3 minute read
Getting To Know
Big Scary Monsters & Big Scary Monsters Social Club
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Label owner and founder of Big Scary Monsters Kev Douch set out start a record label when he was a teenager in 2001, burning CDs his bedroom and distributing them among friends. Skip forward 20 years and the label has grown to a team of five and has worked with bands from all over the world, while stepping into the label’s second decade came with a new venture in the form of a craft beer and record shop, Big Scary Monsters Social Club, in the heart of Oxford’s cultural hub - Cowley Road.
Big Scary Monsters Social Club has been in the planning stages for a very long time. Like lots of record collectors I used to dream of one day opening a record shop and, similarly, like lots of drinkers I fantasised about running a bar. The Social Club is the meeting of those two thoughts. Part bottle shop, part record store, it’s a place to meet friends, discover new music and drink nice beers in a welcoming, inclusive environment.
We spent a long time searching for locations around Oxford and when 98 Cowley Road came up, we immediately knew it was the one. Situated opposite Big Society, which fellow old people will remember used to be The Elm Tree, a venue I frequented as a teenager to watch tiny punk bands and ultimately give birth to the idea of starting a record label. The fact I can now look out of our window straight into the room I saw my friend have his eyebrow ring unceremoniously ripped from his face during a Stampin’ Ground moshpit only to emerge grinning and claiming this to be “the best gig ever” feels as right as it does wrong.
What we do
For those who aren’t aware, Big Scary Monsters Recording Company is a record label based out of a small office just round the corner from the shop on Cave Street. Now 20 years young, the label has worked with bands from all around the world including Modern Baseball, Jamie Lenman,
American Football, The Get Up Kids, TTNG, Delta Sleep, Pedro The Lion, Martha, Kevin Devine,
We Were Promised Jetpacks and so many more. The Social Club stocks all of these along with our favourite alternative, punk, math rock, indie and basically any other record we like (and yes that includes Parachutes by Coldplay).
Gender Roles at BDO
Ffi n Colley trying to balance all the cans!
Team BSM Jamie Lenman at Big Day Out
A fi ne Selection from Gemma
Cheers Leigh! A weekend at the Social Club
We make it a point of pride that no one visiting the shop will ever see the same selection twice as we constantly look to bring in weird and wonderful new options. Everything from hazy IPAs to German pilsners to dessert stouts to triple fruited sours fi ll our fridges, along with a whole array of nonalcoholic options, so there should be something for everyone and if there isn’t, let us know and we’ll make sure there is next time you visit!
Having planned the shop during lockdown one, opened during lockdown two, dallied with the various tier restrictions before hitting lockdown three, it wasn’t quite the start we’d hoped for and ended up operating mostly as an off licence, providing the local community with their (essential) craft beers during a diffi cult winter for everyone. Now, as spring hits and *fi ngers crossed* things begin to ease, we’re excited to fi nally welcome people in to drink and experience The Social Club as we fi rst envisaged it. The perfect pre-drinking location before a gig, a quiet place to meet friends after work, perhaps even the location for a few fun live in-stores one day. We have so many ideas and plans and cannot wait to meet even more of the local community as we all look to get back out and celebrate a brilliant summer.
