Electronic music is the zeitgeist of our generation. From the original Electric Daisy Carnival to the widespread music festivals pumping out synth-made melodies, everyone wants a piece of this new-age sound.

Electronic music is vast, unique, and ever-evolving. It’s often considered a contemporary take on music inspired by our insatiable lust for technological developments that bombard our senses, electronic music has a much deeper history. Since the advent of electronic instruments in the 1920s, musicians have been experimenting with the sounds they can make into songs. 

Transformation of Trance
By the early 1940s, electronic music was brimming from an unlikely source. 


Ancient Egypt is known for being incredibly inventive, and the modern-day predecessors of this innovative people still has a foothold in creativity. Egypt, as well as neighbors in the Middle East and in Goa, is known for their contributions to the Trance music movement. Aly & Fila, considered as some of the world’s top 20 DJs, hail from Egypt and India’s trance-music making have spawned the namesake genre of Goa Trance.

Trance is a style of fast melodic music that is uplifting and euphoric. Songs will normally start off with simple, steady beats–which promote mixing during live performances–and come to a climax in the middle before tapering back off leaving room for a song to follow with a similar flow.

The lively and inviting nature of trance promoted its spread. Its true origins are debated, but there are clear indicators of some of the greatest influences on the genre. This style of music is played all around the world, with particular strongholds in Germany, Paris, and Egypt.

Aly & Fila
DJ duo Aly & Fila

Like all other styles of music, trance has ebbed, flowed, and transformed throughout the decades sprouting subgenres by the handful. Acid Trance, Psychedelic Trance, and Belearic Trance, among plenty of others, have broken off and blended to create an even more expansive genre. 

Among these subgenres, Bubble Trance has burst into existence seemingly out of thin air. Without even a mention on Wikipedia let alone its own page entry, some hardcore trance followers were left scratching their heads (and penning scathing online messages) over the mention of the seemingly made up “Bubble Trance” on that Verizon commercial.  

But if subgenres like Suomisaundi, Hands Up, and Nitzhonot can find their place in the chill and inclusive Trance community, surely Bubble Trance can join the club.

Bubble Trance emerges
Just because there isn’t much of a pinned-down description or a lineup of active artists proclaiming to create Bubble Trance doesn’t mean it isn’t already a thing. Spotify supports the claims of this evolution, and showcase the best examples that encompass the genre on a playlist called “The Sounds of Bubble Trance.” It’s recommended for those who are already fans of Progressive Trance, Breakbeat, and Eurodance. Some of the artists that populate the list include DJ Quicksilver, Future Breeze, Sunbeam, Da Hool, and Kosmonova. 

The sound and feel is exactly what you’d hope for from a Trance-byproduct. The songs start off with high energy and scant melodies. There’s very rarely many vocals, save for the occasional encouraging message like you hear on “Hold on Tight” by Lambda. 

There are no particular artists that subscribe to Bubble Trance (yet) but since the word was spread far and wide, even if only as a joke, the genre has done what it can to fulfill the prophecy. 

On YouTube, you’ll find tranquil or uplifting images of, yes, bubbles accompanied by the familiar sounds of an excitable trance song. Some have even used the name for more creative inspiration, taking a page from ASMR enthusiasts and using the oddly satisfying sounds of popping bubbles as an element in song production. 

Just like with Trance music, the moment of genesis seems to be an elusive fact. The one thing that is for sure is that so long as there’s an interest in pushing the limits of music, Bubble Trance may be able to absorb the energy of the inquisition and expand to enrapture clubs throughout the world.