s w e e t b e a t s
june.20.2003 - #1174
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album : Branches and Routes
year : 2003
label : Fatcat Records
genre : Lo-Fi
catalogue : FATCD23
url : www.fat-cat.co.uk
quality : CD 192k HQ True Stereo
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Cd1
01.David Grubbs - Transom 04:21
02.Mice Parade - Pursuant to the Vibe 06:09
03.Mum - Green Grass of Tunnel 04:55
04.Process - E1 05:44
05.Kid 606 - Die in California 02:35
06.Set Fire to Flames - Steal Compass; Drive North; Disappear 06:08
07.Bjork Mit Funkstorung - All is Full of Love 05:24
08.Transient Waves - Cruise Control 03:10
09.Duplo Remote - Cusp 02:20
10.Matmos - Freak N You 04:57
11.Grain - Untitled 3 06:20
12.Stromba - Invisible Stink 04:50
13.Seen - Slow Slow Slow 06:05
Cd2
01.Sigur Ros - Eg Mun Laeknast! 02:44
02.Fennesz - Badminton Girl 04:04
03.Drowsy - Bright Dawn 02:42
04.Crescent - Spring 06:34
05.Team Doyobi - E5 03:42
06.Com.A - Radio Squelch Crush Land 07:03
07.Dorine Muraille - DopΘes 03:36
08.The Dylan Group - Avila 06:27
09.Programme - N'importe Quoi Pour N'importe Qui 02:40
10.Party of One - Shotgun Funeral 02:47
11.Xinlisupreme - Murder License 04:51
12.Giddy Motors - Baddie Who? 02:00
13.Black Dice - Things Will Never Be the Same 09:54
14.Sylvain Chauveau - MinΘral 03:17
27 tracks | 125:19 min | 172,4 MB
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æBranches and RoutesÆ is a stunning and adventurous compilation
that stretches its scope across the six years of FatCatÆs existence
as a label. Serving as a neat introduction to FatCat, the
compilation showcases material from the labelÆs past, present and
future. As well as the inclusion of such classic tracks as M·mÆs
æGreen Grass Of TunnelÆ, Funkst÷rungÆs remix of Bj÷rkÆs æAll Is
Full Of LoveÆ, Set Fire To FlamesÆ æSteal Compass?Æ, and MatmosÆ
æFreak N YouÆ, there are unreleased exclusive tracks from Sigur
R≤s, Drowsy and Stromba, as well as forthcoming ones from Crescent,
HiM, and Party Of One.
With 27 tracks running over 2 hours, the compilation offers great
value, and witnesses the broad diversity of sounds, styles and
approaches that FatCat and its imprints (Splinter Series / 130701 /
Split Series / 7ö Series / E-RMX) have nurtured: from divergent
forms of electronica to all manner of post-rock construction;
downtempo breaks to minimal techno; sparse piano compositions to
explosive noise outbursts and angular punk pop / funk.
Fired by an enthusiasm for the sounds then emerging from Detroit
and Chicago, FatCat began life in 1990 as a tiny independent record
store in the London satellite town of Crawley. Ending up in a
small, dimly-lit basement in Covent Garden, the shop rapidly grew
to gain a strong reputation as one of the countryÆs finest outlets
for electronic music. Regular visitors to the shop included the
likes of Jeff Mills, Juan Atkins, Ritchie Hawtin, Andy Weatherall,
Steve Bicknell, Aphex Twin, etc. FatCat were Derrick MayÆs
supporting DJs of choice during his residency at the Ministry Of
Sound, whilst FatCatÆs Alex Knight drove the Underground Resistance
tour bus during their UK visit, and was a regular DJ at LondonÆs
legendary Lost, Sabresonic and Blood Sugar clubs.
Besides being a major supporter of the techno and house scenes,
FatCat became strongly associated as an early champion of the UK
electronica scene that began to emerge in the early æ90s. It was
one of the first shops to really push artists like Black Dog, B12,
Stasis, and Autechre, and labels like Eevolute, Rephlex and Warp.
