The Basement label was started up in 1991 and was run from the Record Basement shop in Reading. The label was run by Phil Wells (aka Basement Phil).

The main artists on the label included Jack Smooth, Basement Phil, Kev Bird, DJ Mayhem, Wax Doctor, Roger Johnson, Alex Reece and Top Buzz.

One of the things that set Basement apart from the rest was the distinctive sound of nearly every release, courtesy of Jack Smooth's engineering and co-production. 'Jungle Techno' is a sound drawn from the label, with the phrase credited to Mikee B (one third of Top Buzz) who once famously commented that a Basement Records tune he was listening to had sounds that were actually similar to those in a jungle, mixed with Detroit influenced soundscapes.

The label was a big favourite of most DJ's throughout '93 and people like Ratty, Tango, DJ SS, Seduction, Slipmatt and Top Buzz were often heard playing several Basement releases in every set.

Spin-off labels from Basement included Sound Entity and Smooth Recordings whilst Jack Smooth had a behind the scenes influence on labels such as Homegrown, Legend, Symphony Sound and Sinister Recordings.

After the peak of 1993 the Basement label shifted to releasing the more experimetal side of Jungle throughout the mid 90's before closing down in 1997. Recent times however have seen the release of a series of Basement Classics releases plus some more new Drum & Bass productions.