The Reese bass: a Detroit sound in a London tune

Many people who know drum and bass could pick out the Reese bass blind. It is the thick, buzzing, slowly shifting bass sound that rolls under a neurofunk record or sits at the bottom of a dark jungle tune. Its origin is surprising: it started in Detroit techno.

Where the name comes from

The sound is named after Reese, an alias of the Detroit producer Kevin Saunderson. Wikipedia describes Saunderson as a member of the trio known as the Belleville Three, with Juan Atkins and Derrick May, who are often credited as pioneers and originators of techno, in particular Detroit techno. In 1988 he released a record as Reese called Just Want Another Chance, and its bass line, built from detuned, layered sawtooth waves, gave the sound its name.

What makes it a Reese

In plain terms, a Reese bass takes two or more oscillators playing the same note and tunes them very slightly apart. The small difference in pitch creates a beating, phasing effect that moves and growls, and a low pass filter and some modulation can make it breathe. It is a thick sound that fills the low mid range, rather than a clean sine wave sub.

Producers often add distortion, movement and effects, and layer the Reese with a separate sub bass underneath so the low end stays solid on a big system.

How it reached jungle

British producers in the early 1990s were hungry for sounds with weight, and records from Detroit and Chicago were reaching UK shops and raves. The Reese bass found a natural home in jungle and drum and bass, where its menacing character suited the darker end of the music. It became so common that it is now one of the standard building blocks of the genre.

Later, as the scene split into neurofunk and techstep, producers took the idea further. They twisted the sound through filters and effects until the bass seemed to talk and snarl, and sound design became a major part of how a producer showed skill.

Why it works so well

The sound has a few properties that suit drum and bass. It is full enough to carry a tune alone, yet leaves room for fast drums above it. Its slow movement creates a sense of tension at a time when the drums are busy. And it translates across systems: a good Reese sounds menacing on a laptop speaker and enormous on a rig.

Hear it for yourself

Listen to a few records from different eras and notice how the bass is treated. Compare a mid 1990s jungle tune with a modern neurofunk track and you will hear the same idea, taken in different directions. Then listen to the Detroit original and notice how much of the story was already written there.