Light Entries Charity record label sheds light on Sheffield outtakes

Tell us a bit about Light Entries and what prompted its formation?

Like many people involved with music, the beginning of lockdown in the UK meant the cancellation of shows and a big change to our ability to make music together as a band (Broken FM) as we could no longer meet safely.

The idea of a label arose when we realised that we had lots of tracks that for whatever reason - maybe the method of production being experimental or just their general atmosphere - we never considered for a dancefloor-orientated release. We thought that with people's only listening environment being home for the foreseeable future, these more introspective or emotionally-charged tracks might be something well-suited to headphones or the living room. We dug them out and remembered we really liked some of them.

We then realised that lots of other friends who make music are probably sitting on similar music for similar reasons, so we put out a call for others to send us stuff, which has had a great response and we hope will continue to grow.

Where will you be sourcing your releases from?

We will be releasing a mixture of our own music and anything we get sent that we like. We have put out a call for music via private messages to friends, but also been helped by local DIY collectives such as Gut Level and Partisan sharing our call for submissions on their networks.

We are especially keen to hear from female and non-binary producers as we know that they are underrepresented in the electronic music world. Anyone who has music they would like to submit for consideration can send us an email on lightentries@gmail.com or get in touch on Instagram or Facebook.

How will people be able to access Light Entries releases?

We are currently looking to release the music exclusively through Bandcamp as they have agreed to waive their label fees, meaning more profit goes to the organisations we are supporting.

We will be setting a suggested donation for each release, but keeping it 'pay as you feel' so that no one is denied the ability to access the music due to financial issues during a time which is difficult for many on that front. We would also encourage people to donate a little more than the recommended amount if they can.

Which charitable organisations have you chosen to support?

We wanted to support organisations who work with people who we felt would be particularly impacted by the Covid-19 crisis.

Chayn are an international social enterprise who our friend Rosie Huzzard - a massive force in campaigning in Sheffield who many will have met - put us onto. They are a survivor-led organisation making online resources to enable people experiencing gender-based violence to access advice and support. Their easily-accessible online features are something that are even more valuable at a time when people might be trapped in a lockdown situation and be unable to access face to face services.

Samaritans are a well-known listening helpline whose work we again thought would be of particular importance during a time that is trying and testing for many. Their ethos of always being there to listen without judgement seems especially pertinent in a time when many people are experiencing heightened anxiety, stress and other difficult feelings, without being able to necessarily rely on their usual forms of support or emotional sustenance.

Is there a particular track that you're excited to bring to a wider audience?

Light Entries #1 is a collection of 14-tracks and we love them all like children - some of them literally are our children, of course. We're buzzing that we've got such a range of tracks and emotions on that first release and we're got two more compilations coming soon, each with their own particular flavour.

When does Light Entries Launch?

The first compilation came out on 9 May and we've got plenty more where that came from!