FAX +49-69/450464

Lore & Background

The main label had three principal subdivisions indicated by catalog number prefixes: PK for Namlook's solo releases, PW (Peter's World) for collaborations with international artists such as Turkish folk musician Burhan Öçal, English DJ Mixmaster Morris, and Japanese ambient artist Tetsu Inoue, and PS (Peter's Sub-label) for releases by other artists without Namlook, including US guitarist Robert Musso, bassist Bill Laswell, German techno producer David Moufang, and Canadian sound artist Chris Meloche. There was no official PI (Peter's iTunes) subdivision; the 'Music for Babies' release was part of the PK series (PK 08/140).

Reader's Guide

FAX +49-69/450464 is significant for its role in the 1990s ambient and electronic music scene, particularly through its founder Pete Namlook's collaborations and the label's emphasis on limited-edition physical releases. Until the creation of the Ambient World sub-label and its discography on the iTunes Store, all FAX records were issued in extremely limited quantities of typically 500–1,000 pressings, leading to high prices on online auction sites. The label's three sub-labels—Yesterday & Tomorrow (ambient and classical chamber music, unofficially discontinued in 1995), Ambient World (reissuing out-of-print Fax discs), and Rather Interesting (maintained by German IDM musician Uwe Schmidt, mostly his solo material under aliases)—further diversified its output. After Namlook's death on 8 November 2012, no official statement regarding the label's future was made.

Did You Know?

• The label's name FAX +49-69/450464 was also known simply as Fax or Fax Label.
• Founder Pete Namlook was a phonetic inversion of his surname Kuhlmann.
• The PW subdivision included collaborations with Japanese ambient artist Tetsu Inoue as Shades of Orion, 2350 Broadway and 62 Eulengasse.
• The Rather Interesting sub-label was maintained by German IDM musician Uwe Schmidt.