Sarah Records was a UK independent record label active between 1987 and 1995,[1] best known for its recordings of twee pop, though the label always hated this tag, not just because some of the bands could scarcely be described as "twee", but also because it preferred to emphasize the politics of the label (attacking the capitalism and sexism of the record industry, both explicitly in text and more subtly and symbolically through the packaging and marketing of the records themselves).
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Sarah Records was a UK independent record label active between 1987 and 1995,[1] best known for its recordings of twee pop, though the label always hated this tag, not just because some of the bands could scarcely be described as "twee", but also because it preferred to emphasize the politics of the label (attacking the capitalism and sexism of the record industry, both explicitly in text and more subtly and symbolically through the packaging and marketing of the records themselves).
The label was formed in Bristol in 1987 by Clare Wadd and Matt Haynes, and grew out of the fanzine scene at the time, Haynes having previously edited Are You Scared To Get Happy?, and Wadd Kvatch. Both these fanzines had given away flexidiscs - indeed, AYSTGH had been part of the Sha-la-la organization, a record label set up solely to produce flexidiscs. Several Sarah releases were fanzines and flexi-discs, as it was felt this summed up the aesthetic of the label better than 12" singles and albums.
Sarah Records was usually seen as being grounded in the C86 jangly indie-pop sensibility, though the late Seventies DIY scene and independent yet stylish and imaginative labels such as Postcard Records, Factory and Creation, plus the mid-Eighties fanzine culture, were bigger influences. It ceased operation with the release of There and Back Again Lane, the hundredth release in the main catalog sequence - a booklet telling the story of the label, along with a CD of representative tracks. Half-page adverts entitled "A Day For Destroying Things" in both NME and Melody Maker marked the release. "We don't do encores", the advert announced, and the label has stuck by this sentiment, with no further releases. Bands on the label included Heavenly, East River Pipe, The Orchids, Even As We Speak, Boyracer, Brighter, Blueboy, The Field Mice, Another Sunny Day and St. Christopher.
Haynes subsequently established Shinkansen Recordings, where many Sarah artists went on to record; he now edits a zine, Smoke, dedicated to writing and art inspired by London.
