House Ain't Dead

So here the 10th anniversary instalment of Faith’s view on the current state of the music we call House. When Faith first started out around 1999, the London clubbing scene was a rather barren place for house heads. Only outposts such as Lazy Dog, Soulsonic and Vertigo were really flying the flag for cutting edge house music. Shoreditch was still a place in Essex in between Ilford and Harold Hill and most people stayed in on Sundays and watched Antiques Roadshow.

Today we have a huge scene that lasts from Thursday night to Monday lunchtime and Shoreditch has been moved to the wrong end of Bethnal Green. You can meet clubbers from every nation in the world, all dancing to fabulous international DJs in equally fab pre parties, after parties, after-after parties and occasionally at the actual party itself… which of course most hip dancers never dream of attending. The music that rocks these parties and clubs no longer comes from xtra large yanks, but from weird exotic countries like Chile, France and even Germany – it seems American’s stopped making house music around 2003 when they decided the hot sauce business was a much better option than playing ‘classics’ to hen parties in Barry Island .

On this CD you get Chicago-style sleaze from Prosumer who shows that the Europeans haven’t lost their love for that 80’s Trax-style sound and the wonderful Pepe Bradock, who once again proves that house can be thoughtful and full of passion. Plus loads of newies and a few oldies that you might have danced around wearing Nike Rifts and Evisu jeans back in the day sporting a Hoxton finn. All in all it’s OUR look and nod of thanks to the music we call house, and a music and lifestyle that has shaped us over the last 20 years. While the broadsheets and Sunday supplements are looking back to 1988 and the silly clothes we wore for about 6 weeks, the real house heads are still out dancing in bizarre hovels in parts of London that have yet to be given the title of the ‘new Shoredtich’ and long may that real acid house attitude last.