Drum & Bass is a genre that is constantly changing and evolving and many talented producers across the world are championing the sound to new heights.
And while the sounds of the genre come and go, the labels releasing the music remain constant. So let's dive into which labels are doing the best work this year and helping to push the genre forward in new and exciting ways.
To do this, we say down with UK-based producer and DJ Night Shift to discover which are the top labels defining the sound right now. Whether you're an up-and-coming producer looking for new labels to send music to or simply a devoted fan looking for quality D&B that's the best of the best, Night Shift has you covered.
Stream Night Shift's Latest Single Below
And what makes Night Shift so qualified to curate these best labels? Let me break it down for you...
From his early roots learning the shop floor at Vinyl Mania to progressing as a pirate radio DJ, Nicky D’Silva aka Night Shift has always hit the ground running. After winning various awards and touring clubs and festivals across the globe, he began working on production for the likes of Little Mix, Lethal B, and Ellie Goulding before deciding to concentrate on his Night Shift project.
His latest single is a fantastic DnB roller whose minimalistic approach to composition allows for the airy and enchanting vocals to shine on top of the groove. It's punchy, groovy, and has everything you'd expect from this master-at-his-craft.
V Recordings
Everything about V - the music, the logo, etc - is iconic.
I grew up going to Movement at Bar Rhumba listening to people like Bryan Gee, Artificial Intelligence, and Ruffstuff and I used to do vocal engineering for the label...
Those nights were a religious man! The sounds I heard there in the mid-2000s inspired my most recent single, Crazy About You (ft. Leo Wood).
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BeatsBassLife
I've got to mention the label that I'm putting my album out on haven't I?! I've known the Sigma guys for a long time and they have so much experience in the music industry so it felt really natural to jump on board when they launched the label.
I'm loving working with them and feel like we're all on a journey together.
DeVice
Rene La Vice has done a brilliant job representing DnB on BBC Radio 1 for the last 5 years. The thing I liked about his radio show is that he wasn't scared of giving a chance to upcoming artists and his label reflects this ethos.
I've got a remix coming out soon on DeVice and I'm really proud to be able to work with such a forward-thinking label.
Symmetry
Break (the DnB DJ) is the producer’s producer. He raised the bar for production levels with his clean, instantly recognizable sound. He is sick and so are the artists and tunes he supports on his label, Symmetry.
They don’t release much but it’s definitely a case of quality over quantity. 2016 saw the release of “10 years of Symmetry” which featured one of my favorite DnB tunes - Free Your Mind ft. Singing Fats (Break Remix)...Go check it!
Born On Road
I’ve known Kelvin [aka Kelvin 373] for years and have followed his journey from when he was 16 (when I used to get him into nights I was DJing in Spain!) to him now co-owning one of the hottest labels in DnB/Jungle in the last few years, Born On Road.
They are smashing it bringing in new talents such as Gray and A Little Sound and their good-vibes jungle sound is defining the next generation of DnB-loving festival goers.