US beer brand Brooklyn Brewery has made a play for the UK music market with the launch of Brooklyn Brewery Records – a new label aimed at supporting young, independent artists.
UK rock outfit The Graveltones is currently collaborating with (not signed to) Brooklyn Brewery Records, which recorded the band’s 2015 Halloween performance at The Lexington in London before pressing the recording to vinyl, with a limited number of copies set to be made available at the band’s upcoming shows in London (July 6th, Flashback Records) and Nottingham (July 7th, Rough Trade Nottingham) next month.
Commenting on Brooklyn Brewery’s decision to launch into the UK music market, brand ambassador for the UK, Rachael Weseloh told Music Week: "New York City's Brooklyn Borough has always been at the forefront when it comes to supporting emerging artists, so Brooklyn Brewery was really keen to bring that spirit to the UK, taking original, independent bands and pressing the unadulterated sound to vinyl, to be listened to as intended - loud and raw.
"We're really excited about this new project and The Graveltones is such a great duo to launch this with. Keep your ears open and your eyes peeled for more Brooklyn Brewery shows - the next band we play with could be the next we press to a record."
According to Jimmy O, guitarist and vocalist of The Graveltones, the band was interested in the idea of Brooklyn Brewery Records from its inception.
"We wanted to make a record in an old school kind of way – really raw and truthful to the show, no studio wizardry and all that stuff – just hit record and print,” he said. “Brooklyn was thinking the same thing so it was all pretty instant."
Brooklyn Brewery isn’t the first alcohol brand to make connections with the music industry. In recent years, Jagermeister has undergone a major rebrand, affiliating itself to music via its Ice Cold gigs series, which sees artists performing in extreme conditions. The brand has so far completed the world’s first ever gig on land, sea and air with My Bloody Valentine’s Matt Tuck, while UK band The Defiled performed atop a moving iceberg in Greenland.
Beer brand Hobgoblin also has its own signature chain of folk instrument retail outlets across the UK.
