The house and trance kick drum is the most important drum for these genres and also one of the least understood. A good kick drum can be felt in the chest, has a noticeable thump at the beginning, and has a low bass frequency tone at the end.
In house music, placing your bass notes on top of the kick or hihat produces a driving feel.
Next time your melody seems a little bland, throw in some tasteful vibrato to spice things up.