Fence Records’ new bands discuss the label’s ‘weird magic’

ONCE a small DIY operation, Fence Records now has an international reputation and a formidable roster of new releases. Its latest signings tell David Pollock why they couldn’t imagine working with anyone else.

Adam Ross, lead singer of Glasgow band Randolph’s Leap, has a unique story about how his band’s record deal came about. “I wrote Johnny Lynch a poem,” he says – referring to the man who runs Fife’s Fence Collective alongside Kenny “King Creosote” Anderson, as well as making music as the Pictish Trail – “I sent it to him in 2010 asking if we could play at the first Awaygame (Fence’s biennial festival on the Isle of Eigg). It didn’t happen but he did reply, and since then we’ve done Homegame, Eye O’ the Dug and Awaygame (in 2012). I can’t remember what it said. It was just a begging letter really, but it happened to rhyme.”

For Ross, who is a big fan of King Creosote, Pictish Trail and James Yorkston, being part of one of Scotland’s fastest-growing and most respected labels is a huge personal achievement. Alongside the long-standing and highly renowned Chemikal Underground in Glasgow, Fence Records is building a roster of some of the finest artists from Scotland and further afield, and a slew of new albums and signings this year emphasises its newfound ambition to build an extensive and high-quality catalogue.

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More than the commercial aspect and the strength of their roster, however, Fence’s reputation stems from its community feel, an inclusive sort of accidental branding stoked by its series of highly popular festivals in rural locations (the first and most well-known of these, Anstruther’s Homegame, returns this weekend in a shortened two-day format, jokingly christened Gnomegame). Add this to inventive marketing curios like a subscription series of 7-inch records and beautifully decorated vinyl sleeves, personal touches like Lynch’s frequent e-mail newsletter, and an online shop (the label grew out of a record shop called Fence on St Andrews’ South Street that Anderson set up in the late 1990s) and the result is a local label with a global reach.

“It seemed like there was this weird magic to Fence that wasn’t really happening anywhere else,” says Ross of his desire to be on the label – a dream which came true last year with the release of his band’s Hermit EP and the download-only single News, the code for which was packaged with a limited edition mug. “There’s a video of the first Awaygame on YouTube set to the Kid Canaveral song Her Hair Hangs Down, and the backdrop is this beautiful sunset. To watch it makes me feel nostalgic, even though I wasn’t there.”

Kate Lazda met Lynch when he used to put on gigs and indie nights at St Andrews University Student Association, and is now both a part of the label. She jokes about dealing with the “boring stuff” like the webshop and posting event tickets, while Lynch is the label manager. She is also a member of Kid Canaveral, whose well-received second album Now That You Are a Dancer has just been released on the label.

“This slew of releases is a direct result of the sheer volume of new stuff that we’ve heard and loved and want to champion,” she says, referring to her own record, Edinburgh group Eagleowl’s debut album This Silent Year (produced by Tommy Perman of Fence affiliates FOUND), and Lynch’s own out-there but highly impressive Secret Soundz Vol.2, among other 2013 releases.

“Giving Fence a bit more of a presence as a label is definitely a positive thing, but it’s a happy by-product of there being so much good music that we want as many people as possible to enjoy. There’s a lot of focus on the events, though, and because it’s such a small operation there hasn’t always been a lot of time to release a lot of albums. The last few months we’ve been focusing on getting these albums out there and making sure things are in place to make sure they have an impact.”

Eagleowl were first asked to play Homegame in “2007 or 2008” by their friend Emily Roff, formerly a promoter under the name Tracer Trails, who was curating a stage there. Since then, their relationship with Fence has continued on a personal as much as business level.

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“Johnny heard the other releases we’d brought out and he said if we ever wanted advice or a hand he’d help out,” says the band’s singer, Bart Owl. “What’s great about Fence is that it’s a very co-operative relationship, they don’t have lots of demands. Johnny makes suggestions but at the end of the day it’s our record and we have that complete freedom to make it sound exactly as we want. I still pinch myself, because it’s a great label to be part of and Johnny’s a bit of an idol as well as being a friend. I really respect what he’s done with the label.”

