Shall Not Fade is one of the purveyors of fine fayre when it comes to laying down a delicious assortment of vibes, its output serving up a real eclectic selection and initiating “kid in a candy shop” behaviour when checking its array of releases. Adding to an already flavoursome audio menu is the Me & You EP, the third release for the label courtesy of DJOKO, aka Cologne’s own Johannes Kolter. A four-tracker that zips along with brilliant energy and a brightness that’s enough to blind you, DJOKO is very much in summer-mode with this release.
The title track, Me & You, is a quick-paced, synth-led, bouncy jam, with skippy beats underpinned by layers of a neat bassline, warm pads and sizzling keys, this will sound absolutely sensational in the sunshine, so let’s hope the rays are strong at this year’s festivals!
Next is Take Me Back is a little more stripped-back in its delivery, but no less tasty, a percussive workout and chuggy bass nestled behind a nagging key riff and some excellent synths that develop as the track progresses.
Odyssey, the EP’s third track, tips its cap to the early/mid 90s with its stabby flow, again combining a great warmth, which is ever-present throughout the track and the EP as a whole. This time a male vocal refrain tells us it “feels so good” and who are we to argue? It’s like getting a golden ticket to an audio version of Charlie & The Chocolate Factory, where everything is sweet and so wonderfully tempting to the pallette.
Closing the EP, we find the slightly more chilled, but equally brilliant and probably DJOKO’s best track on the EP, namely ‚Lost In Time. Deeper than the previous three cuts, but still shrouded in a glorious glow, dubby keys weave in and out over the low rolling bass, with hints of spoken French word adding to the overall beauty of the track. A superb way to round off the EP and another winner from both the Shall Not Fade stable and DJOKO himself.
Torture the Artist 