Certificate 18 was a London label set up by Paul Arnold, who started it after hearing breakbeats combined with techno and other electronic sounds. Its releases covered drum and bass and electronica, from atmospheric and intelligent music to drumfunk and jungle, and Arnold did not aim to tie the label to a single scene.
Klute’s single F. P. O. P. / Survival came out in 1995, and in 1996 the label released LTJ Bukem’s album Logical Progression. Klute’s first artist album, Casual Bodies, followed in 1998, and his We R The Ones (Klute Remix) / Chicks (Doc Scott Remix) appeared in 2001. Certificate 18 helped launch the careers of Nookie, Future Engineers and Blu Mar Ten, and also released work by TeeBee, Studio Pressure, Source Direct and Danny C’s Primary Motive.
Polar’s album Still Moving arrived on 5 November 2001 as a triple LP and a 12-track CD. The label also put out three Hidden Room compilations and Widescreen Versions, an album of electronic reinterpretations of drum and bass tracks, while its Electronic Projects imprint explored downtempo music and abstract beats. Certificate 18 closed in the early 2000s.
