Newcomer Bakey gets his full vinyl release via UKG imprint Time Is Now with the weighty ‘Take It Further’ EP.
London based producer Bakey has been steadily gathering attention whether it be via his appearances on Rinse FM or club fuelled edits via Bandcamp. His first vinyl outing ‘Take It Further’ EP is a slice of UKG goodness featuring five tracks of groovers and movers, best played loud.
Mysterious UK Garage imprint Time Is Now returns for its second outing, this time equipped with four club weapons from rising talent Interplanetary Criminal.
Main Phase returns for a second full-length EP on Shall Not Fade's hugely successful sublabel, the bass-oriented Time Is Now. The Copenhagen native is fresh from an appearance on Danish leftfield label Petrola 80 and can otherwise be found heading ATW records with another Time Is Now regular, Interplanetary Criminal. He serves up a tasting menu of the most quintessential sounds in UKG across Buss It EP.
The title track is understated, sparse but tense using sparing Ragga vox that build to a crescendo, wobbling over into "Our Style" - expect space age FX drawn out over mutant inflections in another textbook eyes down cut. Cheeky bassline garage energy is brought in "Creepin", while teasing breaks and dirty south hip-hop in the vocals.
Looking to the infamous early years of garage on the B-side, "Freaky" channels those classic Ghost releases in its sub-heavy intent, spicy snare and catchy vocal hooks. The EP is closed out with the expansive, gut-wrenching wobbles of "Misdemeanour", accentuated with a highly intricate two-step rhythm.
Barely a year old and already well-established, Shall Not Fade's bassier sublabel Time Is Now dishes up a plate of deliciously fresh forward beats, from slick R&B vocal pieces to tracks which pack a punch. The six-track compilation features familiar faces from previous releases, with some featuring artists new to the label.
Freddie Baker, releasing under the moniker Bakey, got his first ever label release on Time Is Now last year and has been non-stop since, recently copping a spot on the Rinse FM Garage Hour. His offering for Allstars Vol.2 is a weighty stepper built on a growling bassline. "Dismantle" knocks you off your feet, luckily the second track (a collab between Interplanetary Criminal and Hypho) lays low in the intro before hitting you with a deep, wobbling drop, chopped up vocals skipping across the staccato rhythm. While relative newcomer Interplanetary Criminal (Zachary Bruce) has specialised in pretty upbeat garage, Hypho (Louis Richardson) has been experimenting on the bassier side of club music for nearly a decade, and his dubstep influence shines through in the depth of "Talbot Road". DJ Crisps - Julio Soewandi - closes out the A-side with a comparably bouncy "Ready Salted", dropping a warped bassline for added flavour. Soewandi is joined by South London singer-slash-producer Ell Murphy on "Arms Around", Murphy providing soulful vocals on a slightly dubbed out instrumental - Murphy, one half of UKG duo NITEWORK, lends a proper garage classic vibe to this one.
Joining them on the B-side is London-based Mark Ramsey (AKA Yosh), just a month after the release of his debut EP on Time Is Now. "Over and Out" uses adventurous sound design to build a cheeky roller. Topping off the star-studded comp is Copenhagen's own Main Phase. Adam Schierbeck uses this alias to put out high-octane breakbeat garage and homages to the 90s rave - "Special Occasion" twists and contorts, its monumental bass and MC samples an ode to soundsystem culture.
Four heavy weight steppers sourced from the streets of Leeds, for them dark basements and early morning afters, brought to you from two new bad bwoys on the scene D. Jason & Baby J.
Fiesta Soundsystem shares his debut long play for Time Is Now, delving deep into all things Jungle, Breaks & Bass.
London based producer Fiesta Soundsystem has been rapidly gathering attention over the past few years with a string of acclaimed records for Warehouse Rave. His latest outing ‘Rites Of Passage’ for Time Is Now sees the rising producer release his debut full long play, featuring ten cuts of broken beat bass music.
DJ Crisps serves up four killer UKG cuts for Bristol label Time Is Now’s tenth vinyl outing.
Rotterdam based producer DJ Crisps has been bubbling over the past 12 months with a string of killer twelves, including a massive record for Riz La Teef’s label South London Pressing. His latest outing ‘Diamonds’ EP is some of the rising artists strongest work to date, weighty basslines meet 2-step laden grooves on this killer cut.
