D – Labels

Downwards
Birmingham, United Kingdom

3 Releases

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Biography

Working solely within Britain's arm of Industrial might and decay in the Birmingham borough of Halesowen, Karl O'Connor (Regis) and Peter Sutton (Female) launched Downwards Records in late 1993 with the debut Hostage (O'Connor/Sutton) and Surgeon releases to manic acclaim. Magnetic electronic thunder cut dark swathes through the big parties for the first time with O'Connor's instantaneously recognizable black envelope of deep atmosphere and suffocating basslines. Skillfully keeping looped Industrial elements well within musical realms became O'Connor's forté and reputation with the early "Montreal", "Application of Language" and "We Said No" twelve-inches. The worldwide reactions to his backcatalog triggered a renewed focus on serious UK Techno heralded by the Downwards imprint. Without being market-led, it was a fresh new statement but most important for the sound was the unmistakable imprint of O'Connor's hand in the art. In 1996, O'Connor's progress reached crowning maturity with the Regis "Gymnastics" album steeped in the signature of his raw and dynamic edge. The sound was the uniqueness that he had been searching for which encapsulated and forged the cornerstone of both his and the label's identity. A deep-seated and vital root in the Birmingham Techno scene and sound, O'Connor's hard minimal techno is rife with subtle layers of complex textures, tones and loops. Although closely linked to the fiercely independent core of Downwards producers (Surgeon, Female, Portion Reform and Regis), Karl O'Connor's own sound and DIY ethos has kept Downwards well-respected while in the limelight and more importantly, without getting burned by it.
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