James Bangura joins Shall Not Fade with four raw, spiritual and deeply physical house cuts rooted in Chicago, Detroit and machine-driven club culture.
James Bangura has built a reputation as one of the most versatile and instinctive producers operating in the space between house, techno, jungle and broken club forms. With previous releases on Mister Saturday Night, !K7 and Floorspeed, alongside work as part of Black Rave Culture and Groovedeep, the Washington DC artist has consistently shown an ability to understand the roots of a sound while reshaping it through his own perspective.
His debut for Shall Not Fade, “Jack Sermon”, feels like a perfect meeting point between artist and label. Across four tracks, Bangura explores the spiritual, physical and machine-driven language of house music, delivering a record that feels raw, immediate and full of intent.
The title track “Jack Sermon” opens with a vocal that gets straight to the heart of the matter: “House is the religion, and the DJ is my deacon, but the music is my God.” From there, Bangura builds a jacking Chicago-inspired groove around dusty dub chords, rugged drums and a sense of movement that feels both devotional and functional. It is stripped back, powerful and completely locked in, the kind of record that feels destined to become a serious club moment.
“Scat Pack” shifts the pressure towards drums and percussion, with thunderous kicks, chopped vocal fragments and a raw New York energy running through the track. There is a toughness here that nods towards techno, but the swing, attitude and vocal energy keep it firmly connected to house music’s dancefloor history.
On the flip, “Funk To Berlin” dives deeper. Dub techno chords, heavy subs and sharp rhythmic programming create a track that balances atmosphere with muscle. It feels like a conversation between classic Berlin depth and the jacking instincts of American house, resulting in one of the EP’s most hypnotic moments.
Closing track “The Green Line” pushes further into late-night territory, combining skittering synth movement, airy pads and a spiralling vocal motif into a groove that sits beautifully between house and techno. It is immersive, slightly disorientating and full of subtle tension, providing a fitting finale to a release built around motion, mood and instinct.
What makes “Jack Sermon” so compelling is Bangura’s refusal to treat house music as a fixed form. Instead, he approaches it as a living language, full of history, rhythm, spirit and possibility. Every track feels rooted in tradition, yet none of them feel stuck in the past.
Raw, honest and deeply effective, this is a standout Shall Not Fade release from an artist who continues to move with purpose.
Release Date: 30 July 2026, pre order here.
Label: Shall Not Fade
Format: 12″ / Digital