After appearing on the label's Time Is Now Allstars compilation, Bristol's own Wilfy D makes his second appearance with Shall Not Fade, adding to their new Time Is Now White label series. The young garage star serves up the smooth and soulful two-step he is known for, plus two killer remixes from Time Is Now family DJ Crisps and Soul Mass Transit System.
"Garage Tools" opens out the EP with staccato sampling and a rumbling sub bass wobble dominating the track, the most headsy on the record while "All About U (3am Mix)" takes on a gentler vibe. Using luscious vocal chops and glimmering synths, Wilfy D creates a kind of garage love song, delicate and soothing. He kicks things up a notch on "Know U Like It", a slice of speed garage that grooves along to an earworm melody.
On the B-side Wilfy D's original "Midnight Shift", a clean classic noughties garage sound palette, is reimagined twice by DJ Crisps and then Soul Mass Transit System. DJ Crisps gives the track a drum and bass edge replete with teeth-gritting sub bass power; Soul Mass close out the record with a dirty up-tempo remix perfect for a soundsystem.
a1. Wilfy D - Garage Tools
a2. Wilfy D - All About U (3am Mix)
a3. Wilfy D - Know U Like It
b1. Wilfy D - Midnight Shift
b2. Wilfy D - Midnight Shift (DJ Crisps Remix)
b3. Wilfy D - Midnight Shift (Soul Mass Transit System Remix)
Shall Not Fade's garage and breaks sublabel, Time is Now, has been a great success in its first year, and now starts 2021 with the first in a series of hand-stamped white label releases. London via Madrid up-and-comer Tower Block Dreams makes his debut for the label with five killer cuts, backed with a weighty remix from Manchester-based garage maestro and Time Is Now regular Interplanetary Criminal.
The A-side is all reliable garage bangers; the opener, "Wicked Ya No" is a rude wobbler for the early hours, with rave piano stabs and a dirty drop. Track two "Keep Coming" loses none of the pace, chopping up playful R'n'B diva vocals to a hard bassline; and the A-side ends with a sidewinding beast of a track in "Soundboy". Think retro synths paired with timestretched ragga vocals - it's unashamedly filthy.
Onto the B-side with gun fingers out for "Truss We", which plays again with ravey stabs and staccato female vocals for an instant dancefloor banger. Tower Block Dreams' last offering on the record is much darker; a forward stepper that cruises along at half-time, creating an ominous atmosphere on which to lead into Interplanetary Criminal's remix of "Wicked Ya Know". This one reimagines the record opener in the producer's trademark high-octane style, smattering hyper breakbeats across the track and turning up the wobble to end the record with a stinker.
Next up for Time Is Now's white label series is Prozak - a Dublin-based producer who has garnered a growing following over the past year. Prozak, aka Zac Curtis, follows up an EP of remixes for Kiwi Rekords with Make Me Feel. The EP is 100% club gear dabbling in classic rave sounds and jungle before masterfully returning to his garage roots.
The title track "Make Me Feel" is equal parts euphoric rave vocalisations and growling bassy ruffage, with stuttering stop-and-start breaks thrown in for good measure that tear through the track - an instant classic that knocks you breathless.
"Missing You" builds from a gentle ebb into wobbling bass-heavy garage, Curtis chopping and changing the vocal samples into unrecognisable snatches with expert production. He then dishes up a glitching speed garage tool with "Negative", still seasoned with a ravey edge that makes the record as a whole feel festival ready.
On the B-side, "Sunshine" is sweet buoyant UKG constructed from neatly cut up vocals that clamour against each other and a skipping irresistible rhythm.
Equally upbeat, "Falling" stands out as the most playful track, with mass appeal and large drops that shakes off some of the dark bassiness of the A-side.
The record closes with "Leave You", contrasting frenetic junglist breaks with blissed out vocals.
It's a dynamic offering from the up-and-comer that shows signs of great things to come.
It was surely a matter of time before Leicester natives, darlings of the UKG revival Y U QT graced Time Is Now with a release. Cooper and Darryl Reid have been repping the Midlands' oft-forgotten 2-step and bassline scene since being picked up by Riz La Teef's South London Press in 2019; since dropping two EPs on Warehouse Rave and getting picked up for a remix by Conducta's award-winning Kiwi Rekords. For Time Is Now, the duo have put together five tracks of dynamic, cheeky garage that takes influence from the full breadth of the genre.
