Here we are, it is September and the summer and its glorious sun are slowly pushing back down onto the horizon. With the new month, comes the newest installment of our White Label Series. 

This month's curator is Meredith Graves, and her choice of House of Feelings, New Lows. Continue down the page to read her statement. 

"The white label as object is a perpetual artifact.

An intermediary step between sound and its physical form, white label records could any day, right along with the rest of vinyl production, cease to exist. In context as a cultural signifier, however, the white label, in its rushed and still-warm glory, is inextricably linked with the history of house music-- ‘the white label’ is the freshest thing going, the premiere cut, the first listen, the event of listening that transcends the object.

In keeping with Joyful Noise’s reverent reluctance to let the old ways die, my contribution comes from ​House of Feelings​, the NYC supergroup spearheaded by producer and songwriter Matty Fasano. Instead of a singles comp, and in keeping with the true spirit of the white label, Matty and his rotating cast of instrumentalists, vocalists, producers and friends wrote a whole new record in little more than a month (okay, including a paranoid intrusion from yours truly). I couldn’t be prouder of my friends; the many agents of HoF, and our new companions at Joyful Noise, for insisting the artifact remain perpetual, and for always being the freshest thing going."

-mg

We are currently SOLD OUT of our White Label Series, but you can sign up for the wait list OR you can go to the artist direct. 

House of Feelings will have their limited amount for sale soon over on their Bandcamp! They also have the album streaming in full on their Spotify / Apple Music / Amazon. Check it out!

Are you a subscriber? Head this way to access your downloads --> WHITE LABEL DIGITAL DOWNLOADS.

August is here and with it comes a new White Label Series selection. This month we have Satomi Matsuzaki of Deerhoof as our curator. Read on below as Satomi describes why she chose Chad Popple - A Popple People.

Chad Popple plays drums elegantly and erratically like a hummingbird. Mesmerizing feel of drum rhythms that seems to go anywhere but purposeful and put me in trance state of mind. Pauses are enhanced with sensitive delivery of crispy hits. Every time I see him play, his innocent merry spirit makes me smile. His long hair flies in the air like seaweed in rough ocean because his moves come across like slow motion as if I am dreaming. I relate to him often. Then I think about our similarities. We both love traveling. We like good food and drinks. We get in a bad mood when we get hungry. We moved out of our own countries and live in foreign countries. We are curious aquarians. Thus we get along well. When Gorge Trio and Deerhoof toured together, Chad drove and I sat on a front seat next to him. We planned what to eat at a next city we were gonna stop. It was golden. I am very excited for people to listen to this album which has been recorded in a wide spread out time. This could be a Chad Popple retrospective work in a way. He plays drums, percussions, vibraphone, glockenspiel and tabla. If you live in Hamburg, you may be lucky enough to see his drumming.

Enjoy!

− Satomi Matsuzaki, Curator

We are currently SOLD OUT of our White Label Series, but you can sign up for the wait list OR you can go to the artist direct. Chad Popple will have his limited amount for sale soon! 

Are you a subscriber? Head this way to access your downloads --> WHITE LABEL DIGITAL DOWNLOADS.

July is here, along with the heat of summer pressing down on us. This month our curator is non-other than Aesop Rock himself – with his selection of Homeboy Sandman, Nourishment (Second Helpings). Read his curator's statement below...

"Discovering Homeboy Sandman’s music, and subsequently recording and traveling with him has been a rewarding experience beyond any expectation.

Equal parts poignant and clever, Sandman’s weaving of prose, philosophy, and social commentary conveys a relatable human condition in an entirely singular way.   In person, his craft seems more like a compulsion. He writes at an intimidating pace, and in those moments - the rhyme is everything. On stage Sandman’s unique voice and giant wingspan command everything in the room.

This is music deeply rooted in NY hip-hop, with a willingness to break all rules, and  I love it. Additionally, Homeboy Sandman can do like a million push-ups. No lie."

-Aesop Rock

We are currently SOLD OUT of our White Label Series, but you can sign up for the wait list OR you can go to the artist direct. Homeboy Sandman will have his limited amount for sale soon! 

Are you a subscriber? Head this way to access your downloads --> WHITE LABEL DIGITAL DOWNLOADS.

This month, the glorious beginning of summer, we have a curated pick from Alex Somers (Sigur Rós) with his musically talented brother John Somers, I Dreamt The Dreams That Kept Me From Sleep. 

