Gone but not forgotten: 10 short-lived influential labels

It took a while for South London record store Big Apple Records to become the cultural outpost it’s eulogised as. Until its close in 2004, the store was host to many British dance music icons passing through its doors, but it wasn’t until Artwork set up a studio above the shop that it became a player in the exploding garage scene. A few years later, Skream and Benga were regular shoppers and dubstep was on the horizon. In 2003, both producers and Digital Mystikz had their debut releases on the label that quickly became a beacon for the sounds of South London. EPs from Loefah and Coki followed and dubstep was in full swing. But by 2007, as it was edged towards a less subtle sound, the label was all but over, encapsulating a perfect snapshot of the genre’s halcyon days.