Skam Records is an independent
electronic music
Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...
record label
"Big Three" music labels
A record label or record company is a brand or trademark of Sound recording and reproduction, music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a Music publisher, ...
based in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, founded by
Andy Maddocks around 1990.
Skam also runs a smaller sub-label called 33.
History
Skam's first 12-inch single was ''
Lego Feet'' by Lego Feet (Sean Booth and Rob Brown, later known as
Autechre
Autechre ( ) are an English electronic music duo consisting of Rob Brown and Sean Booth, both from Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1987, they are among the best known acts signed to UK electronic label Warp Records, through which all o ...
).
The label followed with two 12" records from
Gescom
Gescom is an electronic music project based in the UK with close ties to the electronic duo Autechre.
Stylistically, the music of Gescom is closer to electronic dance music, acid techno, and industrial music than Autechre's, with the exceptio ...
, a project whose members vary between each release. Other early Skam releases came from Freeform (Simon Pyke),
Bola,
Jega,
Team Doyobi,
Wevie Stonder, E.Stonji (Jens Döring), and
Boards of Canada
Boards of Canada are a Scottish electronic music duo consisting of the brothers Mike Sandison and Marcus Eoin. Signing first to Skam Records, Skam followed by Warp (record label), Warp Records in the 1990s, they received recognition following th ...
.
Boards of Canada's ''
Hi Scores
''Hi Scores'' is an EP by Scottish electronic music duo Boards of Canada. It was released by Skam Records in 1996. It peaked at number 34 on the UK Dance Albums Chart in 2006. "Turquoise Hexagon Sun" would later appear on the duo's 1998 debut ...
'' EP, and Gescom's ''Keynell'' and ''Lego Feet''
have been re-pressed or reissued.
Skam's first full-length LP releases were in 1998 with ''Soup'' by Bola
and ''
Music Has the Right to Children
''Music Has the Right to Children'' is the debut studio album by Scottish electronic music duo Boards of Canada, released on 20 April 1998 in the United Kingdom by Warp (record label), Warp and Skam Records and in the United States by Matador Rec ...
'' by Boards of Canada,
the latter being jointly released with
Warp Records
Warp Records is a British independent record label that specialises in Electronic music, electronic, indie rock and experimental music. It was founded in Sheffield in 1989 by Steve Beckett, Robert Mitchell and Robert Gordon. It has released recor ...
.
A recurring feature on the packaging of Skam releases is the title of the album printed in
braille
Braille ( , ) is a Tactile alphabet, tactile writing system used by blindness, blind or visually impaired people. It can be read either on embossed paper or by using refreshable braille displays that connect to computers and smartphone device ...
.
Series releases
Skam makes multiple series of record releases within the label, all of which are an anagram of "SKAM". The first three records were produced in conjunction with German duo
Musik Aus Strom
Musik may refer to:
Music
*''Die Musik'' (1901–1943), a German music magazine
* ''Musik'' (album), the second studio album by Richie Hawtin
*Musik (musical), the musical written by Jonathan Harvey and Pet Shop Boys
*Musik (song), the Austrian en ...
, and the latter two by Skam alone.
Up until the 2004 release of
Mr 76ix's ''Hits of 76ix,'' the label has produced a 7" single along with each full-length album; the 7" catalogue numbers begin with the letters "KMAS". Skam has since stated on its website that future KMAS releases will feature purely exclusive tracks to complement full-length recordings of the same number.
In 2001, Skam began the "SMAK" series. Each SMAK 12" showcased two artists, one per record side. Some SMAK artists, like Quinoline Yellow, have gone on to become full Skam musicians.
NMB Allstars ("North Manchester Bedroom Allstars") went on to become part of the sublabel 33, which Skam has referred to as "a part of the family." Others, like
Ola Bergman and
Posthuman
Posthuman or post-human is a concept originating in the fields of science fiction, futurology, contemporary art, and philosophy that means a person or entity that exists in a state beyond being human. The concept aims at addressing a variety of ...
went on to set up their own record labels: New Speak and
Seed Records, respectively.
Made
Made or MADE may refer to:
Entertainment Film
* ''Made'' (1972 film), United Kingdom
* ''Made'' (2001 film), United States Music
* ''Made'' (Big Bang album), 2016
* ''Made'' (Hawk Nelson album), 2013
* ''Made'' (Scarface album), 2007
*'' M.A.D.E. ...
, are known for their live acts. In October 2004, Skam began the "AMKS" series with ''Supermechamaximegamegablast'' by
Mortal and Chemist, which is, as the catalogue number may suggest, a mix.
Reception
Tim Haslett wrote of Skam in the October 1997 issue of ''
CMJ New Music Monthly
CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events, online media company and a distributor of up and coming music CDs, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music ...
:''
"It looked for a while as though the minimalist electronic movement had simply disappeared into the valley of the self-indulgent and repetitive. The monotonous sound of a 909 kick drum and high-hat was really beginning to wear on the nerves of even the most committed techheads. Enter the Manchester-based Skam label, which has single-handedly invigorated a minimal techno sound that's not indebted to breakbeats or drum-and-bass. Having released early tracks by cult favorites Gescom and the Boards Of Canada, the Skam imprint has continued to thrive at the periphery of the crepuscular world of underground techno."
In the same magazine in March 1999, Haslett wrote that Skam:
"is notorious for its elusiveness, its tendency to make available only tiny quantities of each release. This might seem an elitist marketing move, an attempt to restrict the audience, but the Skam folks spend so much attention to detail in artwork and sound quality that it's easy to forgive them."
Artists past and present
See also
*
List of record labels
File:Alvinoreyguitarboogie.jpg
File:AmMusicBunk78.jpg
File:Bingola1011b.jpg
Lists of record labels cover record labels, brands or trademarks associated with marketing of music recordings and music videos. The lists are organized alphabetically, ...
*
List of independent UK record labels
This is a list of notable independent record labels based in the United Kingdom.
* __NOTOC__
0-9
* 2 Tone Records
* 3 Beat Records
* 4AD
A
* Acid Jazz Records
* Alcopop! Records
* All Saints Records
* Ambush Reality
* Angel A ...
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
English record labels
British independent record labels
Record labels established in 1990
Music in Manchester
Companies based in Manchester
Electronic music record labels