La-Ti-Da Records - Willing And Label #02

A recurring theme in my record collecting seems to be random discovery. I like a band, find out they have a record out on a label that’s new to me and then… BAM! Another cool label with more bitchin’ bands. That’s exactly how I came across La-Ti-Da Records, a boutique style label from Vancouver, BC. Yup, Canada. Get used to it folks. Anyhoo, I dig The Tranzmitors and Needles//Pins quite a bit and in roaming the ‘net I discovered they had 7” singles coming out on the aforementioned La-Ti-Da. The two singles were part of a new Spring Collection that included three other singles by The React!, The Ballantynes and Fist City. Also in the pack was a cool hand screened card that featured buttons of the five bands and the label. I’m a sucker for singles series and similar things so I figured I’d get the pack. Great decision. Five excellent singles with some of the raddest packaging designs north of Mexico. Super crisp artwork on the sleeves and center labels. The tunes themselves are all outstanding. Fist City and Needles//Pins lean more towards the punk side of garage-rock while The Tranzmitors have perfected the late-70’s British power-pop sound with maximum catchiness. My two favorite records of the batch come from The React! and The Ballantynes. The React! turn in two garage-psych stompers while The Ballantynes offer up two jangly tunes heavily influenced by 60’s R&B and the girl-group sound. It’s safe to say I’m super pumped on this label and will be checking out their back catalogue to catch up on what I’ve missed. In the meantime, preview some tunes and peruse the e-chat I had La-Ti-Da’s own Tim Horner. Much appreciation for his time, especially since the crew is getting ready for The Fall Down/Get Down event they’re putting on next month. Be sure to check out their website for all their latest and greatest! 

Thanks For Reading... 

Three Random Queries For Tim Of La-Ti-Da Records

 1. Who designs your art- sleeves, labels, etc?

"While there’s four of us running the label (myself plus Vanessa Dandurand and Corey Poluk, who've been working double time on our upcoming weekender, The Fall Down/Get Down), Dale Davies designs all our labels and the lion’s share of our sleeves and flyers. A professional graphic designer, college instructor and design nerd, Dale has created that very decided consistency that has run through all of our releases, dating back to 2005."

2. What is your least favorite thing about doing a record label?

"Canada Post’s international shipping rates."

3. Why are there so many awesome bands in Canada?

"There truly are so, so many awesome bands in this country, both past and present. There are regional factors that can be attributed to a lot of this, but one thing that runs coast-to-coast among Canadian bands is that sorta retarded kid brother mentality, always trying to impress or outshine the older sibling. That older sibling takes the form of already established bands within the given Canadian scenes or the more influential bands stateside. Some of the bands get it completely wrong, but others raise the bar super high."