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Observing the curious return of trip hop
♪ Addison Rae, “Headphones On”
If there's anything that we can say defines 2020s as an era of music, it's probably the decade's abundance of revivalism and throwbacks. This decade’s been a time machine, pulling sounds from every corner of the past and trying to pull off a modern spin on them. Earlier this decade alone, we saw a steady rise in the obsession for 80s disco and synth-funk, defining time-space of isolation with soundtracks that would've suited themselves better for an endless night out. Much of the trend's byproduct never really left us either. Remember which song was coronated as the song of the summer last year? Yes, that's that me “Espresso”, which funky disco basslines and caffeinated earworm infected the world just as contagious as coronavirus itself.
That's only one of many different trends we have seen revived. We did have a small resurgence of pop-punk, 90s girl group r&b, shoegaze, drum 'n bass, jersey club, recession club pop, and even pop country for the worse. But perhaps the most head-scratching rewind we've witnessed yet might've been the curious return of trip hop with Addison Rae at the forefront. Yes, THAT Addison Rae.
For the record, by no means will I say Addison Rae is a pioneer. She's far from it, but I do think her choice of resorting to downtempo and trip hop to build her image of sensual pop cacophony holds quite the significance, channeling sound that's often forgotten by the modern pop canon and genuinely making a fresh tune out of it.
Neither trip hop, downtempo, or baggy ever really vanished; it's just that, they've been quiet. Think George Clanton's mixture of 90s baggy with vaporwave-inspired hynagogia, whose aesthetic slowly seeps through the works of Hatchie, Vitesse X, and fellow 100% Electronica founder Neggy Gemmy. Talking about hypnagogia, the hallucinatory sound of Dean Blunt, Lil Ugly Mane, and Tirzah certainly also took inspirations from OGs of the Bristol sound. In another glance, trip hop essence were tapped in the new generation alternative r&b and future soul sound of Liv.e, Sudan Archives, and Fabiana Palladino. And of course there's the worldwide artsy underground rock revival ignited by bands like Nilüfer Yanya, Soccer Mommy, Strange Ranger (RIP), and bar italia that borrows trip hop's brooding textures to create a distinctly modern malaise.
Trip hop has always been a background player, a subtle ingredient rather than the main course. That has always been the case until recently where I started to look around and ask myself, "wait, is that new Addison Rae song... trip hop?". Spoiler: it is trip hop. But Addison wasn't the only sign of its return either. Copenhagen alternative star Erika de Casier also surprise-dropped her 30 minutes of pure, unfiltered trip hop bliss not long after. Afterwards, strings of releases from james K, Caroline Polachek, and After suddenly feels like a domino falling towards one big truth: trip hop IS back.
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The thing with revivalism, especially one that happens in the age of everything in the grips of your hand, is that it'll expand and blur the genre it tries to revives. You can read the previous paragraphs again and notice that I grouped trip hop alongside downtempo and baggy—and honestly, I might even add street soul and hypnagogic pop in there as well. Despite having their own distinctive characteristics that made them deserves their own name, these five genres revolves around one and another to shape the current iteration of trip hop. The trip hop sound that we have now is not a homage to what we remember how trip hop sounded like in the 90s, but a culmination of three decades-worth of work—from Portishead to Massive Attack, from Tricky to Lovage, from William Orbit to Bowery Electric, and even the works of pop divas like Kylie Minogue, Janet Jackson, Björk, and Madonna—each with their own vision of how trip hop could expands.
New trip hop songs from recent years that convinced me the genre is alive:
The lead single to the American experimental popstar's third album is a neon-lit trip hop bliss with evocative ethereal wave atmosphere that evokes the feeling of walking through the city in the middle of the night. It's alone in ways that isn't isolating, but rather, finding comfort in your own company.
Channeling “Love Deluxe“ Sade, “You Can't Always Get What You Want“ is about as intimate and sexy. But it also flips the script of romance into genuine vulnerability, contemplating the fleetingness of desire and whether your significant others will stay with you once your body's aged and changed.
Rejoined by the rap prodigy John Glacier, “A Dream Goes On Forever“ is a message sent by angels through the transmission from heaven, reminding us that there'll always be a road to regain back the hopes that are gone and lost as long as the river still flows and the sun still shines.
