1980s record shop origins , the site of the Warp Records shop in the 1980s In the mid-1980s, Steve Beckett and Rob Mitchell, then in their early twenties, were active in the music scene of
Sheffield in
Northern England. Sheffield's
steel manufacturing was in decline, and abandoned warehouses were being used for illegal
raves as part of the growing subculture of
club music and
acid house. According to Beckett, the shop mainly sold
indie and
alternative records before expanding to imports from electronic
Chicago house records. Beckett had a background in indie rock, and discovered
electronic music while working in FON. FON also operated a recording studio used by artists such as
David Bowie,
Yazz and
Chakk. It specialised in imports released by American dance labels such as
Transmat,
Metroplex,
Trax Records and
Underground Resistance, which sold out quickly. In 1989, Warp released its first single, "Track With No Name" by Gordon's band
Forgemasters. The singles received attention from the influential
BBC DJ
John Peel. Warp created an
imprint, Gift Records, to release acts by pop and rock records including Pulp. After releasing some early Pulp singles, Gift closed after Pulp signed to
Island Records. It was followed by
Frequencies by LFO, which Beckett cited as a turning point for Warp.
Artificial Intelligence and intelligent dance music (Aphex Twin) has been described as the most important Warp artist. In 1992, Warp released
Artificial Intelligence, a compilation of tracks by artists such as
Aphex Twin (under the name Dice Man),
Autechre,
B12 (Musicology),
Plaid,
the Black Dog (AO) and
Richie Hawtin (Fuse). Though Warp proposed the term "electronic listening music",
Artificial Intelligence popularised a genre that instead became known as electronica or
intelligent dance music (IDM). Though the IDM term was criticised as denigrating other forms of dance music, it endured. In 1994, Warp released
Artificial Intelligence II, accompanied by an hour-long music video on
VHS and
LaserDisc,
Warp Motion, created by the Sheffield artist Phil Wolstenholme.
Resident Advisor described the video as "a pioneering attempt to mix music and cutting-edge 3D computer animation". It also released a compilation of sketches from the surreal comedy radio series
Blue Jam by
Chris Morris, which
Vice described as Warp's "boldest act of diversification". In 2003,
Billboard reported that Warp had annual revenues of US$10 million, with Warpmart contributing 10%. Its prices were slightly higher than competing online stores such as
iTunes, and its
MP3s were available at a
variable bitrate of 205 kbit/s, higher than the more common 160 kbit/s of the period. In January 2009, Warp merged Warpmart into Bleep, selling records from more than 300 independent labels, including
Beggars Banquet,
Domino and
!K7. That year, Warp reported that Bleep had sold more than 1.8 million downloads.
Death of Mitchell and Warp Films (pictured in 2010) directed the first Warp Films release,
My Wrongs 8245–8249 & 117 (2002). Mitchell died from cancer on 8 October 2001, at the age of 38, leaving Beckett as the head of Warp. In 2004, Warp released its first feature film, ''
Dead Man's Shoes'', directed by
Shane Meadows, which was nominated for a Bafta. Meadows's next film,
This Is England (2007), won the Bafta for Best British Film. In 2009,
The Independent wrote that Warp Films had "quickly become the UK's most consistent and challenging indie production company".
The Independent wrote that the Maxïmo Park singer, Paul Smith, "fitted the label snugly, even if the guitars did not", while Grizzly Bear "with their careful sculpting of sound and veiled emotions [...] could be a warmer, softer Autechre". When Warp decided to close Lex Records, Brown bought it in 2004. In 2009, for its 20th anniversary, Warp held a party in an old steelworks in Sheffield, along with events in Paris, New York City and Tokyo. As of that year, according to Beckett, Warp employed 60 people in six offices around the world. == Legacy ==