Meanwhile, ‘Now Or Never’ reads with a clear narrative thread from the first bar to the last. It is high-impact and club-focused, but detailed enough to reward close listening. As a result, the record works as much for the warehouse as for the headphones. Crucially, it is also his own work end to end. Justin wrote and produced every track, wrote and sang many of the lyrics himself, and co-created the visual world built around the album alongside Chase Yaws and Sadler Milbrath.
The album follows his 2022 UKF debut ‘Existential’. However, where that record explored the contrast between life’s tragedies and harmonies, ‘Now Or Never’ treats passion as something carried through time. Consequently, each track stands for a different expression of it, from resistance and attraction to discovery, dance, healing, love and self-realisation. In turn, it cements his standing as one of the US artists actively defining North American drum & bass.
At a moment when artificial intelligence is reshaping how records get made, Justin Hawkes kept the entire project human-created, from the audio to the artwork. “‘Now or Never’ captures a complete cycle of time and transcendence; it narrates a continuous path of transformation within my life,” he said. “In this turning point aeon of artificial intelligence, I chose explicitly to use human-only creative, and intentionally directed and created all audio, text, photo and video artwork with the help and eyes of Chase Yaws and Sadler Milbrath.”
The album lands after its earlier reveal via ‘Stomp’ and Drumcaste Collective. ‘Now Or Never’ is streaming now on all platforms.
Purchases made through our links may earn us a small commission — at no extra cost to you.