All of the people I speak to repeat a variation on this theme, and are sceptical when questioned about what they would do if approached by a larger label.

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“To be honest I’m not sure how realistic that is,” says Lazda. “I’m not sure if people even get signed any more – everything’s changing so much (within the music industry) that I’m not sure if getting signed now is the same as getting signed ten years ago. Fence is quite informal in that way, they’re our friends as well as being our label managers, and that’s the most refreshing thing about it. We work together but we get to do our own thing.”

“When you ‘sign’ with Fence you don’t sign anything,” points out Ross, “it’s more of a gentleman’s agreement.”

John B McKenna, singer and songwriter with Monoganon – who have just joined the label and who plan to release their LP Family in the autumn – talks of his and Lynch’s plans for the record, including posting it out as a series of individually designed “postcard” tracks with a download code on each, or packaging the first hundred vinyl copies with a handmade fanzine.

“He actively encourages it, he loves it,” McKenna laughs. “I think he just wants to do whatever makes us all excited.” McKenna, who is based in Malmo, has a perspective is that Fence is founded on “a desire to reach out to the world beyond Scotland, but also to draw people into the wee worlds we inhabit here. Like they do with Homegame, bringing them into a wee town and letting them soak up the vibe.”

“It’s a seal of approval,” says Ross of being a Fence artist. “For me on a personal level, the achievement is to go from sitting listening to this music – because a few of my favourite albums have come out on Fence – to a few years down the line releasing music on it. It’s more than just a company bringing out music, it’s a relationship every listener has with the label, because their intentions are always good.

“There’s no ego, there’s no glitz and glamour. It’s just people who are making music for the right reasons working with people who are releasing music for the right reasons.”

Fence’s five-star signings

KID CANAVERAL

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Affiliated with Fence as a band, label employees and longtime friends of Lynch, the Edinburgh/Anstruther-based indie-pop quartet released their career-best second album Now That You Are a Dancer on Fence in March this year. “This feels like our first proper album,” says the band’s Kate Lazda, comparing it to their 2010 debut Shouting at Wildlife. “It’s more coherent, it was recorded in a few months. The first was recorded over a couple of years, so it was more like a compilation of how we progressed in that time.”

EAGLEOWL

Mournful Edinburgh folk-rockers whose debut album This Silent Year is imminent on Fence after various self-released EPs. “We’ve been going for a depressingly long time for a band who are just releasing our first album,” says the group’s Bart Owl. “I guess it’s one of those things, you build up your debut album and want every single detail to be right, and then you just have to let go and accept it for what it is.”

RANDOLPH’S LEAP

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An eight-piece indie orchestra from Glasgow led by singer and songwriter Adam Ross, whose inevitable and broadly warranted comparisons to Belle & Sebastian belie a strong lyrical and musical individuality. An album is in long-term preparation, although the Hermit EP has already been released as part of Fence’s Buff Tracks. “It was part of a subscription series,” laughs Ross, “so it meant a bunch of Fence fans were getting us, like it or not.”

MONOGANON

Rich, bittersweet alt.folk from the Malmo-based John B McKenna and his band. Recently signed to Fence, the LP Family is already recorded and planned for an autumn release, with McKenna comparing it to Broadcast, Grizzly Bear and Deerhoof.

THE PICTISH TRAIL

Fence label boss Johnny Lynch, whose Secret Soundz Vol.2 was recorded in a studio near his Eigg home with producer Sweet Baboo (Stephen Black) and released in January this year to deserved critical acclaim for its rich and ambitious sonic textures.

• Fence Gnomegame is at various venues around Anstruther, 6-7 April. Kid Canaveral play the Old Bridge Inn, Aviemore, 26 April (with Randolph’s Leap) and Mad Hatter’s, Inverness, 27 April. Randolph’s Leap play the Breakfast Club, Edinburgh, tomorrow; Brew at the Bog at Bogbain Farm, Inverness, 4 May; and the Big Beach Ball Festival, Aberdeen, 5 May. Eagleowl play the Pleasance Theatre, Edinburgh, 10 May; and the Glad Café, Glasgow, 12 May. www.fencerecords.com

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