Critical Impact

Solid foundations are an essential part of any career yet they are often overlooked in the ‘here today, gone tomorrow’ world of dance music. That’s why 27-year-old William Heath has been putting in work behind the scenes for years. Firstly, behind the counter of the Menace record shop in Winsor. Secondly, working for Ray Keith on ATM magazine and Dread recordings. Then, while working with, as part of legendary Movement night and the genre-defining V Recordings, Bryan Gee gave Will the push to move from behind the decks and to start producing. His early tracks were championed by the likes of Fabio and Grooverider and became ‘Rewind Tune Of The Week’ several times. Less than a year later ‘Will.I.Aint’ burst onto the scene with ‘Small Fry’ on Twisted Individual’s Zombie label. This was soon followed by the anthem ‘Shining’ on Formation Recordings, a dance destroyer that found its way into the box of every A-list DJ you care to think of. Never one to remain static, the ‘Critical Impact’ alias was born and a new style along with it. This soulful yet razor sharp aesthetic quickly grabbed the attention of Goldie who signed his collaborative tune ‘Translation’ (with Komonazmuk) to the mighty Metalheadz label and also included it on his landmark FabricLive mix CD. Relocating from his native London to the D&B mecca of Bristol, Will linked up with Jungle legend DJ Die and began working on tracks, the best of which were signed by Die to his Clearskyz label, and ‘Only Girl’/Chinese Burns’ shot straight to the top of the Drum N Bass charts on the day of release. A force to be reckoned with both on the decks and on the buttons, all this is just the beginning for Critical Impact, a name you will be seeing on the top of line-ups for years to come.