The Book of Goldikus Vol 1 review: a treasure trove for the British raver
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If you look back over the decades, it is easy to pick out seminal record labels that set the tone for the music they championed. From the infamous 1960s Motown R&B and Soul label, to punk rock and new waves Stiff in the 70s; followed by London’s own Rough Trade label in the 80s that supported independent music – with the likes of The Libertines, The Strokes and Pulp on their books. The 90s saw the birth of Goldie’s Metalheadz. It started as an underground label born out of the heads of three aspiring and upcoming DJs – Kemistry, Storm and Goldie – whilst sat around their kitchen table in London. Their mission was to elevate Drum & Bass and Jungle music from its underground origins to a more mainstream and global audience. And it reshaped the electronic music as we know it, transforming it into a cultural movement.
As the DJ Doc Scott puts it in this book: “Metalheadz is more than just a record label or a club. It’s a feeling, an attitude… a way of life. The music has to be vital; cutting edge, forward-thinking, tunes that push boundaries – but the people who get it most, our people, understand it’s about something more as well.”.
This book stitches together the story of the record label and those weaved its fabric. It does so through Goldie’s unique visual language and acts as a tome honouring a movement which redefined the limits of what music can be. Across 400 and more pages, Goldie’s pioneering vision is documented with insights into his childhood and details how his upbringing in the Midlands and time through the care home system helped shape him as a person and as an artist. Goldie explains that living in these care homes exposed him to an eclectic mix of musical genres which helped form his outlook ON WHAT. He embraced graffiti culture and was often referred to as “the spraycan king of the Midlands” by the music press.
