This coming Thursday marks our official first birthday as a label, and it’s been an insane, amazing 12 months which has spawned 5 EPs, 6 singles and a compilation.
It really doesn’t feel like a year since a tantrum of displeasure at the old day-job I hated inspired me to take the ridiculous step of starting a record label in spite of having no experience, no technical musical knowledge, no contacts, and no money. Still though, twelve months on, I’m pretty chuffed to reflect that Tiny Lights still exists, and that my insane fit of pique hasn’t cost me my home, my wife, or my sanity. It’s resulted in some incredibly fun moments, hopefully not just for me, and (if I may say so) some cracking records too.
I don’t think I can pick out a specific highlight because too much amazing stuff has happened, but one of my favourite memories of the last year has to be The Lake Poets show at The Sage Gateshead in April. To have any kind of involvement in a sell-out gig at a venue like that really was special, and it was capped by the fact that all three bands involved were utterly stunning on the night.
There’s been countless other less obviously significant moments, but which I remember just as fondly as the Sage, though. Like when I got lost in Stockton on Bonfire Night trying to get Fantasy Rainbow to his Chapman Family support show at the Georgian, or the first time somebody asked him to sign a copy of one of his EPs. Recording our first video for Styles Make Fights in a location we only managed to find about 10 hours before shooting started was pretty great too. More recently, it was a blast messing about with the various Tiny Lights artists in a practice room to record Thunder Road, as was pretending to be in a cult in the grounds of a mental hospital in Gosforth for the O’Messy Life video. I really could go on…
I guess all I’m trying to say is the most colossal thank you to the hundreds of people who’ve helped make the last year the best of my life. Whether you’ve bought a record, come to a gig, played some songs, worked for us behind the scenes, written nice words, played one of our releases on the radio or simply refrained from divorcing me (okay, that’s only one of you), it really does mean the world.
Stay tuned for details of our birthday plans, including that Thunder Road single, a big sale at the Tiny Lights shop and the obligatory party. The second year of our life is likely to be even busier than the first, including the usual singles and EPs, an album or two, and pretty exciting releases for Halloween and Christmas.
Thanks again
Paul
