Jon E Cash - Sublow [Sneaker Social Club]

Rare are the records that really moved music forward in ways never seen before. This collection of tunes from Jon E Cash is one of those, ushering in a movement that still runs deep in the UK bass underground today.

Without Cash's sublow takes on UKG there'd arguably be no grime, no drill, none of that. A hiphop producer at heart, Cash started putting out white labels of this new sound around 99/2000, an antidote to the poppier, R&B led UK Garage that was starting to clog up the charts at the time. Eventually starting his own Black Ops imprint and picking up plays on pirate radio and at events on the fringes of the scene it was only a matter of time before people started paying attention, and the likes of EZ and Slimzee bought the tunes to a wider audience.

This popularity led Cash to become disillusioned with the scene, as a glut of new tunes started sticking to a tried-and-tested formula, and a OFCOM enforced ban from radio meant Cash called time on the whole Black Ops project.

Curated by the dons at Sneaker Social Club, Sublow brings together twelve essential Cash plates, split over four sides so there's plenty of room for the bass to rumble. Foundational.