If you look back over the decades, it is easy to pick out seminal record labels that set the tone for the music they championed. From the infamous 1960s Motown R&B and Soul label, to punk rock and new waves Stiff in the 70s; followed by London’s own Rough Trade label in the 80s that supported independent music – with the likes of The Libertines, The Strokes and Pulp on their books. The 90s saw the birth of Goldie’s Metalheadz. It started as an underground label born out of the heads of three aspiring and upcoming DJs – Kemistry, Storm and Goldie – whilst sat around their kitchen table in London. Their mission was to elevate Drum & Bass and Jungle music from its underground origins to a more mainstream and global audience. And it reshaped the electronic music as we know it, transforming it into a cultural movement.
As the DJ Doc Scott puts it in this book: “Metalheadz is more than just a record label or a club. It’s a feeling, an attitude… a way of life. The music has to be vital; cutting edge, forward-thinking, tunes that push boundaries – but the people who get it most, our people, understand it’s about something more as well.”
