hop’s rhythm and dubstep’s bass.

                Vaporwave

                Named as a nod to vaporware – nonexistent software or hardware that’s announced, and even advertised, whilst still in its design stage – vaporwave took new-age optimism, digital synthesis, Sims-inspired computer graphics and call centre hold music and mashed them all together with retro imagery taken from 80s and 90s pop culture.

                Musically, it’s often based on samples of easy listening or lounge music – it’s been described as, ‘a nostalgic view of an imagined or actual past that never really existed.’ There’s a heavy use of synths and drum machines, plus vocoders to create a dream-like quality with slowed-down samples and pitch-shifted vocals.

                What’s the difference between synthwave and vaporwave? The former is largely inspired by 80s culture, featuring elements from movies, TV shows and video games. Vaporwave is characterised by a more ironic approach, often using samples from corporate advertising and other bits of consumer culture.

                Early pioneers were Daniel Lopatin (aka Chuck Person/Oneohtrix Point Never) – whose Eccojams Vol 1 featured chopped-up 80s tunes with loops and delay – and Far Side Virtual by James Ferraro, which showcased the genre’s love of computerised voices and chirpy elevator music. Esquire praised Floral Shoppe from Macintosh Plus for its ability to, ‘strike the delicate balance between being a parody of consumerism and actually really nice music to chill to.’

                For more vaporwave, have a listen to Blank Banshee, George Glanton, Luxury Elite and Skylar Spence.

                A World of Micro-Genres

                When it comes to music to license for your project or content, we have hundreds of thousands of original, high-quality tracks, covering a mass of micro-genres. Listen to our hand-picked playlists, or any of our new releases, including our NowNextFuture artists, who are guaranteed to be spearheading all the emerging micro-genres.

                Need Music for Your Project?

                At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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                what is texture music

                WHAT IS TEXTURE MUSIC?

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                  When you think of a piece of fabric, what comes to mind in terms of its texture? How thick or thin it is? How many layers? How smooth or rough it is? Or think of sandy or pebbled beaches, a brick wall, or a flower’s petals and leaves. Many of those ideas can be applied to types of texture in music too. Whether you’re using informal terms, such as ‘open’ or ‘closed’ texture, or more formal ones, such as ‘monophonic’ or ‘polyphonic’, musical textures can be unfamiliar. Our overview will help you to both recognise and appreciate music textures.

                  How to Describe Texture

                  ‘Texture’, when you’re talking about music, is basically a way to describe how it – or the sound – is organised. Think of it as how many layers a piece of music has, or which ‘building blocks’ it’s constructed from. And just like food, clothes or painting, many different elements can influence musical texture – and thus how it affects you and makes you feel.

                  These include things like tempo, melody, harmony, rhythm and timbre. Timbre is what distinguishes the different instruments or voices playing or singing the same frequency or musical pitch. E.g. if you’ve got a guitar and a violin that are both playing a middle C, their distinct timbres is what means you can tell them apart.

                  In simple terms, a piece of music can be described as having a ‘thick’ texture if there are lots of layers of instruments, or several melodies and harmonies being played simultaneously. Think of symphonic orchestral pieces, where there’s a string and woodwind section, plus a variety of percussion instruments – there might be a piano or organ added to the mix as well.

                  As you’d expect, ‘thin’ textured music has just a few instruments, or a couple of melodies and harmonies.

                  The most common terms when you’re describing music texture refer to how many voices or parts a piece of music has – and how the melodic part relates to the harmonic parts. In short, it’s how sound is organised. Other ways to describe texture include the ‘density’ of the music – how many notes are being played at once; its colour or timbre, delivered through individual instruments or voices and the music’s breadth – whether the range of pitches is broad or tightly grouped together.

