Tom Ravenscroft

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Riot fire must not stop the music

The destroyed Pias warehouse contained recordings of some of the UK's best independent music.

As some of you may know, during this week's horrific riots across the UK, a SonyDADC warehouse that stores the physical distribution for Pias was burned to the ground and, among it, the stock of huge swaths of independent record labels. The list of labels is frankly extraordinary -- between them, they have provided a large proportion of the joy I have experienced since I first started buying music and the thought that so many may of them, in one act of crazed stupidity, have lost so much, is deeply upsetting.

In the light of the fact -- that, in many cases, there may be hardly any physical releases left, it has been suggested that the best way people can help is by buying digital releases from those labels affected. Here are some suggestions of things you might like: Zomby, Dedication (4AD); Surgeon, Muggerscum Out (Soma); The Fruit Tree Foundation (Chemikal Underground Records); Thurston Moore, Demolished Thoughts (Matador); Let's Wrestle, Nursing Home (Full Time Hobby); Other Lives, For 12 (Pias Recordings); Pete and the Pirates, Half Moon Street (Stolen Recordings); Tim Key, Tim Key (Angular Recording Corporation); Yamasuki, Yama Yama (Finders Keepers). You should, strictly speaking, own all of these already -- but, in case you don't, now is a good time to replenish your music collection and help support some of the people that make the music in this country so very awesome.

4 comments

C Baker's picture

I'm at the wrong end of my thirties to be up on any of this music. However, having worked in a record store selling many independent labels five years ago, I'm sorry to hear about this situation. Independent record labels are a force for good in this country, both artistically (there is life beyond the x factor in music) and economically, as i think the industry has great potential to make money.

I hope the labels can recover, especially with their marketing timing and lost stock etc as much money and effort goes in to this.

So all the best for the independent labels. My last old fogie plea to today's yoof- is stop dressing like ali G and mc hammer or the guys out of the film gansters paradise. I know that economic hardship can make clothing choices limited. But it really disappoints me to see some of the looters of today's yoof, dressed in the same clothes their dads were wearing in the 80's. And i don't mean the brief comeback of illuminous colours that hit top shop- but the ganster look of the 1980's. It's 2011, not 1985. Hoodies and slow slung jeans are so yesterday- get a new look.

C Baker's picture

'low' slung- typo.

Christy Quinn's picture

OH GOD NOT THE NEW ZOMBY ALBUM

Or I could just download it, I suppose.

rayppoklop's picture

Bit of a disaster -- at a time when the smaller labels are suffering already. I hope this doesn't affect when I can get hold of the new Stephen Malkmus record on flammable vinyl, meanwhile.

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