PETER:
Can you tell me the genesis of Voltage Records?
TIM: I suppose it dates back to the mid 80's Flexible
Response Studios in Little Germany I was just helping out in the rehearsal rooms,
myself and the singer of my band, they had an 8 track studio and rehearsal rooms.
At the time we were in a band called Harlequinn, We couldn't get a record
deal so we set up Voltage Records to release our own album, it led on from there.
When the place closed down we decided to open up our own rehearsal rooms and
studio we upgraded to a 16 track and released more stuff on the label. We were
there for 15 years and then we moved over to this place.
PETER: Was it smaller the last place? Were there any advantages
moving here?
TIM: It was smaller and it was up 2 flights of stairs, no one
liked it for that reason, but at the time it was really difficult to rent anywhere,
because we were musicians had long hair no one trusted really and originally
we were on a 16 month trial period but 16 months lasted 15 years.
PETER: So what are your plans now?
TIM: We've got rehearsal rooms, recording studios and
a small PA rig and we've go the label which we've got a distribution
deal as well and we are trying to push the stuff that's what out on the
label. We might put a showcase room downstairs.
PETER: For bands and A& R men?
TIM: Yeah so bands can do showcase gigs before tours and to
attract interested labels.
PETER: would you expand the place into a venue?
TIM:No, No probably not, lot of work a lot of legalities and
we would have to get an entertainment licence.
PETER: So how many rehearsal rooms have you got.
TIM:About 6.
PETER: So what's in store for the future of Voltage Records.
TIM: We released some stuff in the 90's and we had a
distribution deal but when the bands we were dealing with split up the label
got shelved for a while. Then we started it up again 3 years ago with a compilation
album since then we have done another 2 compilations and we've released
another 4 albums and we've got 2 more in the pipeline. We sell mostly
at gigs but we've got UK distribution with Prosonic and we are getting
really good reviews and finance permitting get some more bands and release some
more stuff.
Tim
told me when he opened up he found a bat had climbed through the letter box.
ME: Kind of apt, with all these gothic bands that play here.
TIM:Well where we had the old studio, the Theatre Royal workshops, Henry Irving
used to perform there.
ME: Who was Henry Irving?
TIM: His assistant was Bram Stoker, there's a photo of Bram Stoker outside
the Theatre Royal. There's the vampire connection.
VOLTAGE
RECORDS
