Over the past couple years, EDM has been dominated by festival-friendly house with blazing synths and massive drops. Hits such as Sandro Silva & Quintino’s “Epic,” Knife Party’s “LRAD” and Martin Garrix’s “Animals” became anthems and subsequently influenced other artists and tracks. However, the less abrasive and more subtle sound of deep house has become increasingly prevalent during the last year and is expected to increase in popularity.

While not purely a deep house act, Disclosure’s debut album Settle helped bring the style to a worldwide audience with hits such as “White Noise” and “F For You.” In August, legendary DJ/producer Kaskade performed a deep set at Marquee Las Vegas which has accumulated over SoundCloud 300,000 plays. The set was posted on his Tumblr blog along with the following message for the doubters, “You think Vegas can’t go deep? Think again, princess.”

However, it wasn’t until Dusky’s “Careless” hit #1 on Beatport in October that many EDM blogs began to take notice of deep house’s rise. The bass-laden and soulful track displaced Martin Garrix’s “Animals” and sparked fascination across the globe.

To help our readers learn more about the sub-genre, we’ve compiled a list of influential tracks from 2013 which stood out from the pack (ranked in no particular order):

Note: the following tracks are hosted on DJcity’s UK site. You can use your DJcity US login to download them.

Disclosure ft. AlunaGeorge – White Noise
The UK duo’s hit “White Noise” reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart and features the uniquely seductive vocals of Aluna Francis.

Duke Dumont – Need U (100%)
Mentored by Switch of Major Lazer, Dumont’s breakout track was penned by the prodigious MNEK who’s also written for Rudimental and Gorgon City.

Dusky – Careless
The UK-duo’s soulful hit garnered international attention in October when it replaced Martin Garrix’s “Animals” as the #1 track on Beatport.

Gorgon City ft. Yasmin – Real
This duo is comprised of Foamo & Rack’n’Ruin and their soulful 122 BPM groover features fellow Londoner Yasmin on vocals.

Friend Within – Renegade
Signed to Disclosure’s Method Records, the Liverpool based-producer’s ’90s flavored track has received heavy rotation on BBC Radio 1.

Shadow Child ft. Tymer – 23
This track is featured on the GTA V soundtrack and was produced by Shadow Child, the new alias of Dave Spoon.

Disclosure – F For You
The 4th single from Disclosure’s critically-acclaimed debut “Settle” and the only track on the album featuring their own vocals.

Storm Queen – Look Right Through – MK Remix
Recently hitting #1 on the UK Singles Chart, this track marks the first time in decade that a track has gone straight from the clubs to #1 with minimal promotion.

Ben Pearce – What I Might Do
Signed to Chase & Status MTA label, Pearce’s laid-back “What I Might Do” samples the soulful vocals of Anthony Hamilton and has been featured in TV commercials in the UK.

Mike Mago – The Show
Dutch DJ/producer Mike Mago’s banger has received support from Pete Tong, Tensnake, Annie Mac, B.Traits and Crookers.

For more deep house, we recommend viewing DJcity UK’s recent top 20 list