It is a small and sweet label, that we created almost 13 years ago. Our goal was to surface Funk, that otherwise would probably remain unheard. Back in the hay days of Funk, most were recorded on 45 singles in small print runs. Also, most bands only recorded a few tracks that way before they disbanded or otherwise stopped recording the Funk. The way they released their music was exactly the tradition we wanted to uphold.
Fast forward a decade and a lot more fresh Funk labels have appeared. We welcome this development, because it means that more bands get the opportunity to present their music on Funk 45s. For the collectors and fans, this is obviously good news as they get access to much more output to quench their thirst for funky tunes.
So how do we find the Funk these days? Well, sometimes we have an idea and try to realize it with friendly Funksters we know. Our very first release was such a collaboration. Gu had an idea for The New Mastersounds and produced it with them in Leeds. Also, Diazpora recorded a Gu production for us. Other bands like Osaka Monaurail licensed finished tracks for release on Our Label Records. Then again, there are tunes that we modify ever so slightly. Uebertribe for example, where we suggested minute changes to the tracks we ended up releasing.
Nowadays we happily receive a lot of music from bands, wishing to release their (often first) recordings on Our Label. I guess, we are seen by some as a kind of seal of approval, which they seek to then approach other labels (and us) with the suggestion of producing a long play.
If you are one of those bands, feel free to submit your tracks, ideally NOT as files but send us links to pages where we can have a listen. Soundcloud works a treat for example. You can even send private links from there, so that the music is not publicly available, but only to those with the exact link.
In any case, we are still hungry for fresh Funk and look forward to many more years of listening and releasing 45s… and hopefully other formats.