Those expecting jelly, ice cream and sleeping lions at this eighth birthday party will be sorely disappointed!
Plenty of vacant spaces across the capitol have taken a battering from many a bopping raver in the past few years, as south London seems to be the area of choice for numerous memorable birthday parties. Wang have been there for their 10th birthday, Ninja Tune have done it for their 20th birthday, now it’s the turn of label and specialist record shop, Phonica Records. They're bringing three soundsystems and shaking the vaulted brickwork at Great Suffolk Street warehouse to its very core on their eighth birthday come 1st October.
We thought we’d check in with manager Simon Rigg for a chin-wag about the shop, vinyl sales, and the upcoming party. We also couldn’t resist asking for some musical tips.
Simon, whenever I've shopped at Phonica and asked for pieces from behind the counter I've always been supplied with other 12"s the assistants believe I'll like judging by my selection. Is this a habit you instill in all your staff?
People buy records in different ways, but the people who come to a physical store rather than buy online appreciate tips and recommendations from the staff. We listen to a lot of records repeatedly, therefore we can recommend some good ones that you may not necessarily go for – new labels, new producers – which is what it is all about, really. Of course, you don’t have to listen to them or you can just ask for what you come in for.
How are vinyl sales doing compared to when you opened eight years ago?
Sales were much higher eight years ago than they are now, the breakthrough singles sold three to four times what they do now. But sales have gone up in the last couple of years as collectors appreciate the quality, artwork and beauty of vinyl and DJs can appreciate that a lot of great records only come out on vinyl. If you buy house, techno, dubstep, or disco you should really be buying vinyl to get those particularly hot records.
You must listen to a lot of music: what makes a stand-out track?
Originality. Something new, or at least a fresh approach to a particular sound. There are thousands of records released every week, only a few of them stand out. Producers should realise that you need more than one idea in a record or track for it to stand the test of time.
What are your top tracks of the year so far?
Oh, this takes hours of working out at the end of the year. Off the top of my head. Iori's ‘Spaciotemporal’ on Phonica white label (and I’m not being biased!); Massimiliano Pagliara's ‘Harmonize’ on Live At Robert Johnson; and the Skudge remix of Instra:mental's ‘Vicodin’...
But this will all change next week!
You have the Phonica eighth birthday party on 1st October. What can we expect from the night?
We're very excited about our eighth birthday and we're putting on the biggest party we've ever put on. We have got together with our good friend and one of the original crew at Phonica, Heidi. She hosts room three and brings The Jackathon to London with Deetron, Mathias Kaden and local talents Waifs and Strays.
One of London’s best labels, Leftroom bring a stellar line-up to room one, with current favourites Benoit and Sergio playing live, along with the big label of right now, Visionquest with three of their biggest names (Ryan Crosson, Lee Curtiss and Shawn Reeves), all supported by Matt Tolfrey and Sam Russo.
Let’s not forget the Phonica Records room where myself, Vangelis and Soho represent the shop in room two, and prepare for a mammoth set from Wolf + Lamb’s Soul Clap and Joy Orbison, who needs no introduction.
Right, it's your closing track of your last ever DJ gig. What track do you play?
Orbital 'Belfast'
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