Footwork / Juke
Genre: Footwork · Tempo: 160 BPM · Time signature: 4/4 · Length: 16 steps · Style: rapid, chopped Chicago footwork/juke kick and hat programming
Open this pattern in the interactive Patchpad (with playback)
The pattern
| Instrument | Steps (1 = start of the bar) | Velocity | Timing and chance |
| kick | 1, 4, 6, 9, 11, 15 | 85-110 | step 4: early by about 8% of a step, plays 85% of the time; step 6: plays 90% of the time; step 9: early by about 4% of a step, plays 85% of the time; step 15: early by about 8% of a step, plays 70% of the time |
| hat-closed | 2, 5, 7, 10, 12, 14, 16 | 40-45 | step 2: plays 90% of the time; step 5: plays 90% of the time; step 7: plays 90% of the time; step 10: plays 90% of the time; step 12: plays 90% of the time; step 14: plays 90% of the time; step 16: plays 90% of the time |
| rim | 3 | 45 | step 3: late by about 4% of a step, plays 55% of the time |
| snare | 13 | 95 | on the grid, always plays |
Digitakt II
Tracks
- T1: kick
- T2: hat-closed
- T3: rim
- T4: snare
Settings
- Kick (T1) hits are dense and irregularly spaced (steps 1, 4, 6, 9, 11, 15) with TRIG PARAMETERS microTiming p-locked off-grid on several (step 4: -2, step 9: -1, step 15: -2 µtime units) — this chopped, off-grid density is the entire genre, don't quantize to a regular subdivision
- Hat-closed (T2): AMP page DEC set short (around 20) and VOL kept low (around 45) for a fast, near-constant 16th pulse that stays a steady floor under the chopped kick
- Step 13 (snare, T4): TRIG PARAMETERS VEL locked to 95, the pattern's only snare hit — keep it isolated, footwork rarely doubles the backbeat
- Step 3 (rim, T3): TRIG PARAMETERS microTiming p-locked to +1, PROB at 55% — a light, semi-random accent standing in for the genre's chopped-vocal hits
Digitone II
Tracks
- T1: kick (ALGO 8, FM click-into-boom, very short decay)
- T2: hat-closed (high-FDBK FM noise, short/quiet)
- T3: rim (ALGO 1 plain carrier, high RATIO C)
- T4: snare (moderate-FDBK FM noise)
Settings
- Kick (T1) hits are dense and irregularly spaced (steps 1, 4, 6, 9, 11, 15) with TRIG PARAMETERS microTiming p-locked off-grid on several (step 4: -2, step 9: -1, step 15: -2 µtime units) — this chopped, off-grid density is the entire genre, don't quantize to a regular subdivision
- Kick (T1) base sound: SYN page 1 ALGO 8, RATIO C 0.30; SYN page 2 Operator A ATK 0, DEC 10, LEV 110. AMP page ATK 0, DEC 25 (very short — at 160 BPM a longer decay smears hits into each other), REL 15
- Hat-closed (T2) base sound: SYN page 1 FDBK 90, FLTR page 1 TYPE toward HP (~90); AMP page DEC 18 (short) and VOL kept low (~45) for a fast, near-constant 16th pulse that stays a steady floor under the chopped kick
- Step 13 (snare, T4): TRIG PARAMETERS VEL locked to 95, the pattern's only snare hit — keep it isolated, footwork rarely doubles the backbeat. SYN page 1 FDBK 85, AMP page DEC 50
- Step 3 (rim, T3): TRIG PARAMETERS microTiming p-locked to +1, PROB at 55% — a light, semi-random accent standing in for the genre's chopped-vocal hits. SYN page 1 ALGO 1, RATIO C 4.00 (thin, high-pitched plain carrier), AMP page DEC 12
Syntakt
Tracks
- T9: kick (BD PLASTIC)
- T10: snare (SD ACOUSTIC)
- T11: rim (RS HARD)
- T12: hat-closed (CH CLASSIC)
Settings
- Kick (T9, BD PLASTIC): AMP page DEC set very short (around 25-30) — at footwork's density, a longer decay smears hits into each other; steps 4/9/15 also carry TRIG PARAMETERS microTiming p-locks of -2/-1/-2 for the chopped, off-grid placement
- Hat-closed (T12, CH CLASSIC): AMP page DEC kept short (around 20) and VOL low (around 45) for a steady, unobtrusive 16th floor under the chopped kicks
- Step 13 (snare, T10, SD ACOUSTIC): the pattern's only snare hit, TRIG PARAMETERS VEL locked to 95 — keep it isolated rather than doubling the backbeat
- Step 3 (rim, T11, RS HARD): TRIG PARAMETERS microTiming +1, PROB 55% — footwork/juke's chopped-vocal accent stand-in; hat-closed is this pattern's only Analog Cymbal voice so no crash/open-hat layering is possible alongside it
Notes
A rapid, chopped Chicago footwork/juke pattern: an irregularly-spaced, dense kick pattern (the genre's signature) over a steady 16th-note hat floor, with a single backbeat snare and a rim hit standing in for the genre's characteristic vocal chops. An original pattern, not a transcription.
Patchpad is a free reference of drum patterns and synth patches written for real hardware: Digitakt II, Digitone II, Syntakt, Novation Summit, Arturia MiniFreak, Dreadbox Typhon and ASM Hydrasynth Desktop.