Mark Jones is the creator and Managing Director for Wall of Sound.
Mark Jones
(Wall of Sound, GB)
Mark Jones is the creator and Managing Director for Wall of Sound. Following its inception in the spring of 1995, Wall Of Sound rose to become a highly influential and successful UK independent label, noted initially for its big beat and jazz/hip-hop artists. It was formed by Mark Jones (b. September 1964) and Marc Lessner, both veterans of the London soul and acid jazz scene, or the "soul Mafia' as it was known in the mid-80s. They met at a club called the Special Branch at a pub in Tooley Street, London, where Gilles Peterson, Nicky Holloway and Pete Tong were DJing. Jones was projecting visuals to accompany the music and Lessner was selling records from a box. In 1988, the scene was transformed when most of its prime-movers went to Ibiza during the summer and discovered MDMA, acid house and the Balearic ideal. Lessner progressed to his own distribution company, Soul Trader and, having met Jones again in a record shop, offered him a job. After doing promotions and distribu...
Following its inception in the spring of 1995, Wall Of Sound rose to become a highly influential and successful UK independent label, noted initially for its big beat and jazz/hip-hop artists. It was formed by Mark Jones (b. September 1964) and Marc Lessner, both veterans of the London soul and acid jazz scene, or the "soul Mafia' as it was known in the mid-80s. They met at a club called the Special Branch at a pub in Tooley Street, London, where Gilles Peterson, Nicky Holloway and Pete Tong were DJing. Jones was projecting visuals to accompany the music and Lessner was selling records from a box. In 1988, the scene was transformed when most of its prime-movers went to Ibiza during the summer and discovered MDMA, acid house and the Balearic ideal. Lessner progressed to his own distribution company, Soul Trader and, having met Jones again in a record shop, offered him a job. After doing promotions and distribution for labels such as Delancey Street, Black Sunshine, Interstate and Black Market International, they decided to assemble a compilation of some their clients" best tracks. Taking their name from Phil Spector's idea of an epic soundscape, they released Give Em Enough Dope in 1994. They continued to break ground with various single releases, and Give Em Enough Dope 2 featured tracks by DJ Food (Coldcut), Pressure Drop, Mekon and Portishead among others. The sound of the label during this period ranged from the funky, experimentalism of Les Rythmes Digitales, through the moody "jazz-hop" of Akasha, to the big beat madness of Dirty Beatniks and Propellerheads. The label's releases were notable for their retro, 70s-style design and photographs featuring various stages of the production of hashish on the Give Em Enough Dope series.
Wall Of Sound enjoyed notable critical and commercial success with the Propellerheads. Despite lucrative offers from major labels, the band remained with Wall Of Sound because of a sense of belonging and shared purpose. Their debut Decksandrumsandrocknroll sold well in the UK and USA, and received many critical accolades - including being nominated for a UK BRIT Award and a Grammy. The label also enjoyed major commercial success came with the Wiseguys re-released "Ooh La La", which climbed to UK number 2 in May 1999 thanks to its use in a television advertisement for Budweiser lager. Jones, who bought out Lessner in 1998, also launched three new imprints covering house (Nu Camp), hip-hop (Bad Magic), and indie pop (We Love You). The label continued to go from strength to strength in the new millennium, launching successful new artists including Röyksopp, the Bees and Blak Twang.
Wall Of Sound enjoyed notable critical and commercial success with the Propellerheads. Despite lucrative offers from major labels, the band remained with Wall Of Sound because of a sense of belonging and shared purpose. Their debut Decksandrumsandrocknroll sold well in the UK and USA, and received many critical accolades - including being nominated for a UK BRIT Award and a Grammy. The label also enjoyed major commercial success came with the Wiseguys re-released "Ooh La La", which climbed to UK number 2 in May 1999 thanks to its use in a television advertisement for Budweiser lager. Jones, who bought out Lessner in 1998, also launched three new imprints covering house (Nu Camp), hip-hop (Bad Magic), and indie pop (We Love You). The label continued to go from strength to strength in the new millennium, launching successful new artists including Röyksopp, the Bees and Blak Twang.
