A chat with Ant from Vinyl Only...

Vinyl Only has established itself as a force within the Balearic / House music landscape, embracing the timeless warmth of vinyl for over 10 years now. Founded by Ant Plate in 2015, the label has dedicated itself to exploring the soulful grooves and melodic richness of disco, downtempo, Balearic, and dub genres. As it celebrates over a decade of evocative releases, Vinyl Only continues to cultivate deep connections with DJs, collectors, and listeners, championing a philosophy that music is best savoured beyond the reach of algorithms. We caught up with Ant recently to learn more...

Vinyl Only has carved out a niche with its disco, downtempo, Balearic, and dub releases. Canyou share the story behind the label’s inception and what inspired you to focus exclusively onthese genres?

Vinyl Only’s been steadily releasing 12”s, every year for ten years this year!. It began way backin 2014 when Vinyl Only head honcho Ant Plate (already known as one half of Rhythm Plate),had already begin migrating his outputs from Deep House to the “Its an edit, but whats theoriginal - is it sampled? Maybe its played?” chunky disco funk that YSE Saint Laur’Ant is nowknown for. These early YSL tracks were landing big with DJs and crowds, so amongst a sea ofobvious and kick + sidechain re-edits, we knew there was appetite for music that went beyondthis predictably. By 2015 Vinyl Only Records was born. Vinyl Only (VO) love a good 125 bpmdance track as much as the next person, as our back catalogue can attest, but back then, therewasnt (and still isnt) too many labels - especially vinyl only labels - releasing music that cateredto the genres you mentioned. Our labels ethos was, and still is, to supply a combination ofgroove, melody and soulful music without conforming to the current trends of the times.

Why did you decide to commit to vinyl as your primary format in an era where digital dominates?How do you think this choice shapes the label’s identity and influences the way listeners engagewith your music?

VO always wanted the music to be in the hands of the DJs and tastemakers first, maybe the collectors next, and then the wider listeners/audience last. Which, in todays data-metric-social-media-driven world, and from a business/sales perspective thats completely counterintuitive. We’ve see the effect that DSP’s, Shazam, Youtube etc. has had on music,major & indie labels, A&R and the DJ scene - the removal of scarcity, anonymity and the dilution of anticipation down to an instant answer on an app. All this has made the record industry both anxious and scared yet simultaneously lazy and entitled - especially now AI music is in the mix.When we started VO (over 10 years ago), we knew where tech and societal changes were heading, so we wanted to be an early antidote: Aim to retain exclusivity and underground qualities amongst a flood of omnipotent music releases. VO sought to, and still strives to be, an albeit tiny diametric to this societal Goliath.

Disco and Balearic music often evoke a sense of place or a certain time of day. How do you go about curating records that maintain that emotional resonance while still keeping things fresh and relevant?

Classic response, but ‘crate digging’. We’ll never stop listening and discovering new and old music, from all genres and periods of time, in all pockets of the world. This is reflected in the nature of our back catalogue; certain tracks will evoke a sense of place or time much more effectively than other music and labels. And this resonates deeply with everyone who enjoys VO’s output.

How has the vinyl-only approach affected your relationships with artists, collectors, and DJs? Have you found that the format creates a stronger bond within the scene?

Absolutely creates a stronger bond - audience especially. The physical aspect makes it slightlyless disposable too as its always good to send an artist the physical. In the age of data analyticsand metric chasing, the vinyl makes the release experience all too real, and positive. On themusic side we’re really not arrogant or egotistical enough to throw out any old tosh and expectbuyers to simply buy it cos its on our label, or by X *insert trending producers name*, but ratherwe feel its our duty to continually experiment, as all artists should. Shift the dial. Push theenvelope etc. just enough, so on every 12” we aim to release 4 tracks (or more). Firstly tomaximise the music-to-cost ratio for the paying DJ/market, then secondly, so we can afford to goa little bit off-piste genre-wise or sonically, especially with the inner tracks - its an old strategyadopted from albums of the late 20th century: shits amongst the hits?

Pressing records comes with its own set of hurdles, from manufacturing delays to distribution.What have been some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced running a vinyl-only label, and what keeps you committed to this path?

We can’t laser-focus a release date. For many reasons they never seem to come out when weare either told, or when we expect them. This can be a frustrating thing for DJs/buyers, while itsa nightmare for Promo/PR.. So thats another reason why we don’t typically send out Promos orrun PR campaigns (unless its an absolute must).

Over the years, have you noticed any shifts in the genres you release—maybe more dubinfluences creeping into your disco catalog, or downtempo tracks taking on a Balearic twist?How do you stay flexible while still maintaining the label’s core identity?

Of course. We hear the differences across scenes, tribes, DJs and tastes as they evolve, butthats expected, and a good thing. As a result we’re always slowly diversifying our sound, andeven our genres. Having released a fairly consistent chunky-slow disco-infused ‘sound’ sincewe started, we always aim to release a few ‘hidden’ tracks, or even full EP’s that attest to ourmore experimental edge. As far as experimenting with vinyl formats and other genres, we’realso 100% behind this approach, provided it sits close to VO’s aforementioned label ethos - tosupply a heavy combination of groove, melody and soul etc.. One example might be our firstever 7” release which presented two Dub Reggae slabs by the ‘Vinyl Only Allstars’. As usual,time will tell if we choose the right path, but move forward we must.

