The Rurals are Devonshire, England’s original vinyl junkies! The Rurals began with Andy Compton and Pete Morris in 1994, getting their name from “Rural Promotions” Andy’s club promotions outfit, and their first record label name. They also released some singles and EPs through their Idea label under different guises (Green Belt, Rainbow Garden) before establishing their current record label, Peng (www.peng.co.uk) in 1999. The Rurals emerged as the name of the in-house production crew and are becoming famous for the new Soul/Jazz sound they’re creating.

Their beloved Peng is now their main outlet, but all told, they’ve released over 40 EPs and 3 full-length albums on various other labels as well, such as Large (Chicago), Seasons (Los Angeles), Society Hill (Philadelphia), Viva (Seattle), Records Of Interest (Hamburg), and D.I.Y. (UK). 

In the summer of 1998, a local record shop gave Marie (Tweek) Andy’s number, she called him up, and The Rurals had a vocalist (!).  She brought with her a bass player, Pete “Gurner” Middelton, who has been appearing on Peng stuff since the label’s birth.  The next musician to team up with The Rurals was Charlie Hearnshaw, a saxophonist, who was in a band with Gurner.  The newest member is Onlymatt – DJing, art direction, web design and some studio projects.

Welcome to the greatest Rurals (and Peng) release yet, the long awaited Sweeter Sounds album, featuring some Rurals classics (from Peng and other labels) and a handful of new vibes. The album includes the New York/Shelter classic "Lush", Chicago fave "Window Pain", the tearful "No Power" (originally released on Seasons), and this year’s Rurals’ summer anthem "Sweeter Sound" (featured on Hed Kandi’s Beach House 2 compilation and Mixmag UK’s summer cover mount CD), plus many other deep and soulful beauties!

Listen to the album and hear why everyone’s talking about the prolific Rurals and their unique sound.

Release Date: First Quarter, 2002

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