The Concept
Label Fandango
is the release process stripped
to its fundamentals, inspired
by the driving DIY dynamics
of fresh-eared labels such as
Transgressive, Marquis Cha Cha
and Dance To The Radio. The
slogan for our label is the
eminently catchy “no frills:
all thrills”, because
in the true orange-arsed spirit
of easyjet Label Fandango is
a bring - your - own - sandwiches
operation with generic sleeves,
a gently unhinged disposition
and a genuine passion for helping
bands reach somewhere else.
It started, as most of the
best things in life tend to,
with a gig. In 2001 Club
Fandango crept onto the
London music scene on a Tuesday
night in Camden’s Dublin
Castle and carefully unfurled
its glossy new backdrop. Four
years down the line that Tuesday
is a heaving maelstrom of
top sexy indierock behaviour
with Keane,
Bloc
Party, 22-20s, Death Cab
For Cutie, Kaiser
Chiefs, Go!
Team and Arctic
Monkeys all filling the
venue at various points.
The
backdrop is looking a bit
worse for wear after over
200 shows. But then again
aren’t we all? So what
comes next? A record company,
of course.
Pointy
Records and Fierce
Panda (your hosts for
Club Fandango) are launching
Label Fandango as a Singles
Club in its purest sense,
purveying thrillingly limited
edition releases in black
& white sleeves with the
aim of breaking even and having
a bit of fun with smashing
new talent along the way.
Pointy Records is the refuge
for cosmic star chasers such
as The
Clientele and Flotation
Toy Warning. The fierce
panda recording company is
the indie escape hatch for
sonic terrorists such as Art
Brut, Apartment,
Agent Blue and other bands
beginning with ‘A’.
Together they are Label Fandango.
And together they have been
gawping at the excesses of
the corporate machine. Indie
Boomtime it may be but what
does that mean? £100k
marketing spends for ‘80s
soundalikes, hysterical TV
advertising campaigns for
half-baked debut albums and
total catastrophe if the latest
over-hyped Libertines wannabes’
second single fails to crack
the top 20, that’s what.
What are we doing, people?
Is this really fun??
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