Read on for curator statement...

"Originally self-produced and self-released on a very small quantity of homemade CD-R’s; never made available beyond our friend circles…

This album was, is, and always will be a very special and personal album for me. It was made by my older brother John back in 2002 when we were sharing a small apartment in Boston. I was only 18 and he was 21. We were both studying music, composition, and synthesis and getting deep into sound. We would both stay up all night tinkering and writing and recording music together and separately. It was a beautiful time of exploration and discovery.

I was listening to this album through the walls of our little apartment for a few months before John had even finished it. I would come home from school and hear him working away on it and I’d hold my breath and not make a sound, as not to disturb him. I thought the sounds I was hearing were so beautiful! So familiar, almost as if I were actively collaborating in the music and making the album with John all along... It was the music I wanted to make. Melodic, repetitive, sonic, simple, beautiful, interesting, and sincere. I think in a way this album became the template for all the music I’ve been a part of since. I come back to listen to this album often and it still holds weight for me. It still moves me, and still reminds me of my dear brother and our era together in Boston.

I hope you, holding this album in your hands, can tap into the world of this music and hear yourself in it as I do.

Thank you for listening! And thank you to Joyful Noise for giving this gem its first ever proper release into the world. And thank you to my brother John for making this portal."

Love, Alex
March 2018

For existing WHITE LABEL SERIES people head over this way to download the digital --> White Label Digital Download.

We are currently entirely sold out of our 2018 Subscription Series, but head over to John's Bandcamp where you can support him directly. --> << John Somers Bandcamp. >>

This month's White Label Series is a bit of a departure from our norm. Our curator this month is Mike Watt, with this insane, spontaneous fusion of forces helped brought to be by our guy Chris Schlarb. Members of this trio are Mike Watt, Danny Frankel, and Matt Mottel: Afternoon Freak, The Blind Strut. Read their three part statement below.

Mike Watt:

My inspiration for the Afternoon Freak project got originally lit by BIG EGO studio man Chris Schlarb and it's to him I dedicated my involvement 'pert-near as much as I do the two co-conspirators Matt Mottel and Danny Frankel who I joined up with in Chris Schlarb's pad to create what I'm here writing about: the debut album from Afternoon Freak, The Blind Strut.

It was Chris Schlarb who also connected me to the good people at Joyful Noise Recordings who asked me to curate an album for their White Label Series. In my mind, it was totally natural that this choice should be the Afternoon Freak work cuz of the cats involved—it made total sense to me.

What Chris Schlarb provided for me was the opportunity to connect with one cat I had never met before who lived on a different coast and was from another generation. This is proof to someone like me, how powerful music can be, it's got the stuff to overcome "realities" such as that, in a transcendent way. Young Matt Mottel in my mind probably instigated this whole adventure but it was Chris Schlarb that made it a "reality"—he chose a beautiful cat I've known a long time for stickman, Danny Frankel, who just last year joined me, and incredible bass brother Devin Hoff, in an improvised trio project called the Emma Goldman Bust-out Brigade so I had an anchor to hold me fast in the face of the big-scary-sitch of never having met keyboard man Matt before.

The whole event involving us three... actually four—we gotta include recording man Chris Schlarb—happened in one afternoon (January 14, 2017) at BIG EGO. Of course for me it was a pants-shitter cuz of the sitch, but right away, one at a time, everyone involved made me feel more and more calm without losing focus and edge ( one time when I was recording my first opera and telling drummer man Stephen Hodges I was scared he told me, "Watt, sometimes being a little scared is like being a little excited" and I never forgot that ), without losing the "excitement" of not knowing what might result, but still having the nerve along with your cats to throw the dice as hard as possible with fists in the air yet having a trippy kind of humility all tied up there in the crux—this is what I've found to help with the listening: guitar man Nels Cline taught me that listening is most important improv collab tool ever. Also, the BIG IDEA that life is a classroom and everyone's got something to teach Watt. That makes me feel really grateful to everyone involved with this project to have Watt aboard. Hopefully, I provided good glue to stick stuff to for Matt and Danny—these brothers deserve nothing less!

On drums, Danny Frankel:

Chris Schlarb, who I met via Nels Cline, coordinated this combination of players at BIG EGO Studios in Long Beach, CA. Before I met Matt, I watched some YouTube videos of him and I appreciated his take on life. There was this moment that day in the studio, when I was drumming and vocalizing non-sequiturs, and I looked over about 12 feet to my right, where I saw Matt watching me play, nodding his head with a look of intrigue on his face.

