Skip to content

Trip hop drum pattern

Slow, dark and hazy; heavy swung breaks. Here are its drums on a step grid, at the tempo it starts at, to hear and to change.

85 BPM · Breakbeat kit · 2 bars · 55% swing

The pattern, step by step

Each step is a sixteenth note, four to a beat: step 1 is beat 1, 5 is beat 2, 9 is beat 3 and 13 is beat 4. A lit square is a hit; a fainter one is played softer.

  • Hit
  • Softer hit
  • Roll: quick hits inside one step
The trip hop drum pattern: the steps each drum plays, bars 1 and 2
DrumBar 1Bar 2
Closed hat1, 3 (soft), 5, 7 (soft), 9, 11 (soft), 13, 15 (soft)1, 3 (soft), 5, 7 (soft), 9, 11 (soft), 13, 15 (soft)
Snare5, 13, 16 (soft)5, 10, 13
Cross-stick–16 (roll, soft)
Kick1, 8, 11, 15 (soft)1, 11
Open these drums in the editor

They open as one drum lane on a step grid, at 85 BPM. No account needed to start.

How trip hop drums go

Slow, heavy sampled breaks: kick on 1 and the and of 3, a big snare on 2 and 4.

The bass, chords and sounds are on the Downtempo page.

Questions about trip hop drums

What BPM is trip hop?

Usually 70 to 100 BPM. This pattern plays at 85 BPM.

How do you make a trip hop drum pattern?

Start with the kick on steps 1, 8, 11 and 15, the snare on steps 5, 13 and 16 and the closed hi-hat on steps 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13 and 15, then follow the grid for bar 2. Each step is a sixteenth note, four to a beat: step 1 is beat 1, 5 is beat 2, 9 is beat 3 and 13 is beat 4. Open it in the free editor to change any step.

Do trip hop drums swing?

Yes, about 55% swing: every second step comes a little late, so the groove bounces. The editor plays it that way, and its Steps view can change it.

Make a trip hop beat

The free editor opens with a whole trip hop beat: drums, bass and chords, each part yours to change, add to or take away.