Definitions

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective music Having a slow tempo.
  • adjective Having a slow, relaxed pace.
  • adverb music Having a slow tempo.
  • adverb Having a slow, relaxed pace.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

down +‎ tempo

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word downtempo.

Examples

  • I first heard his stuff back in my College Radio days (yo, WRBC, what's up?), before people were calling the kind of music he makes "chillout" or "downtempo" - there wasn't really a name for it, it was just part of the spectrum of electronic music.

    Move to this (Music (For Robots)) 2006

  • I first heard his stuff back in my College Radio days (yo, WRBC, what's up?), before people were calling the kind of music he makes "chillout" or "downtempo" - there wasn't really a name for it, it was just part of the spectrum of electronic music.

    Music (For Robots): February 2006 Archives 2006

  • Much of Vibert's earlier output is either hardcore breakbeats and jungle-style madness, or (very dope) hip-hop-tempo beats that would now be called "downtempo", but the Kerrier District project - which first saw a full-length album released by Rephlex in early 2004 - is real-deal electronic DISCO music.

    No Brainer, double-trouble PSA and a CONTEST! (Music (For Robots)) 2006

  • Much of Vibert's earlier output is either hardcore breakbeats and jungle-style madness, or (very dope) hip-hop-tempo beats that would now be called "downtempo", but the Kerrier District project - which first saw a full-length album released by Rephlex in early 2004 - is real-deal electronic DISCO music.

    Music (For Robots): November 2006 Archives 2006

  • Sure, Massive Attack have long since vanished up their own bottoms and the whole scene seems so embarrassed by the way that it only exists to soundtrack Channel Four documentaries about modern architecture that it now prefers the term 'downtempo', but if anyone can save Trip Hop it's Gretchen Lieberum.

    A Brief Book Review by hecklerspray – Angels And Insects 2007

  • Unfortunately, that presents something of a problem: this kind of downtempo romance tends to be rather homogenous, and consequently is perhaps best enjoyed in one careful voyage rather than dissected in the hunt for stand-out tracks.

    Cokemachineglow.com 2008

  • Ambient Electronica (sometimes referred to as "downtempo" or "chillout") CDs / tapes are another excellent choice for "music to snooze by".

    Shaister Miester Do Da 2008

  • Originally conceived by Amani Friend and Treavor Moontribe, fellow juggernaut Rara Avis joined in to produce three of the best downtempo South Asian electronica records in existence.

    Derek Beres: Global Beat Fusion: Karsh Kale's Cinema and Lost Desert Beats Derek Beres 2011

  • Originally conceived by Amani Friend and Treavor Moontribe, fellow juggernaut Rara Avis joined in to produce three of the best downtempo South Asian electronica records in existence.

    Derek Beres: Global Beat Fusion: Karsh Kale's Cinema and Lost Desert Beats Derek Beres 2011

  • These two new ones are just that much more refined, allowing plenty of time for the downtempo and few midtempo tracks to germinate and bloom.

    Derek Beres: Global Beat Fusion: Karsh Kale's Cinema and Lost Desert Beats Derek Beres 2011

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.