Shall Not Fade 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: French finesse with German fusion... Willis Anne makes his Shall Not Fade debut with this killer 'Movement' EP. As with previous missives on his LAN imprint, the beats roam and romp freely between footwork, jungle and ghetto-tek with strong twangs of Detroit bringing it all together. Highlights include the wonderful layers of organs and vibrant chords of 'Direct Effect' and the fully-swung breakbeats and bellowing sub of 'Unison'. Get moving.

Review: Shall Not Fade has proven over the last five plus years that whatever sounds it turns its hand to it does with style. Mostly that is deep house and garage but here we have some warehouse-ready techno from Dasco. 'Powerful Woman' has mid-tempo drums that are run through with a supple and subtle acid line and repeated vocal phrasings that lock you into the trip. 'Acid Queen' jacks a bit more, with raw analogue drums and vintage cow bell sounds before the 303 takes over, then Johannes Volk really bangs the box with his hardcore house remix, full of splintered kicks and dusty hi hats. Chicago Skyway brings plenty of Windy City texture to his version.

Review: Shall Not Fade is in unstoppable form right now. The label is putting out a high rate of high quality releases hat traverse a broad electronic spectrum. Liam Doc is next up to take the mantle and head with it into colourful techno territory. The amusingly titled 'Jamie Said It Was Wicked' is a warm, twisted affair to build the tension and elsewhere there is glitchy broken beat techno funk on 'Icarus', old school jungle rollers like '2008' and bass heavy rhythmic workouts like 'Looks Like A Mad Place.' This nimble producer goes on to pull off even more impressive, inventive tricks on the final two tunes to make this a real standout.

Review: Kolter has been busy, as always, and has a couple of fine outings dropping at similar times. This one on Bristol's always-wealthy Shall Not Fade is on nice orange vinyl. It opens with the feel-good synth chords of 'DX7 Together' which also has something of an early Chicago house feel to the cowbells, but plenty of future-facing tech vibes too. The pace picks up for the warm and breezy 'Please Come To My Show' (feat Leo Pol) then it's more chord-laced joy that comes to the fore on 'Up In The Sky'. Berlin fav Cynthia makes those chords have a distinctly old-school feel with her remix.

Review: What do we think of when someone says the word 'ambient'? Maybe a stupid question, nevertheless the term is often taken as an implication of background sounds, or at least tracks that are loosely structured around ebb and flow rather than rigid forms. In no way a criticism, Luke Haze's Pure Movements offers a counterbalance to that idea.
Dropping on Bristol's Shall Not Fade - essentially an imprint you might as well buy every release from without bothering to listen - this link was always going to be a bit of a clue as to what's on offer. In many ways, the four tracks here play out like breakdowns within late night club sets, hints of euphoria, an atmosphere of build, informed by acid, progressive and techno, but certainly none of the above.

Review: Lake Haze's third album on Shall Not Fade is another triumph with his signature shimmering melodies strung out over lush beats. Drawing on house, disco, garage and broken beat it is a rich affair with a strong UK vibe. There is elegance and symphony to opener 'Xyleac' that immediately gets your head amongst the stars. 'Diluspth' keeps up the majestic synth while 'Bbyncole' is double-speed techno with balmy celestial synths and hurried bass that locks you in. Tender ambient pieces like 'Shores Of Eternal Life' reset the mood and then the second half is a series of shorter sketches packed with electronic soul.

Review: Tel Aviv twosome Red Axes can always be relied upon to deliver trippy, mind-altering and left-of-centre music, regardless of what stylistic or rhythmic framework they're operating in at any given time. That assessment rings as true as ever on the duo's first Shall Not Fade outing. Opener 'The Electric', for example, mixes druggy and hallucinogenic electronic motifs with a throbbing, retro-futurist house groove, sci-fi synths and the creepiest of lead lines, while 'Next One Is Bill' is a twisted, brain-melting jack-track propelled forwards by a filthy TB-303 bassline. Turn to the B-side for 'The Bee', a buzzing, foreboding chunk of punk funk/dub-disco/dark house fusion, and the intoxicating mixture of music box melodies, restless Chicago house drums and clandestine sounds that is 'Axes in the Sky'.

Review: Montreal's Jaymie Silk (not to be confused with the Chicago house originator J.M. Silk) first came to light in 2016 with the Trouble In Paradise LP on Ghost Club Records. He reached a wider audience in Europe in 2021 with The Legend Of Jack Johnson on Shall Not Fade, and now he's back on the UK label with a mighty eight tracks of forward-thinking house which draws deeply on the roots while bringing a distinctive slant. There are 90s tropes scattered throughout this release, but they're wielded with a cavalier attitude which makes even the most familiar sample sound fresh. Crucially, this is club music with a purpose as Silk interweaves his tracks with pointed messages in the speech samples he draws on, winding up with party gear to make you think as well as move.