                  The Different Types of Texture

                  There are four main types of music textures:

                  • Monophonic
                  • Polyphonic
                  • Homophonic
                  • Heterophonic

                  Monophonic Texture

                  A piece of music that just has a single line is a monophonic texture – such as unaccompanied folk melodies, or Byzantine and Gregorian chants. I.e., there’s just one sound going on. This video shows you examples of violin, orchestral and different sorts of vocal monophony:

                  Bach’s Cello Suite No. 1 in G major is a great classical example of monophonic music.

                  Want to feel a bit more fancy when you’re singing to yourself in the shower? Think of yourself as creating a monophonic music texture instead!

                  Polyphonic Texture

                  If you’re building chords, with six, seven or eight sounds going at the same time, you’re creating polyphonic music. It was developed during the late Middle Ages – created simply by having musicians play or sing two different songs simultaneously – and became the dominant musical texture during the Renaissance.

                  This is a texture that consists of two or more simultaneous melodic lines, with parts that weave in and out of each other. Bach is a composer known for not only polyphonic solo instrument works, but also using the texture when composing for orchestra – for example, his Brandenburg Concertos.

                  For a really simple way of remembering these terms, think of spaghetti. One strand of spaghetti (or a single melody) is monophonic. Many strands interweaving with each other – like spaghetti on a plate – is polyphonic.

                  Polyphonic music is also sometimes called contrapuntal music and may have an element of imitation, where one voice or instrument copies what’s just been played by another – think of a ‘round’ like ‘London’s Burning’.

                  Contrapuntal or counterpoint is most commonly found in Baroque music, but, as in the video above, it’s also been used by everyone from the Beach Boys to Muse and Blur. You can also see it in musicals, when two characters are singing at the same time, each from their own perspective – as in ‘One Day More’ from Les Misérables. Each character sings a verse, then as the song develops, the different characters’ lines overlap.

                  Homophonic Texture

                  This is the most common type of texture – you’ll find it everywhere from orchestral music to pop, rock and jazz and film music. The term comes from the Greek words ‘homo’, meaning ‘same’ or ‘similar’ and phonic, meaning ‘sound’ or ‘voice’.

                  There’s a melody, with chords and harmonies that support it. This ‘fills out’ the music and gives it a richer colour. For example, if you’ve got a rock or pop artist singing a song while playing guitar or piano at the same time, that’s a homophonic texture. A homophonic classical piece could have a violin playing a solo melody line, whilst the rest of the orchestra plays behind.

                  Watch this video for an explainer of a simple line of melody and accompaniment that demonstrates homophonic texture:

                  Here’s a great example of a multi-layered homophonic texture that’s just using voice:

                  There are two main subtypes – homorhythmic and melody-dominated. Homorhythmic texture is characterised by all parts of the melody and harmonies having the exact same rhythm. This can also be called block chord texture – it’s often found in choral music, hymns and barbershop quartets.

                  Want a classical example? Have a listen to the choral part of Handel’s ‘Hallelujah Chorus’:

                  Melody-dominated texture is any other type of homophony that isn’t block chords. The melody is the main ‘musical idea’ that you’re hearing, and the harmony performs a supporting role. The harmony doesn’t perfectly line up with the melody.

                  An example of melody-dominated is Adele’s ‘Someone Like You’ – there’s one melody, and harmonies are playing around it. However, the piano’s playing a different rhythm than Adele’s singing, so the texture can’t be homorhythmic.

                  Heterophonic Texture

                  Outside of 20th century classical works, this texture isn’t particularly common in Western music, but it is a feature of East Asian ensemble music. It’s characterised by two or more instruments, each playing a different version of the same melody.

                  In addition to these four types, there’s also antiphonal texture – this is when there’s more than one group of instruments or voices, usually placed in different parts of a church or concert venue. There’s generally dialogue between the two groups, with melodic ideas passed between them.

                  Renaissance composer Giovanni Gabrieli used a lot of antiphony, with much of his music written to be performed at St Mark’s church in Venice.

                  You can also hear heterophony in Bluegrass, Cajun and Zydeco music – listen out for the tune being played by two instruments – say a fiddle and a banjo – at the same time. Each will add their own characteristic embellishments, ornaments and flourishes.

