DOUBLE 10″ September 23rd 1999 was a monumental day for the Canadian electronic community… or at least should have been This was the day that the first Cynosure Recordings release, entitled “the focal point", was launched out into the world. Comprising a combination of deep minimal house and jackin techno the record was steadfastly ignored and overlooked by the international techno community at large, setting a precedent and laying a course that the label has embraced as it’s burden for just over 10 years now. Though Cynosure has provided a steady stream of fodder for the discerning DJ every few months since, music journalists the world over have by and large refused to mention it. No label profiles, no formal mention of collective works, and sadly no one hit wonders have graced the catalog. Conversely, the elite taste makers which make up the crème de la crème of the underground DJ community have continually charted and dropped track after track the world over . A strange phenomenon certain to boggle the mind of cultural theorists for years to come.Admittedly the labels A&R choices have always gone against the grain of the populous dance music norm. Though he could be a accused of many things, “band wagon jumper” is certainly not a tag which label head Mike Shannon could wear comfortably or honestly. A devastatingly talented DJ in his own right, he has chosen to be an example both with his sets and the label of the most uncompromising possibilities that dance music has to offer. Never following, always leading, the rarest of a modus operandi. As such it seems all too fitting after a decade of living in the shadows that Shannon, the master of the piss take and techno’s Prince of cats, should choose to deliver the label anthem “Under the Radar". Featuring vocals by up and coming Berlin based singer Fadila, and remixes from Ricardo Villalobos, Deadbeat, Rozzo of Mountain People, Massi DL, and Wasted Chicago Youth (aka Justin Long and Masi), this celebrato


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Laurent Garnier: “Absolutely awesome original mix by Mike - Full radio and club support - LOOOOVE THIS ”
Partysan - Christian Kausch: “Auf Cynosure ist immer Verlaß! Und so freut man sich auch immer wie ein Schnitzel, wenn man den ersten Takt einer neuen Produktion dieses Labels hört. Da muß ich zuerst von Mike Shannons Original Mix erzählen, der mich samt meiner Flasche Wein gerade ordentlich flasht. Der Unterbau funkt und groovet, während Sängerin Fadila kräftigst vor sich hin souled. Für mich schon ein Meisterstück. Ganz schwierig, hierbei noch eine Faser zu erkennen, die man im Rahmen eines Remixes noch sinnvoll weiterspinnen kann. Ein Aufgabe für Fachmann Ricardo Villalobos, der es tatsächlich geschafft hat, der Grundphilosophie des Tracks noch mehr Trockenheit und Beständigkeit zu geben. Weiteres großartiges Werk. Und Deadbeat setzt am Ende auch noch mal eins drauf, wird unruhiger im Bass, aber offener in der Weite und begeistert nochmals ungemein. Die ganzen Digital Bonus Versionen hätte man sich aber auf jeden Fall sparen sollen, da diese leider alles vorhergehende mit ihrem Standard schlicht entzaubern. ”
Resident Advisor - Sam Louis: “Mike Shannon's Cynosure may not be known for diva vocalists, but ten years will soften any label's heart just a little bit. "Under the Radar" sees Shannon collaborating with Berlin-based singer Fadila, who says her piece four separate times on vinyl with very different backings. Shannon's mix is a piece of rubbery tech house that eventually swells to include shimmering keys which allow for Fadila to float in and out of radar range. Ricardo Villalobos, meanwhile, turns in a remake that—at first, at least—seems unremarkable until he switches over the snare to a slimmer version for the second half and similarly gives only a little help to Fadila, making her the haunting center of attention. On the flip, Deadbeat does the honors providing a typically dub-wise take on the original. While the sound palette is similar to much of what Deadbeat offers in his usual work, there is an urgency that is often absent from his purposefully drifting dub. Here he means business, pushing things forward and dragging Fadila along with him. Closing things out, Rozzo of Mountain People does what he knows best, drafting a bouncier house take on the original, one that is happy to add in its own deep bassline and keys. It's the least successful of the three; neither properly ebullient nor restrained, it carves out a middle ground somewhere in the region of mediocre. Nonetheless, with three other versions worth a spin, you'll likely find a mix to play here with no problem at all. ”