welcoming the beastmaster

it may come as no suprise, but surely as a splendid revelation, that the almighty beastmaster aka lucien shapiro, of 667 / papervehicle / cleaver league notoriety, is now official a part of the decorative stamp guild in a solo capacity. already responsible for a host of sinister death-chews, adept texts and visual artworks, the beastmaster's reputation clearly preceeds him as we heartily welcome him into the fold.

we shall reveal no more for now, keeping the darkly-disturbing spirits at bay until official announcements will be revealed in the coming moons, but do be sure to expect word of forthcoming materials in the not-too-distant future. til then, be sure to 'like' him on facebook, bookmark his website and anticipate the darkening storm that will unveil the upcoming installments in the saga of the 667.

keep safe

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accolades 2012

another year to fly by so fast, and here we are at the still shimmering dawn of these next twelve moons, ready to take a moment to briefly reflect on our myriad successes in 2012 and to draw attention to the various gongs we have received for our efforts and to thank those responsible accordingly. in truth 2012 was a tough year in many ways, but how we are so proud to have managed to soldier forward and bring to you some of our most-treasured releases yet. so, might we indulge a moment in the recognition bestowed upon us by awfully kind others and raise our collective glasses to the prospect of all that shall emerge in this fine new year of our lord 2013.

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decorative stamp:

label of the year - beats, breaks & big smiles

a band of buriers - filth:

no.7 album of the year - beats, breaks & big smiles

no.44 album of the year - rocksucker

album of the month 'july' - trip-hop.net

'slides by' - best tracks of 2012 - god is in the tv

abSUrd - close to distantly:

no.39 hip-hop album - indie rock mag

home - lone:

'author' - no.10 song of the year - s.page at unsound.village

honourable mention - beats, breaks & big smiles

mesparrow:

artist to watch out for - les in rocks

'next bored generation' - no.84 song of the year - les in rocks

prison soup:

no.10 album of the year - beats, breaks & big smiles

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but might we still further take this opportunity to thank you all so very much for your support, encouragement, enthusiasm, kind words and friendship over this last long year, and how we very much look forward to bringing you a host of new creative treats over the coming moons, not to mention taking to the road to visit your towns and cities, share splendid experiences and generally embrace all that is to be found along the path ahead. from every one of our family members, might we take an added opportunity to wish you all a very happy new year and all the luck, success and happiness to be found.

keep safe and warm

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josef motley : 1982 - 2012

as this long and strange year finally begins to draw to a close, we would very much like to take the opportunity to say a few words in honour of our now truly-legendary captain josef motley, who very sadly left this mortal coil under such desperately tragic circumstances at the beginning of the summer. captain honey and myself, reindeer, consider ourselves so very fortunate to have been able to become friends with josef back in the myspace days and had the very good fortune of collaborating with him on what should have been the first of very many songs. in truth, we both very much considered him to be the 'third man' when it came to the uk alt-rap scene and, while our paths sadly never crossed in person, we very much saw him as a close acquaintance and a fascinating artist indeed. his passing is a truly cruel blow to the world and how we can only know that he will be so dearly missed by so many.

josef's creative output was always something very much worth paying close attention to. from his own solo releases, to the storming power of his 'swampglow' group, to the richly bizarre world of the 'tortoiseshell male' to his work on the staggeringly surreal 'christmasaurus' collections, there was always more than enough to entertain, bemuse and satisfy the most-curious of listeners. josef's talent lay in his incredibly adept ability to filter the mundane sham of everyday life into a strange and captivating series of cut-up words, sounds and images to a standard that burroughs himself would surely have approved of. sometimes 'unlistenable', sometimes wonderfully 'catchy', oftentimes absurd, and joyfully daft, his output so perfectly mirrored this farsical 'everyday life' which the western lands have steadily built-up as 'reality'. the world is a poorer place in his absence, but we will be sure to celebrate his works until the very end, so grateful that he would have given us the chance to do so. an incredible artist and a noble captain indeed. he will remain in our thoughts for all-tme

josef motley : 01-10-82 - 28-06-12

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filth - vinyl out now

after some unexpected delays, we can at last announce that the vinyl edition of the masterful 'filth' album from our very own a band of buriers is now at last available to order.

