Drum & Bass is a genre built on speed, rhythm, and bass. Emerging from the UK underground, D&B showcases rapid breakbeats, usually between 160 and 180 BPM, with deep basslines and sounds that can range from melodic and atmospheric, to dark and heavy. Over the decades, it has evolved into a global movement with a dance floor culture all its own.
Born aboard Groove Cruise, The Trench is the festival’s dedicated drum & bass experience at sea, giving Captains a place to discover D&B artists, underground sounds, surprise sets, and a community built around bass music.
The Trench first made waves aboard Groove Cruise in 2025, transforming Comedy Live into an intimate drum & bass haven on night one. Deeper Purpose and Deepfake stepped outside their usual sounds alongside other artists, delivering an experiment that quickly proved to be a crowd favorite.
By 2026, The Trench returned with even more D&B energy, featuring ÆON:MODE, Blossom, Nikita Page, Somnity, and more. Now heading into its third sailing, The Trench has grown from a bold experiment into a returning Groove Cruise experience, finding its homebase at The Attic stage.
Blossom brought fitness and drum & bass together with a Drum & Blossom workout class featuring a custom mix synced to every movement during Groove Cruise 2026.
The Trench Drum & Bass Lineup for Groove Cruise 2027:
Who do you think might surprise us with a D&B set on Groove Cruise Miami 2027? 👀Check out the full lineup here!
Drum & Bass is a multi-dimensional sound, with each subgenre delivering its own distinct energy, mood, and listening experience. Jungle is the pioneer genre of D&B, which taps into the genre’s roots featuring chopped breakbeats and reggae influence. Liquid brings soulful melodies and smooth basslines, Rollers build momentum through deep grooves and driving rhythms, and Jump Up brings playful energy with bold, bouncy basslines. Dancefloor D&B goes big with euphoric melodies and festival-ready drops, while Neuro gets darker, heavier, and more technical, and Skullstep pushes into an aggressive, hard-edged sound.
Expect The Trench to transport you to another dimension, immersing you in hypnotic rhythms, bass-forward sounds, and high-energy beats, with an unexpected drop waiting around every corner.
Here are some key facts about the history of drum & bass, UK rave culture, and the sound behind one of electronic music’s most enduring genres:
Drum & bass brings a different kind of energy to Groove Cruise. With house, trance, and techno filling stages across the ship, D&B’s rapid breakbeats, rolling basslines, and faster tempo create an exciting contrast that can completely shift the energy of a crowd. On a festival cruise, that change of pace feels even bigger when Captains can move from a melodic trance set or some house grooves straight into the high-speed sounds of The Trench.
The experience becomes even more intense during intimate stage takeovers, where smaller spaces put Captains just feet away from the decks and right in the middle of the action. Groove Cruise’s multi-genre environment also makes D&B unpredictable. Artists known for house, techno, bass, and other styles have the freedom to step outside their usual sound, creating surprise drum & bass sets, unexpected B2Bs, and crossover moments that might never appear on a traditional drum & bass festival lineup.
That sense of discovery connects naturally with the rave culture shared by both drum & bass and Groove Cruise. It’s about finding a sound, following the energy, and becoming part of a crowd that’s fully locked into the moment. Add the setting of an EDM cruise, and D&B can break out almost anywhere, from a late-night indoor stage to a daytime deck party or a set surrounded by open ocean. Hearing those unmistakable breakbeats in places they would never normally be heard is exactly what makes drum & bass at sea hit differently.
The Trench is Groove Cruise’s dedicated drum & bass experience, featuring D&B artists, genre takeovers, surprise sets, and programming inspired by drum & bass and underground rave culture.
Jungle, which emerged in the early 1990s, laid the foundation for drum & bass with breakbeats, reggae influences, and heavy basslines. Drum & bass evolved from jungle, focusing on faster tempos (typically 170 BPM), cleaner production, and a broader range of substyles like liquid, neurofunk, and jump-up.
The tempo of drum & bass (usually 160–180 BPM) creates its signature intensity. The fast rhythm delivers adrenaline on the dancefloor while still leaving room for deep basslines and melodic atmospheres.
D&B spans many styles, including liquid funk (melodic and soulful), neurofunk (dark and technical), jump-up (bouncy and fun), and atmospheric/ambient (spacey and minimal). Each has its place depending on the vibe of the set and time of day.
A new wave of producers and cross-genre collaborations have pushed drum & bass back into the spotlight. Its mix of high energy, emotional depth, and technical skill appeals to both veteran ravers and new fans discovering the sound for the first time.
Yes. Groove Cruise features drum & bass through The Trench, its dedicated D&B experience at sea. The Trench brings together drum & bass artists, underground sounds, genre takeovers, and surprise sets, with styles ranging from liquid and jungle to jump-up, dancefloor, and heavier D&B. For Groove Cruise Miami 2027, The Trench returns with artists including Bella Renee, Lizzy Jane, and Romeo.
You can find The Trench artists bringing the D&B energy across the ship, including sets at The Attic, Promenade, and even a few surprise sets along the way.
House and techno often run at 120–130 BPM with a steady four-on-the-floor beat, while drum & bass is defined by syncopated breakbeats and much faster tempos. The result is a more frenetic, rolling energy that feels distinct on the dancefloor.
Check out our other blogs to learn more about all the genres you’ll experience aboard Groove Cruise!
The Trench started as an experiment, but Captains made it clear: drum & bass belongs on Groove Cruise.
Now heading into its third sailing, The Trench is ready to go even deeper for Groove Cruise Miami 2027. It’s a place to discover new sounds, lose yourself in the bass, and find yourself dancing next to a Captain you just met who shares the same love for music as you do.
Whether you’re already deep in the D&B universe or still learning the difference between jungle and jump-up, The Trench is calling. Bella Renee, Lizzy Jane, and Romeo are locked in for 2027, and if Groove Cruise has taught us anything, it’s to always expect the unexpected.
So when you hear those breakbeats echoing through the ship, follow the bass.
See you in The Trench!
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