4 AD - Independent record label

4AD is a British independent record label.

Distribution -While 4AD did not handle any distribution outside the United Kingdom for many years, it had many willing distributors in many countries: Virgin Records for France, Nippon Columbia distributed much of the label in Japan, while PolyGram subsidiary Vertigo Records released many of the label's records in Canada. The United States had always been a tough market for 4AD, even though its records sold well there as imports. Only a few of the label's acts had deals to license their recordings in the USA, among various labels.

Founded as the last sparks of punk dwindled, the label was home to revered indie bands such as the Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance and the Pixies and it quickly became a beacon for adventurous musicians. 4AD was also hailed for its strong visual sense, with album covers regarded as design classics. "You could always spot a 4AD sleeve and there was a real quality not just to the music but to the artefact itself," recalled Smith.

The label began in 1980, the year after founders Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent set out to produce the work of unknown bands with the financial help of Beggars Banquet Records. Watts-Russell, the creative force behind the label, wanted to find atmospheric new music that could be more than just a party soundtrack.