'filth' really is something of a masterpiece indeed, so do be sure to take this opportunity of securing yourself a copy of such a special release as soon as time and funds might permit.

keep safe

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label of the year 2012!

well, it has been a rather fascinating year indeed, and how wonderful it has been for us here at the stamp to get to share with you so many new musical treasures, visual treats and live performances from the many and varied members of our close family. it is always such a thrill to unveil a new release from our dear stable and how much it means to us that they should be so warmly received.

so, what warmer reception that to be chosen as 'label of the year' for the second year in a row by the very marvelous beats, breaks & big smiles. we really do put in so much hard work, as individual artists and as a collective whole, and how rewarding it is then for us to be so kindly recognised for our efforts as this long year draws to a steady close. we really are most grateful indeed.

keep safe and warm

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decorative stamp - volume two - out now

ladies and gentlemen, after many longs moons since the release of our first label sampler, might we at last present to you 'decorative stamp volume two', now available as a limited edition hand-crafted cd and free digital download from the decorative stamp online store.

gathering together twenty-four tracks and spanning eighty minutes, the release contains a wealth of stunning compositions for your listening pleasure, all seamlessly mixed together by our very own commander-in-chief jamesreindeer. be sure to get involved.

keep safe and warm

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close to distantly - vinyl edition - out now

ladies and gentlemen. after the longest moons of steady waiting, we can at last announce that the stunning limited-edition vinyl version of the masterful 'close to distantly' album from our most highly-treasured AbSUrd is now available, in conjunction with the ever-splendid cooler than cucumbers records.

already heralded as something of a classic, this new presentation of the album sees it packaged in the most glorious form possible and how magnificent it looks indeed. hand-crafted by AbSUrd himself and limited to only 250 pieces, be sure to think about fixing yourself a copy directly.

keep warm

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isaac & honey - end the not is death - coming soon

oh, how the year is racing by and how we are slowly closing in on the end. still, might we reveal that we have a few more releases lined up before the final bell tolls, and how next monday shall see something very special emerge indeed. might we jubilantly reveal the release of the 'long-lost' and highly-treasured collaboration between our very own james p honey from a band of buriers and the mighty isaac ramsey, aka swordplay, from double rainbow, entitled 'end the not is death'.

how these two brave captains found themselves huddled together in the cold of the dawn of 2010 in london, england, and in that time managed to claw together a host of beautifully realised songs for our listening pleasure. these gems were initially recorded in a flurry of activity and then slowly assembled in carefully measured stages over the long moons, but are at last ready to see the light of day.

taking us on a magical journey where alt-rap and folk meet, displaying the fantastic lyrical, vocal and song-writing talents of these two masters of their crafts, not to mention featuring guest appearances from a band of buriers' jamie romain and the mighty edison. be sure to think about securing yourself a copy when the release date rolls around next monday 5th november. get involved.

keep warm

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mesparrow - next bored generation

with absolute delight and adoration, might we humbly present to you the utterly glorious new video from our most highly-treasured mesparrow, entitled 'next bored generation' and simply demanding your undivided attention and repeated viewings.

directed by pascaline blanchecotte, the video is another exercise in creative expertise and magnificent song-writing. be sure to get involved directly, secure yourself a copy of the digital single and let your anticipation steadily build for the debut album arriving in the new year.

keep warm

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edison - delayed reaction elements

not content to ever sit still for any measurable amount of time, our most staggering edison has seen fit to unleash yet another album of stunning instrumental treats into the world, this time entitled 'delayed reaction elements' and featuring suitably spectacular covert art from the one and only mildew.

eleven new songs which take us on further magical journeys into the depths of edison's creative enterprise, all the while maintaining a wonderfully cohesive experience throughout. be sure to secure yourself a digital copy as soon as time and funds permit. sting!

keep 667

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