A DJ, promoter, artist manager and most recently label manager, Jason Boardman lives, breathes, sleeps & drinks the good tonic music!
He has been a pillar of the Northern club scene for nearly three decades and is part of the Paper family, having released on the label as part of Truant and Tribadelics on our Paper and Repap imprints. His DJ resume reads like a Yellow Pages of brilliance with appearances at legendary sweat pits like The Electric Chair and Bugged Out. He was resident DJ at Manchester’s ‘acid out’ disco night Yellow alongside Dave Haslam and a backroom pilot at super club Hard Times in the 90s and 00s.
But it was his Aficionado parties alongside Moonboots where he cemented his reputation. Originally a Sunday night party for after the after-party, it became a byword in Balearic excellence, spinning off a record label of the same name. Today he is the selector of choice all over the North, bringing his deep record collection to life behind two turntables. His ‘Before I Die’ label is one of the most exciting & forward-thinking labels to appear, and the collab parties with SK1 Records are fast helping cement Stockport as ‘the new Berlin’.
PLACE?
Annoyingly and unnecessarily retitled Underbank’s for marketing purposes, this is a ten-minute trip from home for me; I have history here, having initially worked here from 1980 for Joe Moss and Janet Aynge at cult clothing store Crazy Face, my first job as a teenager, and it’s nice to see how its redeveloped recently. SK1 Records is undoubtedly the best Record shop in the North West, and I should know, having visited most of them, Joe and Gareth have created a beautiful community hub and some legendary street parties! There are lots of cool independent businesses here, The Spinn Off next door to SK1 is a friendly bar, and then there’s Plant Shop, All Night Flight, Rare Mags, Wineboy, Old Town General Store and some top places to eat, Mekong Cat and up the steps the marvellous Columbian Cafe San Juan.
SK1 Records Street Party, Stockport
For Eats?
Our consistent go-to is Sugo in Ancoats, and I really cannot recommend it highly enough; pretty sure Germaine and I visit every month; it’s a Southern Italian Pasta Kitchen, and the specials are always on point, as is the House Sugo, a nice place to eat, drink a jug of Vinho Verde and watch the world go by if you get a window seat. I’m also obsessed, like most Mancunians, with Rice & Three, the staple workers’ lunch of the Northern Quarter. My top three are Café Yadgar, Café Marhaba and This ‘n’ That.
Sugo, Pasta Kitchen, Ancoats Manchester
BOOKS
I’m currently reading ‘Totally Wired – The Rise & Fall of the Music Press‘ by Paul Gorman, who also assembled the amazing ‘The Wild World of Barney Bubbles: Graphic Design‘ and the ‘Art of Music‘. I’m not really a fiction person, so also in my current reading pile are Chris Blackwell’s, ‘The Islander’ and Trevor Horn’s, ‘Adventures in Modern Recording‘.
Paul Gorman-photo by Ivan Jones
FILMS
We recently went to see Aftersun at Home, which really blew my mind; so much to unpack and being a father to two daughters, it resonated with me.
I also recently watched a fantastic Korean film, ‘Memories Of Murder’, a serial killer thing based on a true story; I highly recommend it. My favourite films are Escape From New York (What a cast), The Warriors (teenage heroes) and David Lean’s ‘Great Expectations’.
MUSIC
As many will know, I’m a complete music obsessive, always on the proverbial perennial hunt for the perfect beat. I’ve recently fallen back in love with reggae and all its subgenres, so I have been listening to many dub sides.
My Current 5
1. Lee Perry – King Scratch Box Set (Trojan)
2. Om Unit – Acid Dub Studies Volumes I & II (No Label)
3. Dubkasm – Enter The Dub (Mad Professor Mix) (Dubkasm)
4. Adrian Sherwood Presents – Dub No Frontiers (On U Sound)
5. Fire (Feat Adrian Sherwood) – Fire (Salgari Records)