Livity Sound has had an undeniable influence on the underground music scene over the last decade. Even with its ever-growing roster and diverse catalogue of releases, the label has managed to stay true to its Bristol roots and echo the authentic and intentional style of its founders. "I don't like to get bogged down in genres," said label cofounder Tom Ford, better known as Pev (or Peverelist). "I just think of it as the music I'm into." The imprint carved a unique path for itself by focusing on the best artists as opposed to a particular sound. As a result, it’s had a far-reaching impact within the UK dance music scene, inspiring a new generation of labels, producers and promoters.

Ford treats Livity Sound, and its sister label Dnuos Ytivil, like an extended family. Since its early days he's helped break new talent, making names for artists such as Batu, Bruce and Hodge, and more recently Jurango, Ido Plumes and Surgeons Girl. To celebrate its last decade, in classic Livity Sound style, the label plans to release Molten Mirrors, a compilation from its talented and forward-thinking community of international, multi-generational artists in September. Ten years in, Livity Sound shows no signs of slowing down.

Ford moved to Bristol in 1997 when he was 18-years-old and immediately threw himself into a tight-knit community made up of record shops like Revolver, Giant and Replay, and clubs like Blue Mountain and Lakota. "I'd always been into DIY scenes and I had a soft spot for anything Bristol-related," he recalled. More Rockers, Full Cycle, Smith & Mighty, and Flynn & Flora are among the constellation of names he listed that played a pivotal role in his local education. "Bristol was small enough that everything linked up."

Ford's first experience running a label came in 2006 with Punch Drunk Records, which he set up to showcase dubstep artists from Bristol. Punch Drunk released many classics, including Ford's own "Roll With The Punches" and "Clunk Click Every Trip." It quickly became one of the era's best sources for modern, bass-heavy club music.

After the closure of Rooted Records, a shop where he'd worked for ten years, Ford was at a crossroads. "It was pretty tough and I was a bit lost," he said. "I wanted to do something new, a bit of a reset that really focussed on what I was into: dark garage, Detroit techno, dub techno, jungle, funky."

In 2011, Ford founded Livity Sound with Joe Cowton (AKA Kowton) and Craig Stennet (AKA Asusu). Cowton had moved to Bristol in 2008 and met Ford while working at Rooted Records and Idle Hands. Stennett moved to Bristol after finishing university in Bath. He met Ford playing gigs in Bristol.

"I'd been doing a bit of music with Joe just for fun. We had similar ideas about music and what we were interested in," Ford explained. "There wasn't really a plan, I knew from experience that you just had to start and see where things go, planting a seed and see what grows. If you think about it too much and plan ahead too much, you're just setting traps for yourself. It's best for things to develop naturally, especially at first."

The label achieved early success with ravers and in the press, landing at the top of RA’s Top 20 labels of 2013. In its first five years, Livity Sound released music exclusively from Ford, Cowton and Stennett (as Pev, Kowton and Asusu). Meanwhile, Ford started a sister label, Dnuos Ytivil, to provide a platform for emerging talent. In its first few years, Dnuos Ytivil showcased then up-and-coming artists like Alex Coulton, Batu, Bruce and Hodge.

In 2015, Livity Sound branched out overseas, expanding its roster, putting out EPs from Paris-based Simo Cell on Livity Sound and its sister label. Simo Cell invited Hodge and Peverelist over to Paris for a party he was putting on with some friends. "We exchanged tracks and it really connected with what we were doing," said Ford. "It was obvious that he was a real talent and it's been incredible to watch him develop his sound ever since." Other releases from the international roster include an outstanding joint EP from Berlin-based Laurel Halo and Hodge in 2018 and EPs from Tunisian artist Azu Tiwaline, and Australian DJ Plead 2020. "It's evolved naturally, really, a combination of not wanting to repeat myself, but first and foremost meeting like-minded people as I've travelled for shows," said Ford.

Over the last few years, Livity Sound has focused on discovering and supporting new talent, with fewer records from the label's founders. "Making those kinds of connections through music is really valuable and important,” he emphasized. “Building networks, it becomes like an extended family thing. Having said that, I've still got a passion for the Bristol scene too, getting behind and pushing new artists. Jurango, Ido Plumes and Surgeons Girl are all Bristol-based artists who have had a release in the last year."

