Today, we are going to review one of my personal favorite sub-genres of electronic dance music, Hardstyle.
Hardstyle is an exciting and intense genre of music, distinguished by hard drums and aggressive melodies that create an adrenaline-fueled experience for its listeners. This makes the style of music equally ideal for a rave, or for your workout..
Due to its high energy and fast-paced sound, hardstyle has become increasingly popular in recent years. As it continues to grow in popularity, more producers are beginning to experiment with the genre, resulting in unique and eclectic sounds that incorporate different elements from other EDM genres alongside the hardstyle sound.
Whether you’re a die-hard fan of the hardstyle genre or simply exploring new areas of electronic music, give this genre a chance; you may be surprised!
Without further ado, let's take a deeper dive into the genre.
Table of Contents:
Our Main Hardstyle Playlist
To enjoy all our main hardstyle playlist has to offer, click here!
Or, read on to learn more about this exciting genre and our other hardstyle playlists!
Background: Early Hardstyle
Originating in the Netherlands in the late 1990s, hardstyle music has always been bold and aggressive.
Predominantly originating from Dutch dance music such as gabber, hardcore and jump style, it can also take influence from genres like drum and bass and trance. Hardstyle is known for its distinctive synthesized kick drum and various distorted sounds.
Over time, hardstyle has evolved to become more melodic, while maintaining its raw energy. Its current form is often characterized by anthemic melody lines as well as unintelligible vocal samples layered over hard hitting kicks and euphoric chord progressions.
Our Favorite Hardstyle Music
Unlike other genres, so many hardstyle songs are remixes. This may be because the sense of familiarity leads to higher streaming numbers, or because it is easier than starting from scratch.
Regardless, because of this, so many of the best hardstyle songs are constantly removed from streaming services because of copyright infringement.
Top 10 Hardstyle Originals
Therefore, let's first review our top 10 original hardstyle tracks. (Not in order)
The Revolution by Octatonez
Mystique by Tevvez
Universe by Frailtix
Next to Me by Mqx
Stay a Little While by Tooz
Break Me by Cold Suhou
Sabay by Venko
Like This by Descent
Help Myself by ANIZYZ
Caffeine 200 by ALEXYZZ
Top 10 Hardstyle Remixes
Next, let's review 10 of our favorite hardstyle remixes of popular songs. This was super hard to narrow down... (Also not in order)
Mne Malo Malo Malo Tebya by Various Artists
DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love by Usher (Yosuf Bootleg)
I Kissed A Girl by Katy Perry (Tevvez Remix)
After Dark by Mr. Kitty (Alexyzz Remix)
Dream On by Aerosmith (Whippa Hardstyle Remix)
Little Dark Age by MGMT (Mqx Remix)
TiK ToK by Ke$ha (Allon Hardstyle Bootleg)
Wrecking Ball by Miley Cyrus (Ninetennluvv Hardstyle Remix)
Disturbia by Rihanna (GTTG Hardstyle Remix)
Can You Feel My Heart (DJ MAZZA Bootleg)
Our Playlists
For our collection of hardstyle music, we offer various Spotify playlists.
Or, if you are looking for the remixes of popular songs that Spotify doesn't allow, we also have a YouTube playlist.
This playlist is the best hardstyle mix, also featuring a few phonk, hardcore and early hardstyle tracks sprinkled throughout the playlist. With over 200 songs, you wont run out of hardstyle music anytime soon.
To listen to our Spotify hardstyle playlist, click here.
To listen to our YouTube hardstyle playlist, click here.
Our Favorite Hardstyle Artists
We already listed some grade euphoric hardstyle producers above in our section of best songs. However, here are ten more industry titans to explore.
Atmozfears
Frequencerz
Da Tweekaz
Zatox
Headhunterz
A-Lusion
Brennan Heart
Frontliner
Crisis Era
Wildstylez
Where can I find hardstyle music festivals?
Every year, hardstyle music fans from around the world gather to party at some of the biggest and best hardstyle events and festivals. From Defqon in Europe to Q-Base in Germany and even Hard Bass in Russia, the hardstyle events are truly worldwide.
Or, if you're from the states, Mysteryland USA is a can't miss event with multiple stages featuring a variety of music styles.
For those looking for something more in-depth and intimate, there are smaller secret warehouse raves cropping up across the globe that feature top tier performances from the biggest names in hardstyle.
No matter what kind of hardstyle fan you are, there is an event perfect for you every year.
Why is hardstyle music tied to the gym?
Hardstyle music has long been associated with gym bros as the fast-paced nature of the genre is often seen as a “gym anthem.” This phenomenon can be traced back to the legacy of Aziz Shavershian, also known as Zyzz, an Australian bodybuilder who helped to popularize the hardstyle sound.
Zyzz drew inspiration from the sub genre while working out and advocated for its use in many online forums. People would often refer to him as the godfather of 'aesthetics' and was widely seen as an influence on gym-goers around the world.
Seeing this, many people began using hardstyle music when working out, further solidifying its status as the traditional workout soundtrack. Even today, many gyms have playlists filled with hardstyle music that are used when lifting weights or doing cardio – all adding to its association with exercise and gym culture in general.
Although we've sadly lost him from this world, the positive lifestyle and style he embodied will remain forever in our hearts – and ears!
Try an EDM workout with hardstyle gym music. Trust me.
Hardstyle is quickly taking over the fitness industry, and for good reason.
Characterized by its dynamic instrumentals, hardstyle is gaining popularity amongst routine gym-goers due to its ability to make the drab of a gym session come alive with an infusion of energy.
I mean who needs pre-workout when you have loud, pulsing 808s and kicks in your ears?
Its fast tempo encourages physical movements to sync with its rhythm, making one’s time at the gym more enjoyable and motivating. Give our selection of euphoric hardstyle a try next time you workout, and you're likely to come back for more.
In Conclusion: The Best Hardstyle Music
Ultimately, if you were unsure before, we hope we did well introducing the amazing high-tempo genre of hardstyle to you all.
Our hardstyle playlists can be found linked below, and if you are looking for even more music to discover, check out one of the three linked blogs below discussing up-and-coming sub genres of music.
'Til next time ladies and gents.