Warp Records

Founded in Sheffield, 1989, by Steve Beckett and Rob Mitchell. Started as a dance music distributor and pivoted to releasing records after the success of Forgemasters’ “Track With No Name.” Named after a warehouse clearance price (“Warp speed” reduction). One of the most consistently excellent record labels in existence.

Bleep and Sheffield

The label’s early sound — “bleep techno” — was a Sheffield-specific variant of house music: deep sub-bass, minimal drum machine patterns, little melodic content. Heard on massive speakers in Sheffield clubs at extremely high volume, it was physically felt as much as heard.

Artificial Intelligence series

In 1992, Warp released the Artificial Intelligence compilation — music designed for headphone listening at home rather than dancefloors. The cover showed a robot relaxing in an armchair with Kraftwerk and Pink Floyd records. It effectively founded what became IDM (Intelligent Dance Music, a term most of its artists disliked).

Roster (selective)

• Aphex Twin (1992–)
• Boards of Canada (1996–)
• Autechre (1991–)
• Squarepusher (1996–)
• Flying Lotus (2008–)
• Battles (2007–)
• Rustie (2010–)
• Kelela (2017–)
• SAULT (2021–)
• Yves Tumor (2019–)

Rob Mitchell

Mitchell died in 2001 at 38. The label has run ever since as a tribute to what they built together. Beckett still runs it from London. There is no Warp without Sheffield, and no Sheffield electronic music without Warp.