So far, the biggest moment of electronic hype-conduit James Blake’s year was when Tiny Mix Tapes, the Zeus of the music criticism world, awarded his self-titled debut (TMT Review) a perfect score. It was a big moment for Blake, and, sadly, he’s probably now numb to all other human experiences. But here’s another pretty important Blake moment: he has signed to Universal Republic for the US release of his debut. Yes, James Blake is a major label artist in the US, which is about twenty times less odd than it sounds, since he’s already a major label artist in the UK. Atlas/A&M is handling the UK release of James Blake, and they’re owned by Polydor, which just happens to be owned by Universal Music Group. In a way, James Blake is basically on the same label in the UK and the US, or, at least, on labels that report to the same boss.
No news on the US release date for James Blake, but the UK version is still coming out on February 7. Also, no news on whether James Blake will be joining his new labelmates Hinder and Enrique Iglesias on the road, but, man, I hope he will.
• James Blake: http://www.myspace.com/jamesblakeproduction
• Universal Republic: http://www.universalrepublic.com