                  High/Low Texture

                  A widely-spaced texture would have one part that’s very high, and one that’s very low. This large gap between the notes is sometimes also described as spacious or open-textured. As you’d expect, the opposite of this is a closed or tight texture: all the instruments or singers are playing or singing notes that are very close together.

                  Thin Texture Music vs Thick Texture Music

                  A piece of music’s density not only depends on how many instruments are playing, but which instruments you’re using. For example, listen to the difference in the sound of the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ ‘Scar Tissue’ – when the band play the original, it’s got a heavier-sounding density because of the bass guitar and drums, when you compare the same song performed by a string quartet.

                  If you just heard this, ‘thin texture’, version of the track in isolation, it might take you a minute to pinpoint what the song is:

                  This explainer brings all these elements together, which features musical illustrations:

                  Inspired Music Textures

                  So, now you know the basics of how to describe texture in music, next time you’re listening to a piece or a song, ask yourself which type of texture is being used? Is it thick or thin, high or low? Which type of ‘phony’ is it based on? And which of these elements change between sections?

                  As a musician, think about ways you can use texture to improve or vary your compositions. Can your texture be changed by adding or taking away an instrument or a harmony? Maybe you can change the textural density by simply changing the dynamics from loud to soft, or vice versa?

                  Here are a few top tips on balancing textures:

                  An appreciation of textures can also be incredibly useful to bear in mind when you’re looking for music for a project by another artist – whether it’s a Hollywood blockbuster trailer that might need to be very dense and layered, giving the viewer the idea that there’s going to be plenty of action and edge-of-your-seat excitement throughout the whole two-hour runtime, or something that’s more sparse and airy, so that the message or product in an ad can take centre stage.

                  A composer like Hans Zimmer is a master of texture when it comes to his movie soundtracks – from a single, distorted voice at the start of Dune to using layered instruments and working out how to create a ‘futuristic sound’:

                  To using just three chords to create the sound – and emotion – of Interstellar and then building up the textures to produce an epic soundscape:

                  Listen to some of our fantastic, original music from our catalogue for more inspiration, from graceful, understated symphonic textures to dark, mysterious and brooding electronic textures and Dame Evelyn Glennie’s eclectic percussion textures.

                  Looking for musical textures and sound design? We’ve got you covered – explore our Editors’ Toolkit for more. We’ve got new releases every fortnight, together with hundreds of hand-picked playlists to make choosing the perfect track a cinch, whether you’re selecting music yourself, or briefing one of our expert team to help you.

                  Need Music for Your Project?

                  At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

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                  dream music

                  THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO DREAM MUSIC & THE BEST DREAMING SONGS

                  MUSIC, OLD /
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                    When you’re longing for nothing more than a good night’s sleep, music can help you drift off. Many studies have proved that music can prompt us to release dopamine, the hormone that helps us to relax. In this state, you’ll breathe deeper and your heart rate slows down, creating the perfect state for sleep.

                    With hundreds of ‘Sleep’ playlists on Spotify, what are some of the world’s favourites to fall asleep and dream to?

                    The Best Dream Lover Music

                    What makes great dream music? You need a slow tempo, or BPM (Beats Per Minute). A normal resting heart rate is around 60-100BPM, so anything in that tempo range is good – the ideal seems to be 98BPM. Piano comes out as the most soothing instrument in dreaming music, as it’s generally very tranquil.

                    From classical to ambient and pop, you can find songs with calming melodies, gentle rhythms and a peaceful feel in any genre – here are a few of our favourites:

                    • ‘Someone You Loved’ – Lewis Capaldi. The Scottish singer-songwriter is a popular choice when it comes to dreamer songs – ‘Before You Go’ also scores highly. Sad songs, by their nature, are usually slower, so ‘Someone You Loved’, with its delicate piano, is a must-have for your dreaming songs playlist.

