With a roster that includes the gentle, the forward-thinking, the experimental, and the in-no-hurry-to-quit-blowing-your-mind, Portland-based Other Electricities keeps the emphasis on the quiet and the cool. The imprint has an exciting 2008 planned, with Manchester folk outfit Low Low Low La La La Love Love Love entering the studio, a slab of experimental electronic music coming out from Steven Hess and Miles Tilmann, and new records from OE artists Fessenden (which includes Hess) and Baja. Here label owners Tom Dorsey and Emile Milgrim give us the word on the joys of Pacific Northwest seafood. — Thomas Rooker White

Who runs the label?
Other Electricities is run by Tom Dorsey and Emile Milgrim.

Where is the label located? Describe your digs…
We’re in Portland, Ore. The whole operation is pretty low-key. You know, just two people handling the work of twenty, with some help from a designer and an intern.

How did the label get its start? Its name?
We had a background in PR and thought a record label was the next logical step. This record accident(s) by a band called Sneaky Thieves really catalyzed everything. In the beginning we tossed around a few names and figured that the name “Other Electricities” really represented our goals in terms of releasing eclectic output.

How many releases do you issue a year, on average?
We’re in our second year and to date, we’re currently on our 10th release. We also have 8 full-lengths scheduled for 2008 as well as some limited edition 7″’s.

True or false: Digital downloads are okay, but 7″’s are cooler…
True. But 10″’s are the best!

Favorite label besides your own…
We have a great deal of respect for many labels and their art/business models. Some of these include Kranky, Anticon, Leaf, Thrill Jockey, Secretly Canadian/Jagjaguwar/Dead Oceans, and Warp. There are also some smaller specialty labels that consistently blow us away such as Sp.ark, Static Caravan, and Audio 8 Recordings.

Favorite record ever…
Emile: Can I name a few? Cocteau Twins, Four Calendar Café; songs:ohia, Didn’t It Rain; Stereolab, Dots and Loops; Sole, Selling Live Water.

Tom – Dead Kennedys, Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables

Favorite movie ever…
Paradise Lost II - Best documentary ever!

Vegetarian or carnivore?
Emile: No dairy or meat/eggs. A little seafood now and then; since this is the Pacific NW and we’re lucky to have such quality seafood.

Tom: Can Coca-Cola be a diet?

Your guiltiest pleasure. The thing no one would believe you watch, read, or listen to…

Emile: Kylie Minogue.

Tom: Missy Elliot.

Tags: Other Electricities, Tom Dorsey, Emile Milgrim, Dead Kennedys, Portland, Oregon