You may well have read my post about that fact that we’ve got an exclusive set from Swank n Jams from Sheffield-based Planet Terror Records on this weeks Soul Food radio show.

Now, I’ve been in contact with label co-founder Fred for a little while now, and I’m liking what they’re doing. All being well, we should be doing quite a bit with them in the future.

So, I thought it was about time I got round to asking a few questions to Head Terrors Sam and Fred, to find out a bit more about what they’re up to, and what makes them tick, in an exclusive interview stylee.

So, let’s do that, shall we…?

M: Hello Chaps

Both: “Hello”

M: So, give us a bit of background to Planet Terror…When did you guys start the label, and why?

Fred: The idea for Planet Terror Records started on a drunken night in spring ‘08. Me and Sam thought that starting a netlabel would be a neat project for the summer. We only really got up and running in autumn when we set the myspace page up and started looking for artists to release. We started with a couple of our own tunes and then found Titus 12, our first EP release, and have been going ever since.

Sam: I always liked the idea of giving out music for free – there’s something really honest and pure about it. The way I see it, a musician can be completely off-the-wall and original and still not get noticed like they should. That’s where we come in…

M: What’s your plan for the label? (apart from the obvious “world domination”!)

Fred: World Domination…haha – always! We want to find as many unsigned, talented artists from all over the world as we can and get their tunes out there. It always seems that so few make it to the top in music and artists really need all the promotional help and support they can get as they develop, especially if they’re making new and interesting sounds.

Sam: We’re aiming to build up contacts and generate some interest over the next month before we release PLANET005 – a compilation called ‘Unknown Planets’ that’ll hopefully be ready by the start of February. Very excited about the material we’ve got so far, nice and varied. Maybe got some collabs with other netlabels in the pipeline too, perhaps a release swap of some sort.

M: Looking through your MySpace, you cite influences as diverse as Eek-A-Mouse, Flying Lotus, Boards of Canada, and Burial (to name but a few!!)…..Good choices if you ask me….But what set these tastes? What sort of stuff were you into growing up?

Sam: My parents were into Dylan, Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, as well as some less cool stuff like Crowded House…I’d say I got a pretty good musical upbringing but things really got out of hand when I discovered the internet. There’s so much music out there it seems downright stupid to restrict your tastes or the scope of your netlabel to one genre. I did have a period of pretty questionable/narrow musical taste around my mid-teens which I won’t go in to, but who didn’t?! My parents hate all electronic music though, so they’re a bit confused by the whole thing.

Fred: We love music, music of all sorts from all countries and traditions. For us, there is no inherent quality in a particular type of music – it’s all good. As a result our tastes are as broad as it gets. I grew up listening to my dad’s jazz records (Miles Davis – Kind of blue etc), got into punk to rebel (Dead Kennedys!). From that I got into ska and reggae and then drum and bass. It’s just got broader and broader since.

M: Dubstep/heavy bass stuff seems to be your kind of style. It must be good to be based in Sheffield for this sort of thing. It’s always had a strong rep for that (eg all the LFO stuff, bleep and bass back in the day etc…maybe Im showing my age!!)…How are you finding your local scene these days?

Fred: Hahaha, DJ Parrot style. There’s a lot happening these days in Sheffield and I suppose there always has been. It’s a city that loves its music, especially bass-heavy, techno-influenced sounds. There have always been innovators in this city and there’s a lot of pride for Sheffield’s musical heritage. The dubstep scene is very healthy right now as well, with upcoming producers like Rogue State starting to get some serious worldwide recognition these days. I saw one of his tracks on an American mix tape the other day.

M: Got any exclusive tracks you wanna share with us?

Fred: Hell yes!

M: And who’s your hot tip for 09? (your label or otherwise!)

Fred: Expect big things from Titus 12 this year, he’s only getting better and we are defo gonna try and release a follow up to the Step Forward EP. Mir is preparing to release his hip hop debut so that’s gonna be heavy! The February compilation with tunes from Culprate, Titus 12, Mantra, Jack Orion, Racy, Kindread and many more. Peppermill Records are a neat net label from Vancouver, I’m really looking forward to their next few releases and Watch out for Cannabits netlabel too. They have it going on! All these people are on our myspace top friends.

Sam: Automatic Tasty on the Acroplane netlabel – well good.

M: When you’re not doing label stuff, what kind of stuff do you listen to? For example, what are you listening to right now/in the car/whatever? (For me, it’s currently Bobby Womack, The Who, and A Guy Called Gerald…it changes daily)

Sam: At this exact moment I’m listening to Andrew Bird. Recently I’ve been enjoying an acoustic Radiohead bootleg called ‘Gagging Order’ and EP by Grammar from Polish netlabel 49manekinow.

Fred: Squirrel Nut Zippers, Dead Kennedy’s, J.J. Cale and Amon Tobin have been going down nicely of late.

M: Anyone you wanna big up?

Sam: Opus, a social enterprise based in Sheffield that runs Now Then magazine, among other things. Endless Promotions for putting gigs on for us. The dole office for supporting our exploits this autumn…

Fred: Blunt Beats!!! All the PT crew, been a great year thanks to their dedication. Our long suffering house mates and neighbours and all the net label community for being so welcoming.

So, there you have it. A little insight into the men behind Planet Terror records. Jolly good stuff. And, as I’ve mentioned, we’re looking forward to working with them in the future. Keep your eyes peeled and your ears open for more releases, mixes, and exclusives from Planet Terror here at bluntbeats.com!