Originally Posted by djchameleon

Techno

Techno had its roots in the electronic house music made in Detroit in the mid-'80s. Where house still had explicit connection to disco even when it was entirely mechanical, techno was strictly electronic music, designed for a small, specific audience. The first techno producers and DJs — Kevin Saunderson, Juan Atkins, and Derrick May, among others — emphasized the electronic, synthesized beats of electro-funk artists like Afrika Bambaataa and synth-rock units like Kraftwerk. In the United States, techno was strictly an underground phenomenon, but in England, it broke into the mainstream in the late '80s. In the early '90s, techno began to fragment into a number of subgenres, including hardcore, ambient, and jungle. In hardcore techno, the beats-per-minute on each record were sped up to ridiculous, undanceable levels — it was designed to alienate a broad audience. Ambient took the opposite direction, slowing the beats down and relying on watery electronic textures — it was used as come-down music, when ravers and club-goers needed a break from acid house and hardcore techno. Jungle was nearly as aggressive as hardcore, combining driving techno beats with breakbeats and dancehall reggae — essentially. All subgenres of techno were initially designed to be played in clubs, where they would be mixed by DJs. Consequently, most of the music was available on 12-inch singles or various-artists compilations, where the songs could run for a long time, providing the DJ with a lot of material to mix into his set. In the mid-'90s, a new breed of techno artists — most notably ambient acts like the Orb and Aphex Twin, but also harder-edged artists like the Prodigy and Goldie — began constructing albums that didn't consist of raw beats intended for mixing. Not surprisingly, these artists — particularly the Prodigy — became the first recognizable stars in techno.

Examples: The Advent, Joey Beltram , Damon Wild, Space DJs, Speedy J

Trance

Breaking out of the German techno and hardcore scene of the early '90s, Trance emphasized brief synthesizer lines repeated endlessly throughout tracks, with only the addition of minimal rhythmic changes and occasional synthesizer atmospherics to distinguish them -- in effect putting listeners into a trance that approached those of religious origin. Despite waning interest in the sound during the mid-'90s, trance made a big comeback later in the decade, even supplanting house as the most popular dance music of choice around the globe.

Inspired by acid house and Detroit techno, trance coalesced with the opening of R&S Records in Ghent, Belgium and Harthouse/Eye Q Records in Frankfurt, Germany. R&S defined the sound early on with singles like "Energy Flash" by Joey Beltram, "The Ravesignal" by CJ Bolland, and others by Robert Leiner, Sun Electric, and Aphex Twin. Harthouse, begun in 1992 by Sven Väth with Heinz Roth & Matthias Hoffman, made the most impact on the sound of trance with Hardfloor's minimal epic "Hardtrance Acperience" and Väth's own "L'Esperanza," plus releases by Arpeggiators, Spicelab, and Barbarella. Artists like Väth, Bolland, Leiner, and many others made the transition to the full-length realm, though without much of an impact on the wider music world.

Despite a long nascent period when it appeared trance had disappeared, replaced by breakbeat dance (trip-hop and jungle), the style's increasing impact on Britain's dance scene finally crested in the late '90s. The classic German sound had changed somewhat though, and the term "progressive" trance gained favor to describe influences from the smoother end of house and Euro dance. By 1998, most of the country's best-known DJs -- Paul Oakenfold, Pete Tong, Tony De Vit, Danny Rampling, Sasha, Judge Jules -- were playing trance in Britain's superclubs. Even America turned on to the sound (eventually), led by its own cast of excellent DJs, including Christopher Lawrence and Kimball Collins.

Examples: Juno Reactor , Power Source , System 7, Atmos

Epic: Came about in the late 90s and early 00s when trance was commercial. It's known for it's epic, euphoric, and emotional feel. Since it was commercial, it wasn't hard to find and a multitude of producers were making it. Eventually due to the fact that many of the songs started sounding the same, around 04-05 many of the commercial artists started to delve into tech trance and also started incorporating house influences. The first song that really made epic trance the way it was : Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar (Three N' One Remix). It is one of the most remixed songs ever.. and the original song was pretty much overlooked until 4 years later when this version came out.