What’s on the horizon for Vinyl Only? Are there any upcoming releases, collaborations, or events that fans should keep an ear out for?

As always, we have plenty of upcoming releases in the release pipeline - not all will make it out on Vinyl Only though. We’re slowly branching out stylistically, though we will try and treadcarefully when jumping genres, so as not to jump too far in any one direction. At the minute,we’re sat on a couple of albums worth of brand new music from a collective of geographicallydislocated professional singers and musicians. Ant Plate has written and produced it all and haschosen a digitally-dusty-lofi aesthetic, which doesnt make for audiophile quality listening, butfollows “the technological constraints of today become the emulated effect of tomorrow” trope.They’ve settled on the name ‘Ex Veil’ so watch out for plenty of music through 2025 andbeyond.

If you had to pick one release from your catalog that perfectly encapsulates the Vinyl Only ethos, which would it be and why?

YSE Saint Laur’Ant’s album - Today, Tonight, Tomorrow, To Love. Albeit released over 4 x 12”s, we at the label call it one release.

We picked this because,
1. it was Vinyl Only's first album release
2. its not available to listen to (in full) on any DSP’s (certainly not the same version as on vinyl),3. the 4-way 12” split provided flexibility cos DJs could select only the 12”s they wanted,
4. the carved up artwork allowed collectors to buy all 4 and complete the set (to hang on theirwalls!)
5. the wider listening audience are left wondering what they’re listening to.

Your releases often carry a distinct atmosphere. Beyond music, what influences the label’s aesthetic—whether it’s design, travel, or a particular place that resonates with you?

All the aforementioned ingredients add to its exotic mix.

What advice would you give to someone considering launching their own vinyl-only label in today’s music landscape?

Come on in. The more of us the better - just ensure quality over quantity, as A&R seemed to have died with the advent of digital distributors.

If you're not feeling a song/track, then either ask for other peoples opinions (that you trust or have a good ear for what works with your intended audience. If the label were a cocktail, what ingredients would go into it, and what would you call it?

Why stop at one? we’d start a bar and defo have the following on our menu...

Static Electricity
Jack Daniels & Vodka mixed cane-sugared coke and popping candy dust.No ice.

B-Side Blend.
Artisanal Brandy, mixed with Vanilla Ice Cream and Cane-Sugared Coke.No ice.

Spin Doctor.
Batavia Arrack, mixed with lime & lemon juice, demerara syrup, nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves. No ice.

Have you ever come across a track so out of left field that it almost changed the direction of the label entirely? What happened next?

Actually, a big yes. Ex Veil’s music. Its not leftfield music per se, as its very melodic, but its not something VO would traditionally put out, YET we have a bunch of new music thats a masterclass in how lofi can sound cool. We hate pigeon-holing but we feel Ex Veil sits somewhere amongst the conscious 1990s jazz hip-hop fusion era up to the early 00s soul andR&B - heavy melodies and mellow heaven lies without being cheesy. We have at least two albums worth thats already been mastered - by Martin ‘Atjazz’ Iveson - but we’ve been sat on the demos for well over a year trying to work out how best to release it. Its really made us re-evaluate the direction & sound of Vinyl Only - in a good way - but we’re now thinking a digi release for the first album might be best, with vinyl providing the remixes. If theres demand for the album on vinyl then we might release the full length, unedited versions of each song as a ‘full length’ album (albeit limited in copies). To retain some of that exclusivity.

What’s the strangest place you’ve ever heard one of your records played, and how did it feel tohear it there?

Never ceases to amaze how far music travels. Travelling/Djing around New Zealand’s a few years ago in an old camping van and it was a particularly cold day parked up in Queenstown when the engine was started to get the heater going. As expected the radio fired up but unexpectedly it was one of our songs blasting from the dialled in station - the excellent GeorgeFM. That was nice.

If you could swap the entire Vinyl Only catalog with any other label’s, just for one day, whose would it be and why?

As a tiny indie label I would swap with any one of the 3 major labels - Sony, UMG or Warner.Firstly, so we could benefit from the unbelievable amount of revenue stream generated from partnering with the DSP’s and in-turn shafting the indie artists and labels. We’d then divert amajority of that money into smaller, musician skilled, projects that were creating new, melodicmusic without having to stick to a ‘pop’ formula, or wasnt actively pushing a data-driven ‘trend’,‘brand’, ‘meme’, ‘sound’ or ‘celebrity’. Secondly we’d schedule to release a bunch of decent anddeserved music that was devoid of analytical scrutiny, all in an effort to un-stagnate the currentslew of Major label releases.. Ie: to paraphrase the immortal master “Quincy Jones” - lets shakeup the music industry.

If Vinyl Only were tasked with curating a soundtrack for a sci-fi film set on a tropical planet, what would that sound like?

Meat Beat Manifesto meets Morodor and Morricone produced by Quincy and engineered byMartin Iveson, maybe? Start with organic material - shells, coconuts, mouth etc. - then mash and manipulate these sounds through analogue gear before recording into first, and then reconstructing within a decent DAW - we’d pick one that was very capable of recombobulating and distilling down into bluetooth earphones via clever pocket-based computers for mass consumption.

Buy/listen to Mar de Novo's Daje EP on Juno

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