Q: How did you get involved with running a record label? Was it something you'd always wanted or planned to do? A: I moved to London in 1988 and some friends of mine were writing a fanzine called Sowing Seeds. When they got to the 6th issue they planned to give away a Loop/Telescopes flexi with it. The 'zine was never finished and so they decided to sell the flexi. I went to see Loop on new year’s eve that year and went around selling it for 50p. They sold out really quickly. I was friends with The Telescopes as was Nick from Sowing Seeds. The next release was a Telescopes single and then I got involved and we released flexis from the Pooh Sticks and Spacemen 3, and then we came across a lot of local bands and started releasing their records. It wasn't planned, it just started off as a hobby that grew. I loved music from a very young age. I was obsessive. I never really thought about running a label or planned anything. All I had in mind was to get out of Rugby and move to London. I would look at the gig guide and see all the bands playing around London and it was my dream to move here for that reason. Q: How did you get together with Che? What was your level of involvement there? A: Nick [Allport] and I used to run Cheree together (Telescopes, Bark Psychosis, Sea Urchins, Whipping Boy etc.). We received a demo tape from a local band, Disco Inferno. They didn’t want to sign to Cheree because they believed that people would buy the records on the strength of the label name and not the music. Also they had talked to Bark Psychosis and had heard negative things about the two backers that were involved with Cheree later on. So we decided to set up another label specifically for releasing Disco Inferno records. That label was called Che. My brother was a student at the time and I persuaded him to get a student loan to pay for the recording of In Debt [Disco Inferno's debut album]. Q: When did you split from Che to start Rocket Girl and what precipitated the move? A: I split from Che at the end of April 1998. By the time I left Che there were four partners. I still own 25% of the label, but I guess I'm a sleeping partner. I planned to release the Spacemen 3 tribute on my own label and I left around the time that was released. I don't really want to go into the ins and outs, but I’m much happier doing my own thing and I can work with whatever bands I choose without needing the consensus of three other people. Q: Mail order seems to be a really major part of what you do. Was Rocket Girl started as a label originally, and then mail order took over, or did you start with mail order and then the idea of putting out records came about? A: When I was at Che we started to carry all the records released by the artists we worked with. This then grew into taking on releases from unknown bands and buying rare singles from distributors etc. When I left Che I bought all the mail order stock from them and decided I'd run the mail order in conjunction with the label. It’s a great way of hearing loads of music and coming across new bands. It also subsidises the label. Q: What sort of bands are you into generally, and how have those tastes changed over the years? A: I'm into a lot of different music. I guess my hero is Nick Drake. I love his voice, lyrics, intricate guitar playing. I like a lot of 60's music and lots of melancholy stuff, slowcore, plinky plonky krautrock, spacerock…I’d hate to say I only like one genre. At the moment I'm listening to a real mixture of stuff. I love the Red House Painters, Spacemen 3, Spiritualized, Galaxie 500, Kraftwerk, Magnetic Fields, Mogwai, Wheat, Will Oldham, Smog, Elliott Smith, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Belle and Sebastian, Sodastream, My Bloody Valentine…I could go on and on. I generally like everything I carry in the mail order catalogue. It’s changed over the years though. I grew up listening to The Hurting by Tears For Fears, OMD, Soft Cell etc. Then I got heavily into all the twee C86 bands and all the sixties singer songwriters, to lots of 4AD bands and indie/spacerock. Q: What new bands are you really excited about and why? A: I'm really excited about the bands I'm working with. I'm lucky to have a label and to be able to release their records. I love the idea of discovering a brand new band and no-one’s heard of them. It's giving something back. Randall from Fuxa was telling me how he used to buy all the early Cheree releases and grew up listening to them. Now he's making music that I listen to. I'm excited about the new Piano Magic single, State River Widening album and also the Mazarin album. It's a new band from Philadelphia that write the catchiest pop tunes. It's not an obvious Rocket Girl release, but I can't stop listening to them. Q: What advice would you give anyone who’s considering starting up a label? A: Believe in yourself, then everything else follows. I had a very negative reaction from PR people and friends when they heard the PS I Love You single [Where On Earth Is Kevin Shields]. I had a really good feeling about it, played it every day and believed in it. I've had great reviews and loads of airplay, so I'm glad I listened to myself. Be careful about who you work with. I've had a number of occasions where I've been ripped off. If it feels right, get a contract. Also, budget properly – it's not a cheap thing. Look into distribution before pressing loads of records or CDs. Don't over press and enjoy what you're doing. Q: Finally, what plans do you have for Rocket Girl in the foreseeable future? A: I'd like to concentrate on the label side more than the mail order, and hopefully make enough money to take someone on. I’d like to do some more Rocket Girl nights, but not just in London – around the country and in Europe. The next few releases are looking something like… -- np: Colorsound "Soundtrack For An Imaginary Life" --

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