Before PERRIER was Called PERRIER
This article was originally published in International
Perfectly painted vinyl and records players, much like all of your fave 90s bands - (ahem Spice Girls?) are going through a bit of a revival. Posting a pic of one (a vinyl, not a spice girl!) on Insta is pretty much the small town equivalent of a Kim K selfie (sans the Calabasas location stamp, obvs). And that’s why you should spice up your life with Ghost Ramp. An LA based record label who unite a striking aesthetic with vinyl and apparel, they’ve gone from strength to strength since their inception two years ago under the guidance of Wavves frontman, Nathan Williams, and his label mate Patrick McDermott.
“Nathan and I basically became friends via our passion for gaming.” Patrick tells us, a welcome nerdy throwback from a guy who co-runs one of the coolest labels around. “We would just hang for hours gaming (and maybe drinking lots of alcohol).” After making Patrick an offer - cue your best Marlon Brando voice - that he couldn’t refuse, the pair found their niche in the market in between getting ridiculously drunk and playing Pacman. “We both shared a passion for video game music and felt compelled to bridge the gap between video game music and the traditional music worlds. There are a few other labels that release video game scores but we are the only one that releases them amongst bands and producers (especially from our pedigree of talent).” Starting to press video game soundtracks on vinyl, Ghost Ramp became known for expanding on what traditional record labels do. “You want to create an interesting and compelling product - and I think we have done that well - especially with the video game releases.” Patrick tells us, “So far it seems to be working as we have a lot of fans who collect everything!”
Undoubtedly Ghost Ramp’s striking psychedelic visuals - across vinyl and apparel - is one of the reasons that fans can’t get enough of the merch. “We really prioritise working with great artists and have tried to curate quality artwork across the board.” Patrick explains, “We wanted to be more than the standard record label in terms of apparel and creating more of a brand feel via cohesive visual aesthetic was a big part of this.” Lucky for the guys, they happen to be mates with fantastic artists and have often recruited friends to design their next ventures. “Why not support and work with the people close to you? I think this was just a natural instinct for Nathan and I. The successes feel better with friends you can share it with!”
Embody your inner T-swizzle and turn your back on Spotify and those oh-so-painful ads that interrupt quality time with bae. VIVA LA VINYL!
