Rip It Up Unwrapped

Original version

A BBC TV channel for Scotland which will broadcast every evening and will show drama, factual, comedy and news programmes made in Scotland

BBC Scotland HD

Music: Rock & Indie

Stories of Scottish pop, told via unseen footage and interviews with those who were there.

Music series that uses unseen footage and interviews with those who were there to tell stories of Scottish pop.

BBC Scotland

Rip It Up Unwrapped: Series 1: Chemikal Underground

Chemikal Underground

Series 1

BBC Scotland - Rip It Up Unwrapped, Series 1, Chemikal Underground

The story of independent label, Chemikal Underground.

This is the story of how four friends came together to form Scotland’s most enduring independent label and the bands - from Arab Strap to Mogwai - that they championed. 

In the mid-90s, Chemikal Underground came out of nowhere to set a new precedent for independent record labels in Scotland. At the time, despite its vibrant music culture, Scotland had few truly viable, or financially solvent, record labels that bands could turn to. To many young artists, the industry felt London-centric, and thus out of reach.
Inspired by DIY labels of the past, however, one band from Glasgow - The Delgados - decided to go their own way. With £200 each to their names, Emma Pollock, Alun Woodward,Stewart Henderson and Paul Savage set up Chemikal Underground and began releasing their own music, as well as that of friends from the local scene. 

Success came unexpectedly quickly, with NME and Melody Maker support and a surprise Top of The Pops appearance from label-affiliated BIS (the first from an ‘unsigned’ band in the history of the show).  As a result, the label grew in confidence and stature, developing its own studio - Chem19 - and creating new opportunities for bands across the country. 

Chemikal would go on to sign some of Scotland’s most iconic and influential bands - from Arab Strap to Mogwai - and in many ways their sound defined the country in the ‘90s and early 2000s. They helped to develop a functioning, home grown industry, meaning that bands could stay local but go global. Without them, the Scottish musical landscape would look very different today.


Rip It Up Unwrapped: Series 1

A BBC TV channel for Scotland which will broadcast every evening and will show drama, factual, comedy and news programmes made in Scotland


Rip It Up: Unwrapped uses unseen footage and interviews with those who were there to tell stories of Scottish pop, promising depth, detail, and
music for fans to enjoy.

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Rip It Up Unwrapped

Series 1

Chemikal Underground

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