NSG’s Dave Clare caught up with Pete Wilkinson and Nick Graff from Av8 to talk about the genesis of their label, their future plans, and a shared fantasy regarding The Velvet Underground.

DC: Who are Av8 records Ltd.?

PW: The team comprises of Nick Graff, all round organisation and ideas, Deano, (Dean Martin), social media, Arsenal fan and friend to everyone, Russ, our webmaster, needs no explanation and then myself, Pete Wilkinson,  founder, aviator, and procrastinator, unable to make any solid decisions without all of the above.

DC: What is Av8 then, and what is the ethos and idea behind the label? What’s your USP, and how did it all come about?? 

PW: Av8 records ltd is about releasing music and good products which are reasonably priced which can then go on to fund other projects, as well as giving the artists some money for their hard work, love, and passion. The label came about through meeting Nick. We happen to have a lot of friends in common (from Liverpool the city), as well as Liverpool the football club. I’d recorded an album, ‘No Friend Of Mind’, and was thinking of ways to release it, after a few conversations and some much needed confidence boosts from Nick, he helped put the whole package together. Nick then started to talk about other artists and releasing their music too.  Av8 records is very much Nick’s thing now and it has become a vehicle for other musicians as well as Aviator to release new music.

DC: How did Covid and the lockdowns impact your work, was it hard with studios and stuff being closed?    

PW: Covid had a massive impact on our Drellas release and actually put the company back 18 months. We were hoping to have had The Drellas and our Aviator album out in 2021. From a personal point of view, the new Aviator record has probably benefited from having a little extra time being put into it. Maybe others can decide if that is right though.

Tommy Scott of The Drellas & Space

DC: What’s going on with this vinyl shortage then? Can you guys still make a living? 

PW: Luckily, we both make a living in other mediums. The label is a labour of love and all the better for that.  We do this with artists that we love and people we want to work and connect with. The vinyl shortage put The Drellas back by a year, but luckily the artists we work with have no time restraints on releasing their music, so, at Av8 we have the luxury of taking our time.

DC: You’re putting something out from The Drellas, Tommy Scott’s old band, is it a long lost album or something? 

PW: When Tommy split from Space he looked to take a complete left turn and formed what he calls his “Punk breakdown band”. Although The Drellas were really successful as a live band, the album they recorded sat around for ten years doing nothing, while Space reformed and took over Tommy’s life again. A conversation between Nick and Tommy about the success of Marionette, (Tommy’s recent solo album), ended with the plan to release the missing album, which then became AV8..11! We also have some amazing albums by Paul Simpson (The Wild Swans) and Nick Power (The Coral) coming out soon, so lots to look forward to.

DC: The label has a strong connection with Liverpool, you’ve just started to work with a young singer songwriter called James Redmond, tell us a bit about James and is there anyone else we should be looking out for? 

James Redmond

PW: Yer, we’re super excited about James. He’s been a kind of underground force for some time, playing a big part in the “Bandwagon” era of the Liverpool scene, bands like The Coral, The Zutons, and The Bandits all came out of that period and James, although a founding member of Tramp Attack, just stayed doing his thing, away from others, although he did join James Skelly and the Intenders, recording an album with them and touring the country. I can’t give you solid reasons why, but he’s ready now and he’s such a creative talent that we’re really looking forward to putting this release out for him. He’s got a really supportive group of mates too, so hopefully, we’ll get it noticed and get other people into him as much as we are.

DC: If you guys could magically transport your label HQ to any other city in the world, where would you like to set up? Berlin, New York, Nashville, or maybe London in the swinging ’60s??

PW: Cool question, but I’m not sure where I’d set us up, perhaps mid 70’s New York.  The Talking Heads, The Ramones, Television, that era.  I’d have it all centered around CBGBs, the Chelsea Hotel, William Burroughs, and Patti Smith.

NG: The only place I would ever want it to be is where it is now. Working with people like Pete here, Tommy Scott, Nick Power, Mike Murphy, and Paul Simpson. It’s been a dream and getting to persuade super talented people like James that we can get their music out there, it’s been brilliant. Why would I want to be anywhere else? 

DC: What advice would you give to someone looking to start a label?  

PW: Have fun!!! I’m not sure if we can advise people as this has all been organic and taken us all a little by surprise.

DC: Is there any advice that you’d give to artists who are looking to sign to a label? 

PW: To remember that it’s not your money when a major label gives you an advance, it’s a loan, you’ll have to pay it back, and more. Always think about what it is you want to achieve, also, have fun, cos it doesn’t last forever. 

DC: If you could have three artists from any era or genre sign to Av8, who would you choose?, (Beatles not allowed, ofc) 

PW: Three artists signed to Av8 records ltd.? ok, let’s see…The Velvet Underground, Miles Davis, and James Redmond, one of those is actually happening.

NG: I’ll also go with The Velvet Underground, Shack and Echo, and The Bunnymen. 

DC: What’s your ultimate dream for Av8, where would you like to be ten years from now with the label? 

 PW: My ultimate dream for Av8 records would be for something that we release as a label to receive critical acclaim and for that artist to also receive recognition. That acclaim would then translate into sales and keep us, the artist, and the universe aligned so that we could make more music. 

NG: Making great music with great people and having fun doing it.  Making enough money from each project to be able to invest time in people like James Redmond,  people that the world needs to hear.

DC: Thank you for giving us the chance to interview you, anything else you’d like to add? 

PW: As I said right at the beginning, we do this for the love of music… Music is life, Music is power, Music is for all !!!

To contact AV8 Records click the link: Website