What can you achieve in ten years? It took my dad ten years to fix the gate at my childhood home!

Meanwhile, Wall of Sound has managed to diversify from its unfair big-beat pigeonhole into a cluster of four unique labels that mean it's possible to release any guise of quality sound that screams 'SIGN ME!'

We caught up with the driver at the helm Mark Jones to see how he plans to celebrate…

Steal-Life - Happy Birthday! You've made a decade unscathed and doing better than ever!
Mark Jones - Thank You.

SL- Other labels that started at the same time are missing in action… What's different about Wall of Sound?
MJ - It's very very tough to exist as a competitive indie label these days. Believe me we have had some very hard times. But we got through those days thanks to love and support from the majority of artists, friends and workmates.

The graph that indies ride has very high and lo points, where as the majors don't suffer those drastic curves. I think the main reason we haven't fallen by the wayside is the fact that we've always believed in doing things our own way, delivered music with a melodic quality and always of a solid standard - and we've nearly always done it with a smile.

SL - The idea to diversify into four labels was a brave one, has it diluted the impact of the whole deck of cards?
MJ - We did suffer for a time in that we really took on too much for a relatively small label. Our rosta expanded and it became a strain on manpower. The main reason for introducing the other labels was that lazy journalism and the like cornered us, they believed to be a label that released one style of music - which quite frankly was bollocks!

In the UK they have to 'genre-lise' you if they can't put a finger on what you do. Without moving into different areas we would never have signed 'The Bees' or 'Blak Twang' and released some amazing music.

SL - Do you have any plans to add yet more labels to the portfolio?
MJ - Well really it is all one label. There will always only really be one!

SL - Royksopp, are currently your biggest act... but are they who should we should be watching?
MJ - If you're talking about acts that we have that I think will do something big big, then both 'The Bees' and 'Blak Twang' will go onto to be huge acts in the UK. I'm also looking forward to getting out the new 'Zoot Woman / Les Rythmes Digitales' material

Of the new acts, I think the 'Medicine' record is a landmark album for the label. It's a very important record. Its the record that Warp never made in the way it combines amazing melodies with avant garde phuturistic sounds, programming and production… Oh, and there's also Bruce Lee's daughter singing all over it. Only on Wall of Sound could a record like this happen.

SL - What would be your dream-team signings if you could have signed anyone in history?
MJ - Now that's a question! I suppose working with one of the great producers like Joe Meek, Brian Wilson, Phil Spector or Trevor Horn. I'm a sonics freak and love the affect these people had on music.

I'd love to work with a rock band, maybe Led Zeppelin! I'd love to fuck up a rock band!

SL - You have some interesting photos, do you always carry a camera?
MJ - Since Olympus gave me one, pretty much yeah! Can be a bit bulky so late a night. It can be tricky, especially as I have a reputation for losing just about everything I take out with me!

SL - Butterflies?!
MJ - Yes Butterflies! They intrigue me. Such natural beauty is pretty hard to find in love or life. I'll let the pictures explain. Just promise me you won't tell my ward staff nurse.

Wall of Sound will be celebrating its debauched decade of sonics all through 2003 - Check out the news pages for forthcoming dates and parties.

SL - Last word to you Mark…
MJ - We give people a good time at any Wall of Sound night. Isn't that what parties are really for?

Av That!

www.wallofsound.net