| XL Recordings | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Founded | 1989 |
| Founder | Tim Palmer, Richard Russell, Nick Halkes |
| Genre | Various |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Official website | www.xlrecordings.com |
XL Recordings is an independent record label which was launched by Tim Palmer, Nick Halkes and Richard Russell with Beggars Banquet Records in 1989 to release its rave and dance music. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located An independent record label (or indie record label) is a Record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the Major record labels Richard Russell (born 18 March 1971) is a Record label owner who is regularly named as one of the British Music industry 's most influential Beggars Banquet is an English Independent record label that began as a chain of record shops owned by Martin Mills and Nick Austin, and is part of A rave (or rave party) is a term in use since the 1980s to describe Dance Parties (often all-night events Synonyms Since around the mid-1980s electronic dance music has enjoyed popularity in many Nightclubs and as of 2006 is the predominant type of music played in The label has grown into one of the most commercially successful and influential independent record labels in the world.
Contents |
Beginnings
Originally the label was an offshoot of Beggars' more commercial dance label called Citybeat which was known for records by acts such as Freeez , Starlight, Dream Frequency and the Ultramagnetic MCs. Freeez was a musical group initially known for its emergence as one of the UK's first and leading jazz-funk bands of the very early eighties The Ultramagnetic MCs is a Hip-hop group made up of Kool Keith, Ced Gee, TR Love, and Moe Love. However with the success of acts such as The Prodigy and SL2, XL superseded Citybeat in the company's line up. The Prodigy are an Electronic music group formed by Liam Howlett in 1990 in Braintree Essex, England. SL2 was the name of a popular and pioneering hardcore / rave Music act in the early 1990s from London, England.
Palmer, who also owned the dance music store Groove Records on London's Greek Street, initially employed Halkes and Russell (who as artists and DJ's were known as Kicks Like a Mule and had a UK Top 10 hit with The Bouncer in 1992) to do a&r for the label. Greek Street is a street in Soho, London, leading south from Soho Square to Shaftesbury Avenue. Richard Russell (born 18 March 1971) is a Record label owner who is regularly named as one of the British Music industry 's most influential Kicks Like A Mule is a rave/electronic music duo consisting of Richard Russell and Nick Halkes Russell had previously worked in the Vinylmania record store in New Yorks Greenwich Village, where he had met Palmer who was visiting the store. Greenwich Village (ˌgrɛnɪtʃ ˈvɪlɪdʒ often simply called the Village, is a largely residential area on the west side of downtown (southern Manhattan
During the early nineties, XL Recordings releases were dance orientated ranging from Belgium techno (T99- "Anasthasia") to Breakbeat hardcore (SL2 - "On A Ragga Tip") to Drum and Bass (Jonny L - "I'm Leavin"). Techno is a form of Electronic dance music (EDM that emerged in Detroit, Michigan, USA during the mid to late 1980s T99 was a Belgian Techno band best known for their Rave anthem "Anasthasia" which reached #14 in the UK Singles Chart Breakbeat hardcore ( Rave music) is a derivate of Acid house that combines 4-to-the-floor rhythms with breakbeats and is associated with UK Rave scene SL2 was the name of a popular and pioneering hardcore / rave Music act in the early 1990s from London, England. This period of XL's history has been recorded on the XL Recordings Chapters compilation series. In 1993 Halkes left XL to form the EMI-owned commercial dance label Positiva, and subsequently his own independent commercial dance label Incentive. The EMI Group is a British music company comprising the major record company EMI Music – which operates several labels and is based in Kensington in Positiva Records is a subsidiary of EMI Records and is one of the biggest Dance music labels in the UK. Incentive Records is an independent dance based company with records, publishing and producer management interests In 1994 Palmer left XL and retired from the music business, leaving Russell in sole charge of XL.