It was a Bristol connection that led to Livity Sound's bright and distinctive artwork, which has become a key part of the label's identity. Ford knew Redburn from going to pubs and clubs in Bristol—"the city is small like that," he added. Tess Redburn has been responsible for the artwork since 2014, producing some of the most unique and special sleeve designs in dance music. "For the new artwork, I decided to be sensitive to the previous design while making it my own by keeping the idea of each record having a character on it," Redburn told Hyponik's Conor McTernan in 2014. "They're actually not just random shapes, each one has humanistic features: hands, eyes, mouths, but they've been deconstructed into a pattern. I like that people can look at my work and see their own images within the shapes. It was quite important for me to keep the paint textures and make it look less like your average techno record, which are all traditionally quite clean and minimal. They were all original 10" x 10" paintings, I simply chose the ones that worked best for composition. I was really surprised when they first asked me to do it, I'd never considered my work to be 'techno'."

Ford sees no shortage of exciting artists to join forces with. "It's been amazing to work with relatively new and incredible artists like Kouslin and Azu Tiwaline," he said. "Their music has been blowing me away. Obviously, getting to work with bonafide legends like Bakongo and Al Wootton has been incredible too—timeless dance music."

Some of the label’s most exciting music in recent years has come from Forest Drive West, an artist that Ford first met in Brighton a few years back, then again in London a while later at a show Ford was playing. "He gave me a CD with some great tracks on and we just kept chatting from then on," Ford remembered. “I think the first Forest Drive West release was a couple of years after that. He really established himself as a leading light in UK techno since."

Since the start of 2020, the label has released nearly a dozen EPs, including numerous EPs from new artists. "When the magnitude of the pandemic became apparent," Ford explained, "I decided really quickly that it wasn't time to sit back and wait it out. I know how fragile the ecosystem is. Shops, distributors and obviously artists all need support to keep going. This whole thing really is held together by sellotape, so I knew I had to plough ahead. I think the hunger for music increased if anything. People needed some positivity."

For a few years prior to the pandemic, Peverelist and Hodge had been putting on weeknight parties at the Love Inn in Bristol, building upon their loyal followers, and putting on such acts as Gigsta, Beneath, FAUZIA, Resom and Ben UFO, as well as Livity Sound regulars. While time away from the club has been tough for Ford and countless others around the world, "the silver lining has been how good it's felt to really focus on the label. It's been revitalizing," he emphasized. He hopes to come back strong, hosting a series of parties with Jake Martin (AKA Hodge) in Bristol this Autumn. "I've really missed it, and I'm as eager as anyone to get back to it as and when it's safe to do so."

Ford assures me that the return of events in the UK will not slow down the label's output in 2021. In the pipeline are several projects, including the Molten Mirrors label compilation. "I asked everyone who has previously released on the label if they'd like to contribute a track, so it feels like a real family affair," he stated proudly. “It's come together beautifully; it really feels like a unique release and a landmark for the label." Ford dryly joked that this milestone compilation will feature an appearance from Joe Cowton, who took a break from his "training schedule for the next series of I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!" to resurrect his Kowton alias for a track with Pev, the duo reuniting for a track for the first time in four years.

Ford's unique take on sound design and his vision as both a creator and curator are evident throughout his musical projects, as is the influence of Bristol’s soundsystem culture. This distinctive sound and authenticity, combined with his versatility—he could as easily play a jungle set as he could a set of dubstep or UK techno—makes Pev an integral part of the scene. These are the guiding principles at the core of Livity Sound and undoubtedly the reason for the label's enduring success over the last decade. If its steadfast resilience in the past year is anything to go by, we can rely on Livity Sound to thrive over the next decade as well.

Livity Sound, as mixed by Hodge
Tracklist /
Surgeons Girl - Clouded Temper
Leif - Seeker
Forest Drive West - Scorpion ft. Lucky Pereira
Azu Tiwaline - Tight Wind ft. Cinna Peyghamy
Peverelist & Kowton - Exhale
Asusu - Sendak
Alex Coulton - Bounce (Peverelist Remix)
Cando - Sun Down
Peverelist - Under Clearing Skies
Bakongo - Ashy
Hodge - Amor Fati
Facta - FM Gamma
Simo Cell - Away From Keyboard
DJ Plead - Espresso
Peverelist & Kowton - Vapours (Pangaea Remix)
Laurel Halo & Hodge - Tru
Peverelist & Kowton - End Point (Stenny and Andrea Remix)
Batu - Bleeper Feed
Two Shell - Blobject
Al Wootton - Revin
Lack - Constant

Molten Mirrors - A Decade of Livity Sound is available to purchase now.