And then we had Watt on bass, whose musical career and philosophy I've appreciated ever since my arrival in Los Angeles from Washington DC. As a trio, I heard a very flexible travelogue of sights seen and not seen. A wonderful day in outer space!

Keyboard man, Matt Mottel:

The Blind Strut is only accomplished thru acumen, compassion and confidence. Spending time in the studio with Mike Watt and Danny Frankel created a cohesive unit almost immediately. There was a willful focus to be in the moment and make it count.

Especially Watt and Danny; craftsman of the highest degree.

I was honored to make tones rise on the positive trip with these guys. An 'afternoon freak' of the highest order thanks to engineer Chris Schlarb for having the intuition to pair us together. I left the session humbled that I had had the amazing opportunity to play with these master musicians and was way enthused by the results! Dig it and have proper time with this music. Thank you for listening.

We are sold out of this year's subscription, but you can purchase digital and physical copies from the trio themselves right this way --> afternoonfreak.bandcamp.com

If you are current subscriber head over here for the Digital Download of Afternoon Freak, The Blind Strut.

The month of new beginnings and spring is upon us. April finds us with a curation from Teri Gender Bender. We have for you, Apolo, Live in Stockholm.

"APOLO, consisting of Ivan Almanza (tambores), Ivan "Zurdo" Sotelo (guitarra), Santiago Villalba (bajo) and Albar Alcantar (voz) are an extraordinary psychedelic rock band from Chihuahua, México. They are a prime example of ferocious artists who have an outstanding ability to overcome social obstacles with their raw and exhilarating '60s-influenced sound. Their love for music brought them together in 2007 down a path that lead them to move to Mexico City with nothing in their pockets but determination in their hearts. Playing countless nights anywhere physics and human will would allow, they performed in underground metros, churches, parks, streets, and clubs, eventually expanding their tours all over the Mexican Republic and more recently, all over Europe (which is a rarity for us Mexican folk).

APOLO is a word derived from Greek with a meaning very much unknown and filled with mystery, though scholars indicate that the roots pertain to the translation of “strength” (fuerza). I cannot think of a more fitting word for this group of four charismatic individuals who, when together, form an unstoppable wave of groove.

Their music and lyricism is a representation of Mexico’s fiery youth, of an unsettled fight against corruption imposed by the brutal government that forever tries to attenuate hopelessness as a normality. The eerie, indigenous, mythical storytelling captured in the native tongue of our historically rich country expresses the various forms that light and love can morph into. Their growth has become undeniable because they persisted and turned their surroundings into metaphorical bullets loaded within their music. 

 I am very humbled and proud (orgullosa) to be presented the opportunity by Joyful Noise Recordings to properly continue the dialogue about this very important underground group of fearless Mexican rebels."

-Teri Gender Bender

If you were lucky enough to grab a 2018 White Label Subscription, head this way to access the digital content: WHITE LABEL DIGITAL DOWNLOADS.

Happy listening! 

This month's White Label installment comes to us through Serengeti. He brought to us his choice LA's, Foreign & Domestic, Your Mountain vs. My Iceberg.

I first met Umar Rashid on campus. He was rapping right outside my dorm. It was one of the most amazing freestyles I’d ever heard, he had everything. Years later in Los Angeles, after becoming best of friends, I played a show with his new band Foreign & Domestic (or the F&D). I present my best friend Umar’s old band circa 2006.

−Serengeti Curator

This previously unreleased debut album from LA’s Foreign & Domestic is going to exist in the world. The warm and fuzzy synths blended with soulful vocals over catchy beats create a unique concoction of electronic pop that share memorable, well crafted tales. From “Freeways” in LA, to a girl who’s “Airy” and thin, to a best friend’s advice to “Talk To Her”, to meeting “Erica” in a porn shop, to throwing up after “The Lost Weekend”, they all take you on quirky yet familiar adventures. There are also plenty of computer and robot visions – the life of a “Machine Girl”, escaping to “My 8-bit World” and stealing a chapter from Philip K. Dick’s world of despair in “Do Androids Dream?”. Your Mountain Vs. My Iceberg will help guide you through a world that is both foreign and domestic.

If you were lucky enough to grab a 2018 White Label Subscritption, head this way to access the digital content: WHITE LABEL DIGITAL DOWNLOADS.

