Electronic Vinyl Records

Single releases like “Drive Me Crazy” with Vic Mensa and “Leave Me Alone” with Shay Lia soon spread his name like wildfire and gained listens reaching far into the millions. In addition to that he’s produced for artists such as Mobb Deep, Kali Uchis, Freddie Gibbs, The Internet, & Talib Kweli and remixed the likes of Disclosure, Pharrell, Missy Elliot, Janet Jackson, and others. Kaytranada soon cemented his reputation and his sound; an undeniable swing of the drums comparable to J Dilla’s, a signature soulful touch in the melodies, and a healthy dose of funky bass lines. Last year he was tapped by the legendary Rick Rubin who has acted as a mentor, eventually signing him to a publishing relationship.

99.9% will be Kaytranada’s first debut album on XL Recordings. The 15-track album includes guest vocals from Anderson .Paak, AlunaGeorge, BADBADNOTGOOD, Craig David, Syd, Little Dragon, Goldlink and more.

With an intriguing online debut last year through a set of clever music videos for singles “Platoon” (starring B-Girl Terra) and “The Heat” (starring High Rollarz), it was soon revealed that the group’s main figures were a duo of West London artists known as J and T.

4 Million views later of the “Platoon” music video , the duo, joined by five close friends, set out to play their first set of live shows in London. Hailed by The Fly as “impressively slick, they pack their skillfully crafted tracks with complex layers of old-skool hip hop beats, hypnotising grooves, all dressed with rich, soulful vocals and presented with striking unity,” you will not want to miss Jungle in 2014.

The release of In Colour comes on the back of an incredible six year creative period for Jamie xx, which has seen him alternate effortlessly between his role as founding member and producer of The xx, and creator of more electronic and club orientated music as Jamie xx. A string of acclaimed productions in recent years including debut solo single “Far Nearer,” remixes for the likes of Adele, Radiohead and Florence & The Machine, production work for Drake and Alicia Keys plus We’re New Here - Jamie’s seminal reworking of Gil Scott-Heron’s final studio album - hinted at what was to come.

With In Colour – a bold, celebratory, emotional record that features collaborations with The xx band mates Romy Madley Croft (“Seesaw” and “Loud Places”) and Oliver Sim (“Stranger In A Room”), Young Thug and Popcaan (“Good Times”) and Four Tet (“Seesaw”) – Jamie delivers his definitive artistic statement.

With an androgyne croon that recalls Nina Simone, Shamir rose from the suburbs of Vegas after sending demos to Nick Sylvester, who runs the GODMODE label out of New York. Together they made Northtown, Shamir’s debut EP (2014), and continued their working relationship for Ratchet, Shamir’s first LP for XL Recordings. It’s an ecstatic dance-pop record that also has some dust and age to it, sparkling with the grit of a desert geode. The songs are about growing up in Vegas, though not the Vegas you think you know. The music is fun even when it’s mostly introspective, introspective even when it’s mostly fun. There’s an obvious fluidity to Shamir. He transcends boundaries – genre, gender, age, geography. If he feels solitary, it’s because there’s literally no one else like him.

In the song “Out Of Space”, Liam Howlett of The Prodigy provided a blueprint when he sampled Kool Keith of Ultramagnetic MC’s rapping these words: “Pay Close Attention”.

And whilst XL has never had any outside ownership, Gil Scott-Heron advised me not to even consider XL “independent”; because everything is connected.

This compilation is an attempt to illustrate some of these connections.

Part 1 is the roots of XL; underground music, made for DJ’s. These roots are still growing.

Part 2 features some of the singular talents who have taken the label further than we ever envisioned. There is no unifying genre, and I’ll happily confess to aesthetic opportunism; hopefully the thread of originality is evident though.

We’ve never compromised. The rave music XL first became known for was known as “hardcore”; that spirit continues.

To show our appreciation for your support: thank you DJ’s.

And thank you also to the retailers, writers and of course, ravers.

-- Richard Russell, London, 2014

“Satisfying like a 72-oz. steak or half a case of beer: Knowing you should know better just adds to the fun.” - PITCHFORK

Their Law: The Singles 1990- 2005 was originally released in 2005. The album features tracks form the four XL albums Experience, Music For the Jilted Generation, Fat Of The Land and Always Outnumbered Never Outgunned.

Pitchfork gave the album a 9.1 upon it’s release, and in their review of the album, Entertainment Weekly said that it “is here to remind us that the British electronic band stamped out some of the most brutally powerful dance music of the ‘90s.”