Location: Liverpool Est: 2015
Potted History: “I never set out to start a label,” explains Emotion Wave ringleader Neil Grant. “I just wanted somewhere to play. I wasn’t part of any scene and the only gigs I could get were alongside bands in pubs or traditional gig venues, which was always the wrong environment, wrong audience. I was moaning about it to a mate, who was moaning that there were too many open mic nights for singer-songwriters, which gave me the idea to do something similar, but for experimental electronic artists.”
And so the Emotion Wave night was born. The idea was a good one and it soon became a regular night. The label came about after Neil put out a couple of compilations to raise funds for local charities, while highlighting the range of talent in the north west.
“Then we’d put on an all-dayer and have those artists play for us,” says Neil. “Those nights and compilations did really well and everyone kept telling me I should start a label, so that’s where I am now.”
Mission Statement: “There’s nothing official written in blood,” says Neil, “but if we did have a mission statement it would be to continue to work together with local artists who have become part of the Emotion Wave family of weirdos and see where we can take things.”
Key artists & releases: Recording as Lo Five, Neil’s debut album ‘When It’s Time To Let Go’ appeared on the excellent Patterned Air last year and there’s his remix collection, ‘Propagate’, which is out now on Lo Five. Next up is singer/songwriter Bye Louis and the dark ambient pop of Foxen Cyn.
“It’s a family affair,” says Neil of the label, “My art school mate Matt Lewis oversees the creative direction, Andrew Bates is an exceptional photographer and captures everything we do, long-time co-conspirator Sean Fearon offers his home studio to fellow artists, while Mike Stanton plays the artists on his Jupiter Room internet radio show.”
Future Plans: “I don’t like thinking about the future too much,” says Neil. “I’m happy to let this thing either grow organically or wither and die as necessary. I’d like to do more live stuff, that’s where the magic happens for me. We’ve just secured a small pot of money to put on an event over the August Bank Holiday weekend. I’m hoping this will be the seed of an annual thing where we can play interesting music to interesting people in interesting locations.
“The latest idea is a zine. There are some mad ideas floating around, features on astral projection, CIA experiments, weird science, folklore… I think it’s going to be a weird mix of Fortean Times writing and music chat – a great toilet read! We should be putting our first one out soon…”
