A guide to The Vinyl Factory label releases in 2022

A year of pushing boundaries. 

We have had the pleasure of working alongside an eclectic collection of artists throughout 2022, each of whom, despite the differences in their art, embodies the spirit of exploration and belief in the power of music that we value so highly at The Vinyl Factory.

From Ben Frost’s journey into the Brazilian Amazon to Hélène Vogelsinger’s modular experimentation to the direct-to-dubplate one-take recordings of The Vinyl Sessions, each release on The Vinyl Factory’s label this year challenged and utilised barriers and boundaries to create something wholly new.

Check out the list of 2022 releases below.

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Art Themen, Greg Foat & Baldo Verdu & Moses Boyd

Four Sides to Every Story

(The Vinyl Factory / Soho Radio / 180)

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Captured as a part of The Vinyl Sessions–a series from The Vinyl Factory and Soho Radio where artists record direct-to-dubplate–Four Sides to Every Story sees Art Themen, Greg Foat, Baldo Verdu and Moses Boyd teaming up to create four spontaneous improvisations to an enthralling effect. Four Sides to Every Story is an eclectic yet cohesive journey, with the performers exhibiting a strong sense of musical chemistry and purpose despite the improvisation. One for late night mood-setting.

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Ben Frost

Broken Spectre

(The Vinyl Factory)

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Based on field recordings of the Brazilian Amazon’s ultrasonics, Ben Frost’s first album in five years is a document of environmental breakdown made as an accompaniment to Richard Mosse’s exhibition Broken Spectre. The result is a visceral collage of sounds that gives a voice to the otherwise unheard; from the vocalisations of fisher bats to the overwhelming cacophony of a forest fire. A moving and urgent body of work.

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Summer Pearl

Soul / The Social

(The Vinyl Factory / Soho Radio / 180)

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Another project from The Vinyl Sessions, “Soul”/”The Social” is a two-track release that sees Summer Pearl’s impressively arresting vocals take centre stage against economical jazz instrumentation. Both impassioned and hypnotic, this 7″ captures the rising artist doing what she does best, drawing the listener into her world and making you stand up and pay attention.

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Goya Gumbani & Subculture

KRYSTIN

(The Vinyl Factory)

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Goya Gumbani and Subculture team up to meld the worlds of jazz and hip-hop together on KRYSTIN. Gumbani began work on KRYSTIN following the death of his sister, and the project provided him with a therapeutic outlet. From that stems a beautiful loosely crafted release where Gumbani’s reflections on love and loss form loose shapes against smokey jazz structures. Both introspective and heartening, KRYSTIN has a positive heart that looks to a future informed by the past.

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Hélène Vogelsinger

Patch Notes

(The Vinyl Factory)

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Originally recorded for FACT’s Patch Notes–a series which celebrates the creation of electronic music with hardware–this release sees Hélène Vogelsinger working with modular synths in an abandoned castle in France. Patch Notes is heady and patient, showcasing how the steady progression and unfurling nature of modular synthesis lends itself to emotional catharsis. Putting sounds to feelings that words fail to explain, Patch Notes is a lesson in musical immersion.