Artists : Nitrous Oxide, Andy Blueman, Daniel Kandi, Aly & Fila, Oen Bearen
Songs : Age of Love - Age of Love, ATB - 9 P.M. Til I Come, Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar, Armin van Buuren - Communication

Tech : Came about after the very big commercial uprising of trance. It started out being produced by former hard trance producers.. but when hard trance got harder.. and harder.. it ended up being its own genre of Hardstyle. Producers like Scot Project and Cosmic Gate were not interested in it so they began to produce tech trance. However some commercial trance artists got interested in the sound and started to produce it as well because the "epic" sound was getting a bit dated. Then hard trance legends like Scot Project started performing with commercial artists like Mike Koglin and still do today. However hard trance is still being produced today.. it isn't nearly as easy to find.

Artists: Mike Koglin (later releases), Jesselyn, Marcel Woods, Sied van Riel, Kidd Kaos (bordering on hard trance)
Songs: Tiesto - Traffic, Richard Durand - Make Me Scream, Joop - Another World, Fred Baker vs. Greg Nash - Lunar Eclipse

Hard : Since trance originated in the early 90s when hardcore was popular, many trance songs would by today's standards be considered hard. However it wasn't until around 2001-2002 when producers like Scot Project, Cosmic Gate, and Yoji Biomehanika started truly mastering it. As I'd mentioned before.. it got harder and harder until hardstyle was created and most of the artists went their separate ways. Scot Project started to produce tech, Cosmic Gate went commercial and now are producing.. whatever you would consider popular right now (epic trance mixed with techno.. some electro and maybe some house), and Yoji Biomehanika went to Tech Dance like Vandall.

Artists: Kamui (earlier releases.. then went to tech.. now are electro), Scot Project (earlier releases), A.S.Y.S. (earlier releases), S.H.O.K.K., Space Raven
Songs: Cosmic Gate - The Wave, Schwarze Puppen - Tanz, T.O.C.S. - 2, Kamui - Ghosts

Progressive: This started around the mid 90s when commercial trance started becoming popular.. but this was more underground music. Artists like BT, Sasha, John Digweed, and Airwave (or Lolo) were producing it. Nowadays it took off and is still being produced and played by many of the big names. One issue with progressive trance is that progressive house is quite similar. Both can be emotional, both can be uplifting, both usually have breaks, and both are quite popular. If progressive trance sounds good then definitely check out progressive house (artists like Mango and Atlantis Ocean).

Artists: Armin van Buuren, Markus Schulz, Ashley Wallbridge, Lolo, Breakfast
Songs: Annie Lennox - The Saddest Song I've Got (Kuffdam & Plant Remix), Solarstone - Seven Cities (Armin van Buuren Remix), Robert Vadney - A Day in Heaven, Markus Schulz & Carrie Skipper - Never Be the Same Again

Progressive

House music had reached the mainstream by the late '80s (more so in Britain than anywhere else), and while several early house hits were by genuine pioneers, they were later overwhelmed by the novelty acts and one-hit wonders dominating the charts around the turn of the decade. As well, ambient, techno, and trance made gains early in the '90s as electronic styles with both street cred and a group of young artists making intelligent music. A generation of house producers soon emerged, weaned on the first wave of house and anxious to reapply the more soulful elements of the music. With a balance of sublime techno and a house sound more focused on New York garage than Chicago acid house, groups like Leftfield, the Drum Club, Spooky, and Faithless hit the dance charts (and occasionally Britain's singles charts). Though critically acclaimed full-lengths were never quite as important as devastating club tracks, several Progressive House LPs were stellar works, including Leftfield's Leftism, Spooky's Gargantuan, and the Drum Club's Everything Is Now. By the mid-'90s, the innovations of progressive house had become the mainstream of house music around the world.

Examples: Sasha, Mike Dierickx, Armin Van Buuren, Brian Transeau