Rephlex Records was a record label launched in 1991 in Cornwall by electronic musician Richard D. James (aka Aphex Twin) and Grant Wilson-Claridge.[1] The label coined the term braindance to describe the output of Aphex Twin and fellow artists.[2]
In 1989, Grant Wilson-Claridge met Richard D. James (a.k.a. Aphex Twin) DJing at The Bowgie, a club located just along the coast from Newquay, Cornwall. According to Wilson-Claridge, back in 1989, "the Bowgie was the best club ever...this was before Newquay turned into the Cornish Ibiza" and it was very difficult to hear new and interesting music. Wilson-Claridge and James used to DJ on alternate weeks. When he noticed that James was playing his own tapes rather than records, Wilson-Claridge suggested that they press up some records. In the beginning, committing Aphex Twin recordings to vinyl was a way of making music the duo's friends wanted to hear. Due to their geographical dis-location they did not have access to the music they wanted to hear and so they decided to create their own, and Rephlex was born.[3] Although the label was founded in 1991 in Cornwall, it moved the year after to London.[4]
On a post to an internet newsgroup in 1992, the label stated that its intent was to "promote 'Innovation in the dynamics of Acid' – a much loved and misunderstood genre of house music" and to "demonstrate to the rest of the world that British dance music can be entirely original".[5]
Rephlex has released the music of many electronic artists, among them Mike Paradinas, DMX Krew, Luke Vibert, Aleksi Perälä and Squarepusher. The label has also remastered and re-released the early works of 808 State[6], the Future Sound of London and The Criminal Minds,[7] and relaunched the career of electronic duo producers Black Devil with a re-release of their first record.
James closed Rephlex in 2014, saying "that's something that needed to be done a long time ago. Me and my friend would have drifted apart, but actually the label did keep us together. It got to a point where I'd actually rather be his friend than be in business with him."[8]
