Ghost Box is a fantastic record label run by Julian House and Jim Jupp which releases music by a collective of artists (inculding themselves under the monickers The Focus Group and Belbury Poly respectively) inspired by folklore, vintage electronics, library music and 1970's documentary soundtracks.
Every limited release recalls school music room experimentation, school trips to a local woods to collect insects and the long lost safety videos of childhood (learn to swim!), without ever stepping into homage or pastiche.
The packaging is also a perfect reflection of the label's influences. Created by House, each sleeve is somewhere between the covers of science text-books and library recordings. The kind of beautiful object you wish your house was full of.
This mixture of childhood, nature and instructional material really resonates strongly for me and is becoming a nucleus for my own work. Far from just nostalgic reverie, I think there's a tangible sense of what it was like to feel protected and creatively encouraged as a child in Britain.
Cracking album that Advisory Circle one. So glad they are finally doing vinyl.
ReplyDelete