‘I'm in this for the long haul, I'm not going to do anything else!’
The pandemic has been tough for the creative industries, but they’re not taking it lying down – Mayfield Studios are keeping the faith.
Given the hammering that the music business has had in the past 10 months, it would be easy to give up hope. But that’s not the way things are done in the burgeoning Mayfield empire. Based out of Mayfield Studios in Drayton, Portsmouth, Dominic Elton also runs a record label of the same name and is ringmaster of the studio’s house band
– a collective comprising dozens of musicians.
A keen booster of the local scene, Dom has worked hard to keep a steady stream of new music coming out through the label during the pandemic.
And he has ambitious plans, which will be rolled out as soon as conditions allow. Mayfield has won an Arts Council England grant to put on a series of 25 online livestream events. Originally planned as one a fortnight for 2021, the plan is currently on hold.
‘As soon as they say it's fine we'll look to start rolling out the shows,’ says Dom.
‘I've invested quite a lot in the whole set up – we've got four high-end cameras set up, which we can switch from on to another, and all of the audio will go through the desk.’
With no other way to perform in front of their fans, livestreams have become a staple for music acts during lockdown.
‘Rather than just do it as a regular livestream, I want to present them more as a show, so there will be a full band performance, plus an acoustic set from someone else, then we'll have interviews with the artists, and there will be pre-recorded VTs and music videos.
‘I want to create a live music show experience.’
And it won’t just highlight the acts on the Mayfield label.
‘With each show featuring two artists, you're looking at about 50 artists. We've probably got about 20-plus on the label, so we'll be able to get other artists involved. And the funding allows them to be paid as well, which is very important. Although someone like Tom Wells works with the studio, we don't release (his act) FastTrains, so I think they'll be one of the first bands to go on because I love his music.’
‘The whole idea is to try and get around this current situation where artists can't perform live in venues.
‘I didn't want it to look like what you can see all the time of people performing in their kitchens and stuff. From our point of view it needs to be something a little bit more high-end, and the sound quality will be good because that's in the studio.’
‘Everything's set up and good to go, we've got all of the infrastructure ready.’
With the ever-changing rules of the past year, the studio hasn’t always been able to stay open, but right now it is.
Dom says: ‘As an actual stud io we're obviously less busy because people are more reticent to book sessions at the moment but we can remain open, and that's the good news.’
This has played into the label’s ability to keep releasing new material – with something due to come out every Friday.
‘We've always had a pipeline of new material coming – I've got releases good to go up to early April, and there's a couple more tracks that need to be finished off.
‘That was the challenge I set myself – I called it Mayfield Release Friday, it's about showing the brand itself is continually active.’
Last Friday they actually released two singles – Hat Lips by indie-rock act The Farrago and Tempting by punkers Chang. Tomorrow will see the release of a lyric video for Olly Hite’s track Politic Junkie.
‘It's so tremendously difficult to make it in this industry, so we need to show that we're committed and we have this continuous workflow.
‘The way I approach Mayfield is relying on little wins regularly – like Joe Johnson got played on Radio Solent yesterday, that's a little win, or The Mudlarks got 4,000 streams in a week for their last record.
‘If we can get little wins every day or every other day, it all adds up and the brand will slowly but surely become recognised.’
Having a diverse roster is also important to Dom, having released acts playing reggae, indie, rap, punk, R’n’B and more.
‘We're not a genre-specific label. For me it's always about the song, and you can have that in any genre. We have this thing #melodyandmeaning – so for me, the song has to have a strong melody and also a good or strong meaning behind the lyric – and that could be in any genre, couldn't
If someone's up for something and they 're available at that time, they get involved DOM ON THE MAYFIELD HOUSE BAND
it?
‘It is early days for the label, we are still testing the waters, so I wouldn't want to put all of my eggs in one basket. And it comes down to the artists and personalities too – whether they sing folk or are in a punk band.’
Mayfield has been working with several partners on the livestream project, including Victorious and Icebreaker festivals, Portsmouth College and Express FM.
‘I'm very keen to work alongside all local organisations. Express FM's local music show is really good –Mason Jordan is such a good presenter.’
The show has a weekly top 10 chart of new local releases, voted for by listeners.
‘From talking to Mason, the number of people voting on that is growing and growing – it's so important for the local scene, and a lot of other cities won't have the same sort of thing. That's all part of what Mayfield's about – supporting the community and growing it, and creating a scene which is not disparate. I'm a real firm believer in strength in numbers.’
Nothing would please Dom more than to see Portsmouth’s music scene gain the national recognition he believes it deserves. ‘Most cities have had their time over the years, and there's no reason why Portsmouth can't have that moment. The talent's there!
‘We want to create a ripple effect. It's brilliant having the studio because that acts as a hub, and now we've got the ability to do videos as well. Our two guys, Sam
Carter-Brazier and Matt Brook are both brilliant musicians, brilliant producers and really good videographers as well.’
The final part of the Mayfield puzzle is the house band, a gigging and recording entity in its own right.
‘It’s borrowing from the record labels in the ’60s like Motown – that's evolved now. If you played on one of the records, you're part of the house band, basically.
‘While things are quiet, we're in the process of sorting out a 12-track vinyl of the house band. That's more on the soul side of things, and it features seven lead singers, Amba Tremain, Decosta Boyce, Marlene Hill, Gloria Miller, Chloe Josephine, Mary Red and Hanna Reem
‘For the cover we're going to have a mugshot of everyone who's involved in these 12 productions and I think we're up to about 40 – that kind of reflects what we're all about in creating a community.
‘It's very much a collective. And it makes it much easier – we're not restricted by any particular structure and there's no egos. If someone's up for something and they're available at that time, they get involved.
‘As a house band we can then support individual artists as a big bunch of session musicians too.’
He hopes to have the record released about late spring/early summer.
Dom adds: ‘I'm in this for the long haul, I'm not going to do anything else!’
Go to mayfieldrecords.com or search by name on Facebook and Instagram.