Studded with bangers, the EP kicks off surprisingly gently with "Be Real". Some spaced out keys float over the 2-step rhythm before hitting a sidewinding bassline and the pace picks up in "Keep On Lovin' Me" - a classic speed garage sound you can't help but move to. Cooper and Reed show their ruder side on the frenetic, brass infused "Look Good" and the deeper, Niche-style wobbling bassline on "Chopper". The record closes with "Hardly Keep it Inside"; icy synth and contorted trancey diva vocals make this track feel somehow larger than the others - you could imagine it going off in a cavernous club on a mountainous soundsystem, a swirling bassy number that sucks you in. This headsy release makes your feet want to move in the way only garage can, bringing out some of the best that the UK sound has to offer.
Soul Mass Transit System joins forces with legendary Roll Deep vocalist Killa P for a killer cut on Time Is Now .
Mysterious producer Soul Mass Transit System has been pumping out some serious twelves this year, with killer cuts on labels such as Warehouse Rave, Time Is Now & Rhythm & Vibe . His latest outing ‘Blocked’ EP is the rising producers heaviest work to date, lead track ‘Blocked’ featuring legendary ex Roll Deep member Killa P does some serious damage, backed with three rolling UKG cuts of groovers and movers, best played loud.
a1. Soul Mass Transit System - Blocked ft. Killa P
Freedom is the debut EP from South East London vocalist + DJ Ell Murphy for Shall Not Fade sub-label Time Is Now. The EP sees Ell collaborating with 5 acclaimed producers in the UKG scene; DJ Crisps, Stones Taro, Highrise, Picasso & Tuff Trax; each one hand-picked by Ell to bring their unique production style to the release; and made entirely during lockdown over the past year, working remotely with the producers based in Rotterdam, Australia, Japan & London.
Mancunian genre-bender Interplanetary Criminal comes back for more on Shall Not Fade sublabel Time Is Now; In My Arms EP makes his third full release on the imprint. This time round, he shares four carefree rave-influenced garage pieces topped off with a rolling drum and bass remix from breakbeat master Coco Bryce.
Much like his previous releases - spanning Time Is Now, Sneaker Social Club, Banoffee Pies and more - these tracks feel mildly tongue-in-cheek. The upbeat title track is skippy, summery garage that adds a twist of organ to add some playful flavour. "Momofuku" utilises cartoon-villain vocal samples for a similar effect, multilayered and crackling with ear candy but with a deep bass that builds through the rest of the record.
Into the B-side, "Opulence" focuses on this darker edge, echoing and growling with a sub bass that begs to be blasted through a towering sound system. "Let Loose" caps off the record in style, a rattling snare giving way to large house stabs that glimmer over swells of bass - a hands-in-the-air rave track.
Coco Bryce's reimagining of the title track sees it transformed into a deep and gritty drum and bass roller with a drop as powerful as a gunshot.
a1. Interplanetary Criminal - In My Arms
a2. Interplanetary Criminal - Momofuku
b1. Interplanetary Criminal - Opulence
b2. Interplanetary Criminal - Let Loose
b3. Interplanetary Criminal - In My Arms (Coco Bryce remix)
Long time friends and collaborators DJ Swagger & DJ AEDIDIAS join forces on their first full length collaborative vinyl EP, showcasing their love of UK Garage. This killer four track dance disc delves deep into all things feel good and fun, 2-step laden drum sequences meet catchy vocal hooks and pulsating bass tones.
UK based producer MoreNight has been making waves over the past 12 months with killer collaborations with legendary grime vocalists Footsie & Manga, as well featuring on a weighty compilation for Conducta’s imprint Kiwi Records. His debut full length vinyl EP ‘Silvia’ is the exciting young producers finest work to date & paves the way for what is set to be a big future for this talented artist.
Yosh joins the Time Is Now family serving up five bass driven, breaks heavy cuts. London based producer Yosh has been making some serious movements over the past 12 months with a string of killer sold out twelves for Vivid Recordings . His latest outing sees him unleash five weighty bass heavy tracks for Shall Not Fade sub-label Time Is Now, watch your bass bins.
Time Is Now assembles an all star lineup for the labels first various artist release . The six track ‘allstars’ record features contributors from previous Time Is Now release artists, as well as artists releasing on the label in the future.
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