Graham Thrower

What is your background and experience in the music industry?

After a career in corporate finance I decided in 2004 to follow my first love - music. Later that year I opened alt.vinyl, an independent retailer focused on the more alternative and underground strains of music. We are still in central Newcastle, have a thriving online business and a growing and acclaimed record label. Life in the independent music retailer’s world continues to be tough but I believe there is still a place for those who are genuinely passionate and knowledgeable about the music they sell. There is a global community of like minded artists, labels retailers and promoters out there and that is what we tap in to, whether they are in the North East or elsewhere.

I have been on the board of One North East, the regional development agency for the North East of England, since late 2007 - and I am pleased to say that regionally the support for the cultural and creative economy remains absolute; despite the current economic challenges.

Generator has exceptional recognition within the broader music industry, and an excellent base on which to build. I was delighted to accept the role of chair earlier this year, and it has been a busy time since then!

What is your connection to the North East?

Myself and my family have lived in the region since early 2004. Basically we came here and fell in love with the place, I think that it inspires a more visceral attachment than much of the suburban sprawl that extends over the South of England.

What are you listening to at this exact moment? What are your favourite records released in the last 5 years?

At this exact moment I’m listening to a mix cd for fabric nightclub, but thats only because a colleague put it on!
As for favourites of the last 5 years, it's easier to name artists rather than releases. I would go for six organs of admittance, MV & EE, Wooden Wand, Boris, Jackie o Motherf****r, Will Oldham, Chris Corsano, Bardo Pond.

What are your favourite records released in the last 20 years?

This is really an all time classic list..again I'll cheat and go for artists...but from the 60s onwards. I'd have to say any releases by Anne Briggs, Moondog, Karen Dalton, Speed Glue and Shinki, Selda Bagcan, Liquid Liquid, Fatu Gayflor or Keiji Haino would do it for me.

Which projects are you currently working on outside of Generator?

In the region various creative industry initiatives through One North East and with the regions universities. the major expansion of the alt.vinyl record label, and opening of an independent download store. Outside of the region, a new label, some online businesses..the list goes on..

What is your favourite live music venue in the North East?

I'm wary of upsetting any of the excellent venues I have used in the region. I would have to say however that the atmosphere at Morden Tower with Candlelight is hard to top..intimate and magical..the acoustic Zoviet France gig there a while back was unforgettable

Favourite Live Music venue in the UK?

I tend to go for atmosphere over capacity so venues like Islington Union Chapel tend to be favourites.

Best live music show that you’ve ever seen?

Cabaret Voltaire at Lanchester Polytechnic in (ahemm...) 1986!

What was the defining moment that made you want to work in music?

Just the buzz around The Selecter, The Specials and the whole Two Tone movement. For an impressionable teen the music, the images, the multiracial crowds were all so different from what most other music offered. That was the hook, wanting to actually work in music came a long while after as I dug down into different forms of music and was constantly amazed that the bands I really loved just seemed to not even register in the broader industry. It made me a lifelong convert to the independent scene.

Best place to discover new artists?

Recommendations from friends, store owners, other artists. Then the key is to dig. Who plays with them, who else has the label released. Just keep searching. It is an obsession. Either you share that wish to spend the time listening to lots of new music or you don't...for me I ALWAYS do..!