Record Store Day 2013 : Q&A with Demon Records

Last Saturday was significant in that not only did the entire world go vinyl mad (sales were up by 86.5% on last year’s tally), but that Record Store Day saw the launch of new label, Demon Records, part of the Demon Music Group. Thrilling music fans with releases from Suede, Marc Bolan, Ian McCulloch & The Jesus and Mary Chain, through to Dinosaur L, mixes from Ashley Beedle and Tom Moulton, and a couple of wacky Chas and Dave and Men Without Hats products, the label has sprung into existence in order to celebrate the format that we all love: vinyl. While the appearance of a new kid on the musical block is always cause for celebration, it’s Demon Records status as a vinyl-only label that piqued the interest of us Muso’s and marked out the label’s launch as an event worth celebrating. We had a chat with Demon Record’s label manager David Beaufoy to find out more about the launch of the label, their decision to get involved with Record Store Day, and their plans for the future.

Muso's: Demon Records is a super shiny, newly minted label on the music scene, to which we say 'huzzah!'. What factors influenced the decision to launch Demon Records, and what's the label’s musical mission?

David: Vinyl is something the wider company has dabbled in for a while but it never really had a home within our labels, and besides a handful of individual artist projects the format was largely untouched. We felt a good trawl of our catalogue was in order,  followed by re-delivering the gems in our roster in audiophile quality and in deluxe packaging with all the bells and whistles. With a real resurgence in the international vinyl market and with Demon having so much classic catalogue worth revisiting it’s a real treat to put together something fans and the label can be proud of. Huzzah indeed!

We Muso’s love the fact that Demon Records is a vinyl-only label. What is it about vinyl that's so special, and do you think there's enough brilliant stuff about the format to last beyond the current fashion for record collecting?

Where countless formats have lived and died out through the decades, the LP will seemingly always remain. Beyond the audio quality and ascetic draw cards, for me vinyl represents a loving time where full album recordings meant something and allowed that deeper appreciation and connection with your music. That fact alone will see vinyl filling shelves and decks for many years to come, until the dreaded Cassingle comes back and ruins everything!

In a time when the high street's doomed and the internet rules supreme, what do you think about the future both of music retailers and labels such as yours?

It's no illusion that the way people consume music is changing, though it's not necessarily a doom and gloom scenario, especially for vinyl. It’s a really exciting time, where through social networking and D2C stores, we can actively engage with fans better than ever to produce more personal and specialised products. That high end product is becoming easier to engage with and purchase directly from labels is also only a good thing!

Timing the label’s launch for Record Store Day seemed an apt way for the label to show it’s love for the vinyl format. Were there any specific reasons for doing this?

The wider company has dabbled in Record Store Day with a few products in previous years, but the new Demon Records imprint is now the home for all things Record Store Day. It's a fantastic day for fans, stores and labels and gives us a chance to offer up product that through traditional retail pathways wouldn't ever see the light of day. Most importantly, as RSD 2013 coincided with the launch of Demon Records, it was a great chance to showcase the breadth of Demon’s catalogue and deliver really special products for fans worldwide, and of course to get people down into stores.

In the run-up to Record Store Day, we got talking to record stores around the country about their plans for Record Store Day, and what the day is like from their perspective. What were things were like for you as label in terms of preparing for RSD 2013?

The brainstorm meeting for Record Store Day 2013 was probably the most exiting part of my year last year. We looked at fan favourites, as well as some of my own guilty pleasures, to put together a list which showcased what Demon is about: the legendary, respected and downright strange output this year was eclectic to say the least! It was a great chance to put my creative hat on and create something vastly unique from the rest of our annual output with the team. Some of the releases were relatively straightforward,and others had me parading around the office proudly shouting ‘THIS IS ART ATTACK” periodically. All in all, a lot of fun.

Demon Record’s love of both a diverse range of music and the vinyl format itself is clear from your interactive ethos. The label’s website invites music fans to get in touch with suggestions about what records they'd like you to breathe back into vinyl life, which is an idea that we love. Are there any releases that have a special place in your heart that you'd love to see being born again on vinyl?

We’ve always intended the label to be fan driven. It’s about getting people what they want in an affordable yet lovingly put together package. One of my favourite pub debates is “Why on earth hasn’t *insert band here* released *insert album here* on LP? I need it in my life!”, and Demon Records is in the great position to have the time and passion for the format to dig deep into catalogues and pull out those dusty gems that deserve another spin on the deck. We are working with a number of majors and indies to get at some incredible releases out, which is really exciting. It’s always nice to see what’s missing in people’s collections and great fun to search those gems out for myself. It makes no sense to me why certain albums *grumble alert* by the likes of Sonic Youth, Nick Cave and The Flaming Lips are impossible to find on LP, as I’d love to get my hands on them! Also the Mary Chain catalogue which *spoiler alert!* I’ll be working up in the coming months for LP re-release which will be a lot of fun!

If you'd like to find out more about the wonderful vinyl-loving ethos of Demon Records, check out their website for more details, and to browse their current catalogue. If, like David, you’ve ever sat in the pub and bemoaned the fact you can’t get your hands on a vinyl copy of a much loved album, then get yourself onto the label's Facebook page. Share your love in a few cogently argued words, and - who knows? - you might just see your suggestion transformed into miraculous life in your local record store. 

*N.B. We wish Demon Records the best of luck in the future, and hope that David managed to get his hands on the Chaz and Dave RSD release he so desired. We certainly can’t argue with his assertion that ‘there is something about watching a 7” rabbit shaped record spin around a deck that puts me at ease with the big bad world!’.