Hardbass developed in Russia in the early 2000s as a fast offshoot of hard house and bouncy techno, built around donk bass and simple rave riffs. Outside Russia it spread in the 2010s through YouTube and social media, where the music became shorthand for Slav meme culture, tracksuits, squatting poses and low budget car videos. Short hardbass clips are now reused far beyond the original scene as instant comic energy for edits, gaming videos and dance memes that need a recognisably Russian rave sound.