Beyond this continually developing knowledge and love of music,
there were strong ethics and beliefs fostered in the shop, which
have continued to guide and inform the activities of the label.
Avoiding any culture of elitism or snobbery, everyone was welcomed
in and treated as equal, regardless of whether you wre some big
name producer or just a regular music fan. The shop continually
made a strong point to support and encourage emerging or unknown
artists and producers, stocking CDRs, mixtapes and fanzines,
passing on information, attempting to turn people on to new artists
and to the music that excited and inspired us. We have tried to
continue building the label around these attitudes: enthusiasm,
integrity, honesty, support and respect?
The very first FatCat release (the æEVAÆ EP by Japanese producer
Web) saw light of day in November 1996, yet it wasnÆt until the
shop was forced to close in August 1997 that the label was properly
activated. Initially given space under the shelter of One little
Indian (both Bjork and OLI owner Derek Birkett were regularly shop
customers), we spent our first year releasing a stream of 12ö
singles that quickly debunked the popular conception that FatCat
would continue life after the shop as a techno label. From the
opening Grain 12ö to Various Artists, Live Human and Transient
Waves the label began to open up a more challenging and
genre-defying space for itself. From the start it was always our
intention to escape the fixity of any easily identifiable label
sound / style, and to instead open out a more adventurous and
broad-ranging spectrum of music. These early singles were packaged
in very minimal plain white sleeves, each bearing a small, simple
hand stamp with the artist name, title and catalogue number û no
snazzy photos, no expensive design work, just a simple belief that
the music should speak for itself. This spartan aesthetic remained
even for the Funkstorung remix of Bjork, which would have made it
into the UK top 40 had the æartworkÆ included a barcode. This early
period also saw the launch of the Split Series, with initial
releases from V/Vm / Third Eye Foundation and Gescom / Foehn
arriving in labour-intensive hand-drilled and numbered sleeves (the
number of holes drilled denoting the releaseÆs position in the
series) and opening out very different sounds / styles within the
space of a single 12ö.
None of us had ever run or worked for a label before (or even
designed artwork on a PC) and this was a period of rapid learning
and numerous mistakes. In 1998, FatCat left the One little Indian
organisation and went fully independent. Having moved from our tiny
OLI office in Battersea to Old Street (yet still working from a
single shared PC), we began to release the first FatCat albums, and
an attempt to build up an initial roster of artists û from the
narcotic guitar haze of Transient Waves to the improvised hiphop
group Live Human or the highly original post-rock of Mice Parade to
the pulsing, minimalist electronica of Process.
In February 1998, whilst DJ-ing at a party in an aircraft hangar in
Rejkyavik, we stumbled upon an amazing, then unkown Icelandic group
called Sigur R≤s who were playing live supporting GusGus. Six
months later, we released an EP (æSvefn-G-EnglarÆ) by the band
which rapidly gained huge attention, with a whole host of big
labels suddenly crawling out of the woodwork and attempting to woo
the band with the offer of huge advances. This sudden introduction
to the business practices of the majors was a real eye-opener, but
thankfully our relationship with the band was solid enough that
they decided to stick with FatCat, although it became clear that we
would need to seek outside funding to enable us to operate at the
level that the band required. After discussions with a number of
distributors and bigger labels, we decided that our best option was
a deal with a distribution company, and so from June 2000 we
entered into a joint venture relationship with PIAS, an independent
distribution network. It has been a long and at times arduous path,
from us operating as a totally autonomous unit with next to no
budget or cashflow, to a relationship that has required continual
maintenance and organisation, and that has allowed us to expand the
scope of our activities, and take the label to another level. Our
level of creative autonomy has never been called into question, and
we have continued to release a wide range of challenging and
innovative music.
