Mute Records

Mute Records is one of the most influential, commercially successful, and long-lasting of the British independent record labels formed in the wake of the late-1970's punk explosion. Yet, in comparison with contemporaries such as Rough Trade or Stiff, its legacy remains under-explored. This edited collection addresses Mute's wide-ranging impact. Drawing from disciplines such as popular music studies, musicology, and fan studies, it takes a distinctive, artist-led approach, outlining the history of the label by focusing each chapter on one of its acts. The book covers key moments in the company's evolution, from the first releases by The Normal and Fad Gadget to recent work by Arca and Dirty Electronics. It shines new light on the most successful Mute artists, including Depeche Mode, Nick Cave, Erasure, Moby, and Goldfrapp, while also exploring the label's avant-garde innovators, such as Throbbing Gristle, Mark Stewart, Labaich, Ut, and Swans. Mute Records examines the business and aesthetics of independence through the lens of the label's artists.

Zuleika Beaven is Senior Lecturer in Music Business and Arts Management at Middlesex University, UK. She is Programme Leader for the MA Arts Management, and teaches on the undergraduate popular music and music business degrees. Her research focuses on musician work and identity in the commercial space. Marcus O'Dair is Associate Professor in Music and Innovation at Middlesex University. He is the author of Different Every Time (2014). Richard Osborne is Senior Lecturer in Popular Music at Middlesex University, UK. Prior to becoming a lecturer he worked in record shops, held various posts at PRS for Music, and co-managed a pub. He is the author of Vinyl: A History of the Analogue Record (2012).

List of Plates List of Figures Permissions List of Contributors Acknowledgments Introduction: Mute Records Richard Osborne and Zuleika Beaven 1. 'Let's Make Love Before You Die': 'Warm Leatherette', Boredom, and the Invention of the 1980s S. Alexander Reed, Ithaca College, USA 2. 'One Man's Meat': Fad Gadget's Social Commentary and Post-Punk Giuseppe Zevolli, King's College, UK 3. Fans of Faith and Devotion: Obsession, Nostalgia and Depeche Mode Andy Pope, Independent Researcher 4. "Depeche Mode and Soft Cell": Redefining the Prologue of the Mute and Some Bizzare Record Labels Leon Clowes, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK 5. Throbbing Gristle's Early Records: Post-Hippie/Pre-Punk/Post-Punk John Encarnacao, Western Sydney University, Australia 6. 'Join That Troubled Chorus': Nick Cave, the Bad Seeds, and the Blues Ross Cole, University of Cambridge, UK 7. Mark Stewart: 'Somewhere' Eddie George, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK 8. 'Sometimes, Always': Erasure, Mute and the Value of Independence Brenda Kelly, Independent Researcher 9. Outside Mute? Ut, No Wave and Blast First Ieuan Franklin, Bournemouth University, UK 10. The Mash-up of Aesthetics, Theory and Politics in Laibach's Meta-sound Aténé Mendelyté, Lund University, Sweden 11. 'The Blessed Glow of Labour': Independence, Style and Process in the Music of Swans Dean Lockwood, University of Lincoln, UK 12. Moby, Minstrelsy and Melville Richard Osborne, Middlesex University, UK 13. 'Country Girl': Rural Feminism in the Performance of Alison Goldfrapp Lucy O'Brien, University of the Creative Arts, UK 14. Twist: Goldfrapp's Genre Perversion Glyn Davis, University of Edinburgh, UK 15. Arca: Mute's Mutant Mark Waugh, Anglia University, UK 16. Composing in Circuitry: Sonic Artist Dirty Electronics Lourdes N. Crosby García, Full Sail University, USA Index