Russell broadened the musical horizons of the label whilst maintaining a credo of working with artists he saw as original and inventive [1]
In 2003 the label won the Music Week A&R award. Music Week is a trade paper for the UK record industry Founded in 1959 as Record Retailer, it was relaunched on 18 March 1972 as [2]
Russell has been consistently named as one of the most influential figures in the UK music business [3] and was recently named by the Evening Standard as one of London's most influential people [4]
Roster
Since the late 1990s expanded into other genres such as freak-folk, alternative rock and hip-hop. The London Evening Standard is an English Tabloid regional local newspaper published and sold in London and surrounding areas of southeast Freak folk is a genre of Folk music associated with contemporary artists like Devendra Banhart, Joanna Newsom, Hecuba, Akron/Family Alternative rock (also called alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative; known primarily in the UK as indie) is a genre of Hip hop music, also referred to as rap music, is a Music genre typically consisting of a rhythmic vocal style called rap which is accompanied with They are now the home to an eclectic range of artists such as:
Recently
RJD2, who left Definitive Jux to join XL, will record future albums with XL. Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (born 5 May 1988 in Enfield, North London) known professionally as Adele, is an English - Welsh Basement Jaxx are a critically acclaimed UK House duo comprising Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe that rose to popularity in the late 1990s Beck' s birth name was Bek see the sources given This is not a typo and should not be changed without good reason Cajun Dance Party are an English 5-piece indie band from London. Devendra Banhart (born May 30 1981) is a Venezuelan - American Folk rock Singer-songwriter and Musician. Dylan Mills (born 1985 in Bow, East London) known professionally as Dizzee Rascal, is a British Rapper, Record producer and Friendly Fires are an English band from St Albans, Hertfordshire. Jack Fabian Peñate (born 2 September 1984, Blackheath, London; IPA:) is an English Musician and Singer-songwriter Gotan Project is a musical group based in Paris, consisting of musicians Philippe Cohen Solal ( French) Eduardo Makaroff ( Argentine) and Christoph H The Horrors are a British Garage rock band who formed in mid-2005 Kicks Like A Mule is a rave/electronic music duo consisting of Richard Russell and Nick Halkes Kid Harpoon (born Tom Hull, 20 April 1982, Chatham, Kent, England) is a English Singer-songwriter Lemon Jelly are a British Electronica duo consisting of Nick Franglen and Fred Deakin Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam (born July 17 1977 better known by her Stage name M Merrill Beth Nisker (born 1968 in Toronto Ontario) better known as Peaches, is an Electronica musician whose songs are concerned mainly with Elvis Perkins (born February 9 1978) is a folk-rock Singer - Songwriter. The Prodigy are an Electronic music group formed by Liam Howlett in 1990 in Braintree Essex, England. Radiohead The Raconteurs (also known as The Saboteurs in Australia are a Rock band formed in 2005 featuring four members known for other musical projects Jack Ratatat is a New York City Electronic music duo consisting of Guitarist Mike Stroud and Synthesizer driver and producer RJD2 (born Ramble John "RJ" Krohn on May 27 1976) is an American music producer, Singer and Musician Sigur Rós ( are an Icelandic Post-rock band with melodic classical and minimalist elements Tapes 'n Tapes is an Indie rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Teenagers are a French indie - Synthpop band formed in late 2005, originally as a joke Thomas Edward Yorke (born 7 October 1968 is a Grammy -winning English Musician, best known as the lead singer and principal songwriter of the To My Boy is an electro pop duo consisting of Jack Snape and Sam White who originate from Chesterfield and Liverpool but are currently based in Liverpool Vampire Weekend is an Indie rock band from New York, formed in 2006 and signed to XL Recordings. Various, or Various Production, is an English Dubstep / Electronic music duo formed in 2003 The White Stripes is an American Garage rock band, formed in 1997 in Detroit, Michigan. RJD2 (born Ramble John "RJ" Krohn on May 27 1976) is an American music producer, Singer and Musician Definitive Jux is an independent Record label based in New York City, United States. [5]
XL Recordings has also released classic albums from overseas artists such as Gotan Project and The Avalanches and The Veiner Snitchelz
Thom Yorke, of Radiohead fame, released his first solo record, The Eraser, on the label in July of 2006. Gotan Project is a musical group based in Paris, consisting of musicians Philippe Cohen Solal ( French) Eduardo Makaroff ( Argentine) and Christoph H The Avalanches is an Electronic music group from Melbourne, Australia, best known for its live DJ sets and debut album Since I Left You Thomas Edward Yorke (born 7 October 1968 is a Grammy -winning English Musician, best known as the lead singer and principal songwriter of the Radiohead The Eraser is the debut solo Album by Radiohead lead singer Thom Yorke, released on 10 July 2006 in the United While not reaching Number One in any specific country (#2 in the US, #3 in the UK and #2 in Canada), it was Number One for worldwide sales during its initial week of release. In October 2007, Radiohead completed negotiations to sign with XL for physical release of their seventh studio album, In Rainbows. Radiohead In Rainbows is the seventh album by the English Alternative rock band Radiohead.
In March 2008 XL added the widely tipped Friendly Fires. Friendly Fires are an English band from St Albans, Hertfordshire.
See also
External links
This is a list of notable Record labels Due to the large number of entries the list has been divided by the first character of the label's name See also This is a list of notable Electronic music This is a list of notable Independent record Discogs, short for discographies, is a Website and Database of information about Music Recordings including commercial releases promotionalDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic