The Label Fable

WARP Almost not worthy of inclusion on account of some singularly poor packaging. However, a look at a collection of my favourite records from the past five years would reveal Warp as important contenders. I tried to suggest at the beginning the way in which I totally lost interest for a while in football, or to me more precise I became too immersed in other things. That was the end of the ‘80s. So, I understand why people miss out on a particular phase of music and try to catch up at a later date. The extreme example of that is Steve Davis spending his youth obsessed with snooker but now spending a fortune on soul obscurities. So, again, there was a time at the end of the ‘80s/early ‘90s when money was scarce and I did not buy many current records. Sure, I spent ages rummaging around in charity shops and second hand record bargain bins and unearthed all sorts of treasures yet doubtlessly missed out on a lot along the way. So when I started earning again I made a vow to concentrate on buying new releases. Which was not too difficult, for that was the time of Warp’s Artificial Intelligence Electronic Listening series with Black Dog’s Bytes, Autechre’s Incunabula, Speedy J’s Ginger. Hugely important records, which triggered my imagination, and still count. Since then Warp have released a significant number of excellent records, particularly the subsequent Autechre works and the Sabres Of Paradise. I would contend that the Black Dog’s Spanners was as eagerly anticipated in this household as anything by The Jam and that The Oil Zone by Speedy J is as great as anything by the Go-Betweens. Other essentials come care of Red Snapper and Freeform while recent low-key releases by Broadcast and Plaid maintain the high standard.

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