A skull-crushing highlight from the Korean dj's long overdue debut. It's hard-hitting both in its sounds and lyrics, making sure that you can feel the overwhelming weight of growth in times where you are simply not ready for it yet. Suddenly, time moved so slow, yet memories flickered so fast.
It started as a psych folk song, Lana Del Rey's 7 minutes opus that dissects modern womanhood in the face of misogynoir and tangled relationship. But 3 minutes 40 seconds in, she switches it up to a fever-inducing trip hop snaps that revels in the brokenness of a person who've trained herself enough to mask it.
Almost like her version of Ms. Jackson's “That's The Way Love Goes”, the rain-soaked street soul groove of “Headphones On” paired with Addison's intimate close-up whispers makes melancholy sounds oddly sexy. I guess the world really will just goes on without us, we might as well get dolled up.
Girls that feel good makes the world go round, and twigs' anthem of feminine pleasure on her futuristic 90s rave-inspired album is fittingly, a futuristic trip hop song that takes you to the peak of Madonna's “Ray of Light”, with production that wouldn't be out of place to be placed next to the best works of William Orbit.
If you ever asked how Ethel Cain would've sounded if she made indietronica tunes with indie-sleaze undertones, look no further than Sophia Stel. “Taste” in particular, is airy, haunting, flirtatious, and full of overflowing desire to be seen that only comes out of the mouth as "I wanted you".
Standout track from billy woods' horrorcore masterwork happens to be one of the album's bleakest, most dismal point. It's a narration of traumatic memories that a broken household can bring to a child even as they grew older, forever haunted by a past shrouded by ones who are supposed to make them feel safe.
Have you ever felt that entrancing moment of leaving a loading screen for too long to do something else then coming back to it minutes later only for it to unravel the entire background song? That's what “Strawberry” feels like—nostalgic, childlike, surreal, and beauty at its most feverish.
And so many many many more... Check out this playlist if you're interested to dive in deeper.
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Throwback moments typically appeal to two broad demographics: mainstream and "indie"—not strictly indie per se, but rather those outside the popular culture sphere. When disco and 80s synthpop surged back in 2020, mainstream artists like Dua Lipa, The Weeknd, and Doja Cat clearly dominated the trend. Same can be said with the current outburst of pop country (Post Malone, M*rg*n W*ll*n) and recession club pop (Lady Gaga, Chappell Roan, Charli xcx). On the flipside of the coin, trends like shoegaze and drum 'n bass appeals more towards smaller and specific audience. You might won't really see them ever lit up at the top of Billboard chart, but you can totally feel their upsurge of presence within the online crowd through bands like julie, Wisp, and Parannoul or producers like PinkPantheress (who've now successfully transitioned to mainstream fame), Nia Archives, Evaboy, Kumo 99, and Deathbrain.
Trip hop’s revival is fascinating because it doesn’t neatly fit either camp—it’s a bridge between the two. The artists driving this wave are wildly diverse, not just in their musical styles but in their cultural reach. You’ve got electronic-leaning acts whose electronic backgrounds make their trip hop flirtation feel inherently natural. Then there are the bona-fide pop starlets, both veterans (Lana Del Rey, Miley Cyrus) and newcomers (RAYE, Addison Rae), embracing the sound to amplifies emotions that simply aren't fit to be packaged just as a tight hook. And certainly all kinds of post-pandemic underground strains from pop to rap to rock alikes are also foraying to trip hop's attentive sound design to conjure meticulous layered atmosphere that's full of more than meets the ear. This range shows trip hop’s flexibility—not confined to one scene or sound. Its ability to mold itself into different forms suggests a genre with staying power, capable of evolving beyond momentary trend.
Right now, I know a lot of us are exhausted by the rinse and repeat cycle of trends that puts catchy hook first and foremost. We’ve all heard songs engineered for quick dopamine hits—earworms that dominate playlists but fade fast. But if trip hop is really the next big thing in music, it could be a refreshing change of pace to our ears. After all, trip hop has never really been about hook; it's about establishing mood, favoring subtlety, and building a sound space that feels "full". Imagine songs that don’t just soundtrack a moment but create a space for reflection, where the interplay of smoky beats, introspective lyrics, and atmospheric production pulls you into a deeper emotional experience. Trip hop’s return feels like a counterpoint to the fast-paced, algorithm-driven music landscape—a chance to prioritize feeling over fleeting hype. Are you in for it? I know I am. (＾3＾♪
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