Philippe’s Rat Records Blog

<!– @page { margin: 2cm } P { margin-bottom: 0.21cm } A:link { so-language: zxx } –>

Well, first of all, thank you for all your concern (you know who you are, the 3 of you), I have not lost my job to a Russian model after all and apparently, my position at Rat Records is secured for the time being. Pfff!!

Second, I would like to ask the most creative of you all for a little bit of help : you see, we have finally decided to print Rat Records T shirts for all of you to wear proudly in streets and festivals, but we find ourselves stumped for a slogan. Now if any of you could come with one that would end up printed on what will undoubtedly prove to be a fashion statement for the future generations, then I would provide you with a £15.00 voucher and I will pray for your soul every week for a full year.

Right… so, as we all know, there are many important and profound issues that we all have had to confront at some point of another, and this for centuries and millenniums, but I am proud and deeply happy to finally give you an answer to all of them right here right now and once and for all, by simply giving you a comprehensive preview of the Rat Records new in rack for this Saturday-and as you might expect, it was well worth the wait!

Let’s start with the very latest arrival : a nice tall pile of original BLUE NOTE LPs from the 60’s-70’s. Ike Quebec, Stanley Turpentine, Jimmy McGriff, Coltrane and Miles Davis of course and some other tasty thick vinyls like those modern 180gr represses could only dream to feel like.

Yesterday, it was Soul, Funk and Reggae that we had to price all day. I can’t pretend to be an expert in that field, but I could only look in awe as I was confronted with records I had never encountered before by the likes of Mad Professor (he really looks MAD), Augustus Pablo, Sly and Robbie, Gregory Isaacs, Misty in roots, Johnny Hammond, Lee Perry, Dave Barker meets the Upsetters and some brilliant looking and sounding Ska compilations. Of course, these are the ones I noticed with my profan’s eyes…the truth will, as you expect, be to be found in the rack on Saturday morning.

Some of you may find all the answers they need in the riffs of noise pop semi gods Ride or indie pensioners Pixies (will their come back tour ever end ?)

Unless, of course, you are, like me, a strong believer that the truth comes from 1970’s Germany and has been hiding in the circuits of a few analog synths in a recording studio named Kling Klang. Kraftwerk still sounds better than any of their admirers, including LFO, Massive Attack and anyone else with a laptop you can bother naming, and we have a plethora of their records for sale, all below the £8.00 mark.

One more thing : I’ll be doing some Djing at the Relentless Garage next Thursday for the London launch gig of the new LP from the marvelous Tunng .http://www.tunng.co.uk/

It’s a great record and they are even better live.

And that’s it from me this week. Take care all of you!!

Philippe-Rat Records