The story of Subject To Restriction Discs is interwoven with that of another label: Tóxico was a short-lived cassette-only imprint focussing on the electronic underground of Bern, Switzerland. Dominik André had the tapes on heavy rotation in his car. »I have always loved this raw, analogue music that sounded very singular and went beyond functionality or clearly drawn genre boundaries,« he says today. Others thought so, too: A DJ whom André shuttled to the Zurich club Zukunft for a gig was immediately taken by the music coming from the stereo and wanted to reissue some of what he heard through his own label. André passed the question on to Tóxico label owner Narco Marco and swiftly received a reply: Nope. If anyone were to present the Tóxico material to a wider audience, it should be André.
Between Worlds: Interference
The Art Of Memory
Gateway
Bellows
Shortly thereafter, the »Kampf der Welten« compilation with deep cuts from the Tóxico catalogue inaugurated STRD. This wasn’t André’s first rodeo. The Zurich-based DJ, radio host and music journalist had already co-run the DIY labels hommes du monde and Underground Soul and learnt his trade from the ground up. This allowed him to approach this new venture carefully. »I knew how much work one person could realistically handle,« he says. He took small steps at the beginning, working primarily with the DJ-friendly 12-inch format. »I had great respect for the album as an artistic format and only wanted to take it on when I had reached a point where I could offer artists the best service,« he says today. After only three years, Xindl’s debut LP, the label’s ninth catalogue number, became the first full-length release for STRD.
The music changed, too. Early STRD releases are treasure troves of lo-fi EBM and wave cuts, ragged electro bangers, outsider house tunes, all occasionally topped off with a splash of acid – raw and unpolished music, more often than not made with small and sweaty basement dancefloors in mind. While this remained a common thread in the label’s aesthetics – recent LPs by Anatolian Weapons and the Salon des Amateurs alumni Sequence of Events have plenty to offer for adventurously minded DJs – the label’s palette has become much broader over time. »The label develops in parallel with me,« says André. »Currently, I find it more exciting to work with bands or live projects that not only work in a club context, but can also hold their own on stage or in album format.«
In recent times, this has led André to work with Zurich duo Gūsū, which blends the sounds of a guzheng with electronics and spoken passages for an abstract take on post-folk music, while label mainstays Don Kashew and Angelo Repetto indulge in increasingly esoteric sounds – the former with a flute in hand, the latter with an apparent penchant for both vaporwave aesthetics and krautrock rhythms. Even though André is still active as a DJ, he doesn’t use his label as a glorified business card, but as a platform whose curation is led by both his »gut feeling« and his interest in establishing long-term relationships with artists, as well as his conviction that music ought to transcend mere functionality: »I am interested in music not only as a consumer good, but as something to talk about, something to discuss and think about.«
Head just above water, but never in the sand
From its early days until today, STRD has given André the opportunity to add to these discussions and provide food for thought. »It allows me to curate music largely without compromise, to put it into context and give it a stage,« he says. »This gives me the feeling of being part of, or having a voice in, the music discourse.« Over time, others have joined the conversation. André has forged long-term working relationships with distributor Bordello A Parigi and Berlin’s intakt! pressing plant, as well as mastering engineer Isabel Schröer, while his partner, the DJ Nive, is helping with A&R and administrative work. By the same token, the label has increasingly functioned as an international platform for Swiss artists while also highlighting global talent. »STRD is locally rooted and internationally active,« as André puts it.
»As a label for niche music, everything is actually difficult from an economic point of view.«
Dominik André has no illusions
Also in this sense, a recent ten-track vinyl compilation of assorted highlights from the Tóxico catalogue in 2025 was both a milestone and a full-circle moment for STRD. In a time of »compilation fatigue«, its compact size underlined what the curious label name refers to. »We live in a time when, theoretically, anything is possible,« says André. »But we often lose sight of what is truly necessary. Restrictions force us to make decisions, which can be extremely productive.« This extends to his medium of choice, vinyl. Already the move from the 12-inch format to the album had been partially motivated by rising production costs, but the more labour-intensive LPs also come with a price tag. »As a label that works with very niche music, everything is difficult from an economic point of view,« André shrugs.
Thanks to funding and income generated from concerts and club nights, STRD is still keeping its head above water, steadily releasing between four and six records a year. While this is not much by today’s standards, it further emphasises that André remains consistently focused on producing the best possible and most interesting end result – prioritising passion over profitability.
