Banquet Records - more than just your local record shop.

Banquet Records is an Independent Kingston based music store, once part of the Beggars Banquet line, and now ran by Jon Tolley and his collective of wonderful people, such as Dave House, and Mike Smith. It sells music, it runs club nights, it puts on bands and DJ sets, it hosts in store gigs, it runs a label and it also does PA hire.

I remember first visiting the store back in 2008, when DJ Jon 1st (DROP, Leicester) was picking up flyers for an event he was DJing at, called Braille (which was run every Thursday at Bacchus). It was a hiphop night that Mike Smith and Jon 1st would DJ at, as well as getting performers in from all over the world to drop verses, get behind the turntables and have dance battles. It was a little bit mental, and definitely something I needed, having just returned from California. You’d hear the music that wasn’t mainstream mixed in with the big club hits, you’d see live beat-baking, breakdancing and ridiculous beatboxing. What struck me about the place was that the staff seemed so supportive of these ventures.

Over time, it turned out that they were giving their heart and soul to a lot more than just these hiphop nights I’d been attending. They ran club nights at the Hippodrome (formerly The Works), putting on some of my favourite musicians of the time - Example, Hadouken, Scroobius Pip and the like. They were bringing musicians who were getting radio play and established into an area which without them would be overlooked. Kingston is looked at as being close enough to Central London (a quick train ride or two), that people figure you’ll just travel to see them perform.

The more I looked, the more involved I found them in everything. They’d run punk nights, pop nights, dance nights, some of the best New Years parties around and they’d keep it all casual and relaxed. The venues would have decent drink prices. Tickets would be £10 or less, and usually come with an album, a chance to meet the performer, and anything else they could offer.

Last Thursday, they held their instores for Ed Sheeran’s album +. People who pre-ordered + from Banquet Records, either online or instore would be given a ticket to go see Ed perform at The Hippodrome (capacity reported between 1500-2000). They split the shows in two - an under 18s, and an over 18s that would then become New Slang once the show was over.

Fans queued up from 8am. Both shows sold out. Ed went on stage for the first show at 5pm (under 18s). Once he was finished, he met every.single.person that had turned up to the show. He thanked them for buying the album, took photos with them, shook hands and the like. He was still doing this all the way up til 9.30. At 9.30, Ryan Keen (who will be supporting Ed on some of his London and up North dates in October, alongside Antonio Lulic) took to the stage and did his thing. Around 10.45, Ed returned to the stage for the over 18s, and he was just finishing singing at 12.15am. It was immense. There were still crowds of people waiting to get into the venue when I was leaving. That is dedication from Banquet’s staff and Ed Sheeran. Dedication and commitment to the fans, and that is why they are essential for the Kingston area, and independent music in general.

The kind people at Atlantic, and Banquet got me a photo pass, so you can see pictures from the show, along with three videos at my YouTube channel. Tomorrow, they have Example doing his thing. This place is worth knowing about.

My Photos

Ryan Keen - Click here for the full set

Ed Sheeran - Click here for the full set

Youtube videos

Ed Sheeran - Feeling Good

Ed Sheeran - Small Bump

Ed Sheeran - The A Team (this is just the last minute because the venue was gorgeous)

Banquet Websites:

http://www.banquetrecords.com/ and https://www.facebook.com/banquetrecords

Address: 52 Eden Street, Kingston.