Label Feature: 12th Isle
Click here to listen to the Carhartt WIP Radio Show featuring 12th Isle.
The first show of 2025 takes us to Glasgow, Scotland, home of independent record label 12th Isle. Run by long-time friends Fergus Clark, Ruaidhri McGhee, and Al White, the label officially began in 2016. Its roots, however, extend back to an eponymous club night, which had been running for two years prior, and a radio show hosted by Clark even earlier.
Though not tied to a specific meaning, 12th Isle’s name nods to the expansive, otherworldly, and genre-bending sounds it encompasses, and its role as a nexus for a global roster of artists. Launching with Thoughtstream by St. Petersburg duo Dices & AEM Rhythm Cascade, the label has also released projects from the likes of Aarhus act Palta & Ti, Parisian producer D.K., and Athenian artist Christos Chondropoulos.
The music is guided by the instincts of the label's three founders, spanning fourth world and jazz to dub techno, drone, and kosmische. “It's almost impossible to explain, but all of us involved have a pretty instantaneous agreement on whether something is right,” says Clark. These sounds are then brought to life visually through the esoteric, labyrinthine artwork of graphic designer Al White, appearing across record sleeves, posters, and apparel.
For this episode of Carhartt WIP Radio, Fergus Clark created a mix that highlights both older and forthcoming label tracks. The selection includes mystic rhythms from RAMZi, Tarotplane’s dreamlike chimes, and subaquatic sounds from Vague Imaginaires. Presented alongside the mix is an interview with Clark, who reveals the mist-shrouded origins of the label’s name, while emphasizing how a label can evoke both confidence and surprise in its fans, and why he eschews industry metrics in favour of an intuitive, artist-led approach.
Can you talk to us through your background? What have been some pivotal moments in your life that have led you to what you do now?
Fergus Clark: I was born in Glasgow, Scotland and spent time as a child in Tynemouth, just outside of Newcastle. I volunteered at a radio station in my late teens and studied broadcast production, then did a masters degree in musicology. Doing parties and running the label and subsequently regularly doing radio shows have led to a nice amount of traveling for DJ gigs too. Not sure about pivotal moments – I have always been a bit obsessed with listening to and discovering new music.
Can you remember your first musical memory?
Fergus Clark: Wish I could say yes but I think it's more a case of multiple memories competing to be remembered as 'the first'.
What was the reason for launching 12th Isle in 2016?
Fergus Clark: There was a symbiosis of Al White (the label’s visual artist) working with Lindsay Todd, who ran Firecracker Recordings, and us already being friends with the Rubadub distribution crew. Plus, there was the 12th Isle party, which was already a couple of years old by then, that all made it come together naturally. I was also in charge of the scheduling at a radio station in Glasgow at the time, so through doing regular shows, and swapping records and files, I had stumbled into the demo form of what became the very first release by Flaty and Dices.
What inspired the label’s name?
Fergus Clark: The name simply came to me, inspired by an old desktop background on a family computer, of a mist-shrouded house floating on an island. My radio show was called 12th Isle Transmissions, and we decided we couldn't come up with anything better label or party-wise, so I just chopped off the radio-centric part.
12th Isle’s catalog features EPs and albums from a world of artists like RAMZi, Lo Kindre, Bruxula, Miradasvacas, and Fan Club Orchestra. What are the criteria for working with an artist on a 12th Isle? What does a record or track need to have for you to want to release it?
Fergus Clark: It's almost impossible to explain, but all of us involved in the label (three minds A&R-wise) have a pretty instantaneous agreement on whether something is right. We tend not to plan massively, and work more on a ‘two or three steps ahead of ourselves at any given moment’ type schedule. It’s way, way slower than most of our peers, but it works for us. Some things seem to magically gravitate towards us, some releases are built out of much more gradual planning.
In today’s ever-changing music industry, what role do you think record labels play?
Fergus Clark: I think labels are as important as ever. Speaking in regards to physical music media, labels are one cog in the machine of the entire industry. Particularly getting into electronic music when I was younger, labels were markers of trust, and interesting micro-worlds or hubs of creative output, that married visual identities with the music itself, and the myth-making along the way. I have no issue with the ease of self-releasing that the whole 80s mail art and cassette reproduction scene has propelled us into now with Spotify and Bandcamp. I think it’s great that anyone can share their music without the financial barrier of physical production. I suppose a strong label instils equal amounts of confidence and surprise in their fans, and ultimately acts as a necessary platform for listeners to discover artists.
What has been 12th Isle's biggest hit so far?
Fergus Clark: I like every release equally and see them all as inhabiting the same sphere. Of course you could sum up ‘biggest’ hit by sales stats, Spotify play counts, Discogs statistics or whatever, but I don’t really view what we’re doing in that way.
Do you have any role models, inspirations, or benchmarks for the creative work you do?
Fergus Clark: We were definitely inspired by labels like Irdial, Radioactive Lamb, Firecracker, Numbers, Antinote, and Sex Tags. Friends that all began around the same time we did, like Stroom, Music From Memory, Temple and Muscut also continue to inspire us.
How and where was the Carhartt WIP Radio show mix recorded? And can you tell us about the idea behind it?
Fergus Clark: It’s less of a DJ mix and more of an overview of label tracks, old and upcoming. It was fun to have this brief as the last time we approached something similar was back in 2019.
What's one club, party, or record store that had a major impact on the work you do?
Fergus Clark: Rubadub.
How do you stay up to date with all the new releases?
Fergus Clark: I'm actually surprised sometimes that I do. The amount of music in the world is infinite. Doing a monthly radio show and always wanting to showcase fresh stuff as well as older finds definitely adds a bit of excitement to it all. I'm checking mailing lists daily, select record stores, friend’s shows and mixes – always swapping tips with friends – and lots of nerd Instagram accounts too… but less so for 'new' releases. Though, of course, following similar labels to us on the label’s Instagram account provides a pretty no-nonsense feed when it comes to seeing new records being announced.
Can you send us a picture that best illustrates your current state of mind to post along with your answers?
What would your dream job be? Aside from label manager.
Fergus Clark: Dolphin communicator / time traveller.
What melody did you wake up to today?
Fergus Clark: I didn’t wake up singing, but around 9am I put on Alvin Curran’s Fiori Chiari, Fiori Oscuri. Later, I was humming a track from this orange Jacmelina LP, Occitan folky stuff. I bought them both in Melbourne recently. I came back from Australia with so many good records, I’m still getting through them.
What's one social or political cause you want the world to pay more attention to?
Fergus Clark: General ongoing decolonization efforts, migrant crisis issues, and fossil fuel problems. All are interlinked.
How important is the city of Glasgow in the work you do? Could you operate from any other place in the world?
Fergus Clark: It feels like the musical landscape of the city is always changing. I'm sure I could, but it's good being here and being so close to Rubadub (our distribution partners since day one).
