Mau P's productions stand out because they are club-focused, high-energy and incredibly detailed. This breakdown pulls his sound apart into five lessons you can apply right away: the low end, the gritty drums, the vocal chops, the ear candy, and the arrangement.
Lesson 1: The Low End
Tight, punchy and groove-driven. A heavy kick paired with a gritty, sidechained bass, plus a Reese layer for variation.
Key settings:
- Heavy kick: a strong transient and a controlled, compressed sub tail; keep any extra kick hits subtle with gain automation
- Main bass MIDI: mostly off-beat bounce, first note ducked for the kick, with fills at the end of every 2nd and 4th bar
- Bass sound design: a basic waveform edited in the wavetable, random phase disabled to stay tight, a fairly open filter with slight envelope modulation
- Heavy distortion for harmonics and EQ boosts to shape the tone
- Sidechain ducking is critical to lock the groove with the kick
Lesson 2: The Gritty Drums
Raw, energetic and slightly dirty. Kick, clap and closed hat form the base, then a signature gritty hat loop pushes the groove.
Key settings:
- Start simple: kick, clap and a closed hat
- Percussion layers to push the groove forward
- A gritty hat loop for texture and character, often with swing
- A ride cymbal with a long tail for energy, EQ'd to keep only the top end so it does not clash
Lesson 3: The Vocal Chops
Vocal snippets used as rhythmic and melodic elements, chopped into a plucky, hypnotic sequence. Here EQ is sound design, not just mixing.
Key settings:
- Chop the vocal into a plucky, hypnotic sequence
- Aggressive EQ to shape the tone, treated as sound design
Lesson 4: The Ear Candy
The constant micro-detail that keeps the track engaging, adding movement and variation without overwhelming it.
Key settings:
- Laser shots, FM synth stabs, guitar textures and phasy white noise
- LFO-modulated lead saws
- Small fills and transitions for movement
Lesson 5: The Arrangement
Where it all comes together: a DJ-friendly structure with tight energy control and constant momentum.
Key settings:
- DJ-friendly intro and outro; introduce elements gradually
- Hold back the bass in the intro with EQ automation; a first break introduces a new element like an FM bass; the drop brings everything in
- Change something every 8 bars, and use bridge sections with fills to transition
- Build tension by automating arp chops and layering a lead saw and reese bass before the drop
Grab the full project
Want the full project? Drift has 8 Ableton project files, 300+ samples, and 50+ Serum 2 presets with matching MIDI, everything behind this tech house sound.
Watch the full breakdown
See all five lessons in the video:
Reference tracks
Typical reference tracks for this style are:
- Piatto - Things We Never Know
- Mihai Popoviciu - Here
- Mau P - Merther
- Kolter - Liquor Store
- Chris Lorenzo - Appetite
- Chris Lorenzo, Max Styler - London's On Fire
- EdiP - Lock Y Phone
- AYYBO, Discip - 4 Ya Mind