                    • ‘Lovely’ and ‘When the Party’s Over’ – Billie Eilish. Whispery vocals are an Eilish trademark, making her catalogue full of fantastic dreaming songs. ‘Lovely’ features a piano melody and is hauntingly beautiful.

                    • Deep Sleep Music Collective – this aptly-named group specialises in ambient music for sleeping and relaxation with multiple dedicated sleep playlists, including Peaceful Acoustic Guitar and Healing Sleep. ‘Amongst the Theta Waves’ has birdsong and harp, to make you feel like you’re in the middle of a magical forest.

                    • ‘Only Time’ – Enya. Delicate strings and Enya’s soothing voice make the Irish musician a perennial favourite when it comes to dream songs.

                    • ‘I Need Some Sleep’ – Eels. The lyrics nail how you feel when you’re in need of a good night’s kip. This is slow and twinkly and will help you drift off, with its ‘You’ve just got to let it go’ refrain helping to put you into a meditative state.

                    • ‘All Alright’ – Sigur Rós. Sparse piano and low-key vocals keep this track from the Icelandic indie superstars in dedicated Spotify sleep playlists. But many of the band’s tracks have a dreamlike feel, so check out a full playlist if you don’t know their music:

                    • ‘Venus, the Bringer of Peace’ – Holst. The second movement from Holst’s classical masterpiece is a beautiful, mystic homage to the Goddess of love, beauty, desire and prosperity, with tranquil horn and violin solos.

                    • ‘Nocturne No. 2, Op. 9’ – Chopin. One of the masters of the Romantic era, Chopin’s music is a great choice, offering an abundance of relaxing piano works. This stunning nocturne was written when he was just 20 years old. For more calming classical, listen to Pastoral, from our Classical Collection

                    • ‘Weightless’ – Looking for the track that’s scientifically proven to be the most relaxing song ever? Sound therapists and Marconi Union teamed up to create this song. The British Academy of Sound Therapy found it was able to lower blood pressure, slow heart rate and reduce cortisol (the stress hormone) at unprecedented rates. And at eight minutes long, you’ll probably be in dreamland before it’s finished. With 99 million views on YouTube, it’s the ultimate ambient

                    • ‘Mellomaniac (Chill Out Mix)’ – DJ Shah. For more mellow beats, this track also does the trick, making you think of the sun going down on a beautiful beach somewhere sunny – perfect if you want to create a playlist of daydreamer songs too!

                    Dream Music For You

                    Want more? Here are the best picks from the Audio Network catalogue:

                    • ‘Dreams of Glass’ – Ethereal textures and muted strings blend with soothing woodwind and gentle celeste
                    • ‘Binary Dreaming’ – Vintage synths blur the line between dreams and reality in this atmospheric dreamscape
                    • ‘Free at Last’ – Sparse piano + floaty guitar pads = deeply peaceful
                    • ‘City of Coral’ – Take yourself to a magical place, with gentle piano, harp and ethereal vocals
                    • ‘Sunset Depending’ – Guitar-led chill hop features sparkling synths and relaxed drums
                    • ‘Fluorescent Rush’ – Dreamy electronica with elegant plucked strings and synth pads are the ideal companion to help you drop off
                    • ‘First Touch’ – A lovely pulsing pattern with reflective strings and delicate piano make for a gorgeously gentle track
                    • ‘Recovery’ – Hectic day at work? Slow yourself right down with drone builds, peaceful uplifting bells and a hypnotic electric piano motif in this dream lover song

                    For more high quality original music, explore all of our latest releases, hand-picked playlists and collections.

                    Need Music for Your Project?

                    At Audio Network we create original music, of the highest quality, for broadcasters, brands, creators, agencies and music fans everywhere. Through clear and simple licensing, we can offer you a huge variety of the best quality music across every conceivable mood and genre. Find out how we can connect you with the perfect collaborator today by clicking the button below!

                    SIGN UP

                    THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO DREAM MUSIC & THE BEST DREAMING SONGS Read More »