Cooking Vinyl has signed alternative rock band A to a worldwide artist-services deal.
The band will release their first new album in over 20 years in 2026, ahead of a December arena tour with The Darkness that will culminate at London’s O2 Arena.
“Happy to report that we have signed Lowestoft’s second most famous band, who will now be nipping at the heels of the Darkness in 2026,” said Cooking Vinyl MD Rob Collins. “How ace are A…”
“Woke up this morning with a hangover and a banging headache and a nagging memory that last night, our band A signed to Cooking Vinyl,” said A frontman Jason Perry. “We also had a band meeting and decided that our new album will be called Prang. We’re worse for wear and really happy to be with such a great label and such believers in the new record and us. As Rob said last night, it’s going to be ‘mega’ and ‘mint’… How ace are record deals?!!”
“As an ageing emo, A hold a very special place in my heart and I am thrilled, delighted and other overused press release adjectives that we’ve found kindred spirits in the team at Cooking Vinyl,” said Pip Newby, Brigade Management.
“Rob, Tom [Newman] and the rest of the CV team have shown an understanding of the band’s past and an excitement for their future that’s already made us feel very at home. Twenty years since their last one, the band have made an absolutely barnstorming record and we can’t wait to unleash it on the world with our new label partners in 2026.”
Rob, Tom and the rest of the CV team have shown an understanding of the band’s past and an excitement for their future that’s already made us feel very at home
Pip Newby
Formed in Suffolk in 1993, A achieved a UK Top 10 single and a gold-certified album with their breakout record Hi-Fi Serious, while also being honoured with the Kerrang! award for Best British Band.
Alongside his role as lead vocalist of A, Jason Perry has built a producing and songwriting career, working with major artists such as McFly, Matt Willis and Don Broco, and accumulating multiple chart-topping records and award-winning projects.
The band will perform on the main stage at Slam Dunk Festival in May ‘26 before an arena tour with The Darkness in December.
The deal follows the summer 2025 announcement that Cooking Vinyl had been acquired by Exceleration Music.
The deal sees Cooking Vinyl continue to operate with its own team, under MD Rob Collins and with founder Martin Goldschmidt remaining as chair.
Backed by Exceleration’s global infrastructure, Cooking Vinyl’s releases will be distributed via Exceleration’s in-house distribution arm Redeye Worldwide, expanding their international reach and enabling a more streamlined, global roll-out across territories.
“This strategic move leverages Cooking Vinyl’s artist-centric ethos with Exceleration’s resources, offering artists enhanced access to markets worldwide while retaining the label’s independent spirit,” said a statement.
PHOTO: (L-R) Giles Perry, Jason Perry, Rob Collins, Tom Newman, Mark Chapman, Adam Perry, Pip Newby, Richard Trigg
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