Hospital Records
Hospital Records is a drum and bass record label based in London, England, specializing in the softer and funkier side of the music known as liquid funk. Founded in 1996 by Tony Colman and Chris Goss it has become one of the biggest labels within the drum and bass scene.
In 1996 London Elektricity was the recording moniker of Goss and Colman, and formed the centre of the roster. Following the release of their debut Pull the Plug in 1999, the label began to gain visibility. The first Outpatients compilation (2000) included appearances from Landslide, Marcus Intalex and Aquasky, and the diverse mixture of jazz- and disco-influenced house, UK garage and breakbeat gained attention beyond the drum and bass community, attracting DJs like Gilles Peterson.
In 2001, Hospital signed Welsh producer High Contrast: he followed his debut with a series of strong releases and a well-received LP in 2002, which helped push the label to the forefront of the scene. In 2003 London Elektricity released a second album; Chris Goss had departed the project but Tony Colman drew in a range of musicians and vocalists and turned the project into a live band. This once more crossed the boundaries between drum and bass, breakbeat, garage, and jazz. Meanwhile, further signings Nu:Tone, Logistics, Landslide, Cyantific and in 2005 Q-Project have bolstered their position as one of the biggest players in DJ-oriented liquid funk.
Besides their label, they also run a regular night called Hospitality. This is usually at either Herbal in Shoreditch, London or, for the larger and more infrequent special events, Heaven in Charing Cross, although they have also exported the brand to other British cities such as Brighton.
In 2006, Hospital Records reached their 100th release with a special "10 Years Of Hospital" 3xCD pack with London Elektricity, High Contrast and Cyantific covering many of Hospital's releases, and a 2x12" EP, offering collaborations from High Contrast vs Logistics, Syncopix vs Nu:Tone, London Elektricity vs Logistics and Cyantific vs Q-Project.
Discography
- Nu:Tone featuring Pat Fulgoni - Beliefs / Beatnik in 2007
Sister labels
Med School
In July 2006 Hospital Records announced the arrival of a new sister label, Med School, which will be catering for, as they put it, a more experimental style of drum and bass. Artists assigned to the Med School Label include the up and coming Brazilian producer S.P.Y, CLS, the London based duo Fracture And Neptune and Icicle. The most recent release on the label "My Detroit" comes courtesy of Craggz and new artists added to the roster include Infiltrata and Martsman.
M*A*S*H
M*A*S*H is a sub-label of Hospital Records. It was created by Tony Colman and Chris Goss and designed to enable them to release 1 or 2 tracks from whoever brings the right flavour. It is a dancefloor-specific label for 12-inch only material.