The amazing success of Sigur R≤s left the label in a very strange
position. On the one hand, we had that band selling huge numbers of
records (we recently received our first ever silver disc for UK
sales of æAgaetis ByrjunÆ), packing out large venues and touring
with Radiohead, and at the other end of the spectrum, we were
releasing and struggling to sell split 12ös of computer noise or
putting on electronic events and split series parties that were
struggling to attract 50 people. Over the past couple of years, we
have striven to reduce this gap, to better organise ourselves and
the various channels we operate through, and to push the whole
label forwards. In early 2001, we bought a live-work space in
Brighton, where the office has since been based. Having trailed
them for over a year, another Icelandic band, M·m, were signed in
the same year, and have proved another great success for the label.
In the same period we have also consolidated our roster with the
inclusion of artists like David Grubbs, Set Fire To Flames, Giddy
Motors, Black Dice, Xinlisupreme, and HiM.
FatCat has always championed good, independent creativity, helping
small artists and labels with mailouts and advice, releasing a CD
of previously unreleased / unsigned artists, and hosting MP3s by
new artists on the demo / DIY section of our website û an area
where we also curated a wealth of contact details and information
about the whole process of releasing your own music û from
mastering, manufacturing and distribution to case studies of other
small labels, and links to other resources. Never going out of our
way to lure established, big name artists onboard, the bulk of our
releases have come from music discovered via demos mailed to us, by
stumbling upon bands playing un-hyped live shows, or by artists
making contact with us. We have never chosen the easy route. When
earlier this year we were faced with the choice between picking up
a license offered on a new album by one of our all-time favourite
artists or working with the virtually unknown but amazingly
talented Animal Collective, we chose the latter. Artists that have
seen their debut releases on FatCat have included Process, Team
Doyobi, Motion, Duplo_Remote, Dorine_Muraille, Com.a, Xinlisupreme,
Fonn, Immense, Grain, Giddy Motors, Drowsy, Party Of One, and Janek
Schaefer.
Pushed on by our excitement at releasing and supporting amazing new
music, hamstrung by our own various failings / disabilities, FatCat
has been a day to day struggle, an ongoing argument between 5 or
more people whose varying tastes, beliefs and histories overlap or
collide at various points. It has been an intense experiment in
self-organisation, and a balancing act between idealism and the
harsh realities of time and economics. Over the rollercoaster
course of the past six years, we have attempted to curate a
continually shifting and challenging series of releases, to
introduce new / unknown artists and to maintain a consistently high
level of quality. Despite the apparent inconsistency and plurality
of the different sounds and styles of music we have released, there
do remain certain links and bonds that bind the catalogue together,
allowing it to cohere into something more than merely a senseless
slew of random events. But rather than spell everything out, we
would prefer that you just listen in and make your own links, draw
your own conclusions?
We titled this album æbranches and routesÆ because we are totally
aware that none of this music was created in a vacuum; that music
making and consuming is a social activity; that each of the artists
represented here exists within their own context and ever-shifting
network of peers. FatCat is just one small node on the map where
many points meet or overlap. It is a diverse collection of
different journeys and stories that refuses any single overriding
narrative, and none of this would have been possible without the
amazing support of all those artists, allies and peers existing
around us. Having taken over a year to collate, this compilation
represents a compromise between our favourite tracks from our back
catalogue and a selection of tracks from recent and forthcoming
FatCat albums. Most of the sides of the label are represented here
û tracks from our Splinter Series and 130701 imprints, from our
split 12ö series and 7ö series, and from the brief yet
highly-creative e-rmx project. The basic intention behind this
release is to provide an accessible yet diverse and high quality
selection of tracks that will hopefully turn listeners on to new
artists, and offer a glimpse into the wider scope of the label.
Yet, far from being a full picture, this release (like these notes)
presents just one selective cross-section of the label, a sample
that perhaps leaves out as much as it admits. If you like what you
hear here, we hope you will be inspired to investigate further.
--fat-cat.co.uk
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s w e e t b e a t s
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greetings to kw, dps, sour, diss, dh, ms, tr & ube
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