Beneath the Label: Horror Boogie

Scott Donaldson AKA Dave Shades first unveiled Horror Boogie Records in 2011 and the label’s remit was abundantly clear from the start. With debut EP Welcome to the Horrordome’s bright green vinyl adorned with the decaying face of a cartoon zombie, and with gnarling tracks from acts as formidable as Subhead and Michael Forshaw contained within, the label was evidently going to aim for the jugular, offering up choice servings from the grittier end of the club music spectrum.

Fierce, yet intensely fun at the same time, the Glasgow-based label has continually diversified with releases from the likes of Kanji Kinetic, Fedka the Irritant and Neil Landstrumm in partnership with Hostage as Gutts. Fresh from the release of Ben Pest’s Horrible Joys EP last month, we spoke with Shades to find out what makes the label tick. 

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How would you sum up the mission statement for Horror Boogie?
The reason I decided to start the label was the amount of really good wonky techno and bass music being produced and nowhere near enough of it being released on vinyl. I will always release on vinyl for as long as pressing plants exist and that’s an important aspect of the label.

I understand you’ve built up fairly close ties with the artists you release – through running your own clubnights and visiting others’ events. Is that something that’s important to you?
Definitely. I've made some great friends through running and going to nights and a lot of the people whose music I release are people who I've either booked or have met in clubs. Actually, some of the tracks I've released are tracks that I first heard at my nights before pestering the artists to let me release them. Knowing the artists makes everything so easy and enjoyable, as I'm dealing with people I get on with and who I respect. They know that I'm extremely passionate about their music and I take pleasure in knowing that they really appreciate the likes of me pushing to get their music out there.

When I first decided to take the plunge, I got in touch with a lot of artists who I wanted to release, to put the feelers out, and I'm pretty sure every one of them agreed. The scene I'm involved in is a pretty close-knit scene and the artists, DJs and crowds are a great bunch of people.

As a DJ, you’ve always played a broad range of styles – from funk, disco and hip hop, through to techno, bassline and ghetto house. Are you keen to incorporate more of these influences into the label or do you want to keep it more focused? 
I don't like to totally limit myself by pigeonholing the label but at the same time I want the releases to stay fairly true to the label's sound, which does cover several styles. Horror Boogie was a term I coined by mistake after a party one night, and thought it was a pretty fitting way to describe the more messed-up side of the electronic stuff I play. There were actually a series of Horror Boogie mixes recorded years ago, long before the label was even a twinkle in my creepy eye, so it was pretty easy to choose a name for the label.

I was in the process of setting up a new label to release more straight-up techno, house, electro and acid, and have some great stuff planned for it, but I was struggling to find a good distributor. I do intend to get back on the case with it, when funds will allow, so watch this space... patiently. There may also be something booty-related in the pipeline.

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The artwork always grabs the attention and seems to be a fitting accompaniment to the records. What inspired the art? 
When I was a kid, I had a huge fascination with posters and video covers for films, especially horror films. I used to go into the video rental shop near my house after school most days to look at them, like the obsessive weirdo I am. So that’s what I put to Hektor Ruiez, who does all the artwork. I couldn't be happier with the ideas and end results he comes up with. Sometimes I'll put a rough idea to him but mainly I let him have free reign, as I know he'll always come up with the goods.

What can we expect from the label in the near future?
The next release is an EP by Luke's Anger, who has been one of my favourite producers in recent years and who is a big supporter of the label. It's four acid-laden booty tracks, which should appeal to people who maybe aren't fans of the more wonky/mutant bass stuff I've put out. It should be out early April. Following that, I have lots of tracks/EPs already lined up by the likes of Dexorcist, Yeahhbuzz, Axel Sohns, Lief Ryan, Audiogutter and RRRitalin plus more from some of the previously released artists like Ben Pest, Luke's Anger, 3D!T and Queaver.