Artist Profile

Andy Votel

Label: Finders Keepers
Agent: Mark Lewis

Respected internationally among DJs, record collectors and producers as a champion record collector of obscure psych-folk-prog-hiphop-jazz-trash-kraut-fuzz-tropicalia and funk, Manchester-based Andy Votel has co-existed as an omni-present 3-headed monster alongside his alter ego's as a graphic designer, triple label boss, remixer / producer, writer and compiler who rarely surfaces above the underground for clean air.

Most commonly known for his collaborations with fellow 'Twisted Nerve'  label owner Badly Drawn Boy - for whom he has produced LPs and exclusively designed record sleeves - Mr. Votel has in recent years launched a second label 'Finders Keepers' as the vintage-vinyl 'Yin' to T.Ns contemporary 'Yang,' which has lead to him excavating hoards of unreleased, un-obtainable and previously unknown slices of latter day global psych-pop.

Over the years he has unearthed a myriad of undiscovered 'Folksploitation' tracks ('Folk Is Not A Four Letter Word') Rescued various unreleased European soundtracks, repressed rebelious Turkish pop (Selda, Ersen) and compiled a maligned strain of Welsh Progressive Rock in collaboration with Gruff Rhys from Super Furry Animals (Welsh Rare Beat).

As well as a discography of solo-artist releases for XL recordings (featuring collaborations with members of krautrockers 'CAN') and a production CV and remixography consisting of more than 50 tracks (including work by Ian Brown, Death In Vegas, Lamb, Texas and The Avalanches). Andy has also received wide cross-continental acclaim for his DJ mix compilations 'Music To Watch Girls Cry,'  'Songs In The Key Of Death' and 'One Nation Under A Grave' which seamlessly mix more than 100 impossibly rare drum heavy vintage psych-funk records into hour long musical collages. Positive reactions have lead to Andy DJ-ing across the globe with regular visits to Central Europe, America and Japan and dream-come-true offers from seminal vintage labels such as 'Vertigo' and Brazil's "Som Livre' to give their back catalogues the trademark Votel treatment.

Alongside his longtime friend and DJ / Designer  Dominic Thomas, Andy is also a founding member of 'B-Music' - A collective of like minded counter-culture addicts (who congregate at the nightclub events of the same name) consisting of Cherrystones, David Holmes, Doug Shipton, Bob Stanley, Belle And Sebastien and Gerald (Jazzman) Short.

Andy is also an obsessive collector of Eastern European print and obscure world cinema which forms a hefty research library for his one man Graphic Design industry which holds more than 100 commercial record sleeves in its portfolio. Commisions for Far Out Recordings, Grand Central Records, Universal, EMI, BMG  Canderblinks, Peski and XL have included covers for artists like David Holmes, Cherry Ghost, Badly Drawn Boy, Voice Of The Seven Woods, Gilles Peterson, Cherrystones, Jane Weaver and Cate Le Bon (NeonNeon).  He also runs archiving modules as a graphic design teacher at Stockport College and has held one-man exhibitions of his artwork in major cities such as Tokyo, Athens, Lisbon and London as well as providing artwork for fashion companies such as Adidas, Adam Et Rope, Levis, Stussy, 2K and Oi Polloi, among others.

As an avid collector of vintage Gallic pop Votel made musical history in Autumn 2006 by re-assembling the original musicians who played on the seminal 'Histoire De Melody Nelson' by Serge Gainsbourg which was orchestrated by the original composer Jean-Claude Vannier (who also composed Finders Keepers debut release).