Happy listening! 

 February is upon us and this month our curator is Kid Millions, drummer extraordinaire of Oneida. His pick for this month is Weirding Module, A Newer Age. Read his full statement below.

There was a time when Weirding Module had an active website. When you clicked on the “contact” button you were taken to a page that simply said, “Do not contact us. We will contact you with our music.”

I happened to know the person behind this music, but no one else did and it’s likely that no one cared. I was going to change all that.

Back in the late oughts I ran a label through Jagjaguwar called Brah. It was the Oneida arm of the business; a place where we released albums of high quality and low sales potential. We were the metaphorical canary in the coal “mind.” We were having trouble selling records before everyone else was! I stand behind all of those orphans btw. If you haven’t checked our catalog - you should. They can all be had for cheap and none of it will disappoint.

But in the meantime Brah soldiered on. I would talk with the powers that be over at Jagjag corporate and I would get the green or red light for albums that I really wanted to get out there. I knew the business as well as anyone - what I mean is that I knew that there were no shortcuts and no miracles. But at the same time - for some insane reason - I still believed that quality would rise to the top and people would hear the music, and they would love it and Brah would have our big break. That break never came unfortunately.

We passed on Deerhunter. I thought they were too disorganized. I wasn’t allowed to release a Hella record. For some reason I decided that releasing a Wolf Eyes comedy record wasn’t quite the right move. All of these things are true.

In general we were allowed to release anything else we wanted. Weirding Module “A Newer Age” was gonna come out. I absolutely loved this fucking album. I listened to it constantly as I worked in the IT salt mines. I was a manager by day, and a life idiot by night. Music was my only salvation. It actually saved my life on a daily basis. I was so depressed. . .those days just floated away in a fog of corporate gibberish. But I would spin this Weirding Module album and be freed from the nightmare of my job. All the clichés were true for me then. Music was saving me and I believed in Weirding Module.

In a way I think it’s the best album that Brah never released. You are holding a masterpiece in your hands. You might not realize it yet - but it is. WM saw the darkness and paranoia that we are living in now and he made the soundtrack. This album is a headphones trip. It will DEFINITELY take you to another place. Do people put on headphones, shut the door, turn off the phone, lie back and listen anymore? Is that a thing? Are you that person?

I think the days are long gone for albums to be re-discovered. Everything that is made from now on is forever lost into the digital dustbin. It’s something like, “What was that thing I heard that one time? Well I can’t remember the name and there’s been a deluge of slop released since so forget about it.” That’s music now.

But thank DOG for Joyful Noise and this series and thank DOG for you, dear listener. I believe that you will actually listen to this record. I totally trust that you are a true believer. I can’t wait for you to listen to this thing and be transported to A Newer Age. It’s darker, more vibrant, more paranoid, more harsh and well, kind of more hopeful. This is a true journey. It’s an actual album. It’s all gold on this platter folks. It’s happened - you’ve been contacted.

The new year begins and we enter a new cycle of White Label Series. January is no exception. This month our curator is Dale Nixon, with his choice of Berry, Everything, Compromised. 

"Back in circa 2004, I happened across this mysterious band known as "Berry" performing in a tiny 37-person dive bar in St Louis. In my mind the bar was called "Radio Cherokee", but it might have been called "AM Apache" or "Sioux FM" or something... According to my calculations, I have seen 1,484 shows since that moment. Very few of which I remember. But I was absolutely transfixed that night I was introduced to Berry in that tiny 37-person venue in some terrifying corner of St. Louis.

It's difficult to explain what is so amazing about this band. They're not overly unusual, or outlandish, or any of the other things that usually pique a person's interest on first listen. But they are able to strike an incredibly rare balance of earnestness, inventiveness, and artistic/technical prowess. In my opinion, they are better than 99% of all music in the world. Which means they're better than your favorite band, statistically speaking. So why haven't you heard of them? I don't know. Why is Donald Trump president? The world is a cruel and unjust place.

You know how some bands struggle for years to try to write meaningful songs, and when they finally get something recorded it's just 'Chinese Democracy'? Berry is the opposite of that. You can't stop this band from creating. And everything they record seems to just spill out of them, fully-formed, and effortlessly superb. They have self-recorded and released over 8.33 hours of material since that day I first saw them 14 years ago. Most of these recordings they have self-released for free on their site (something I believe they were doing even before Radiohead's 'In Rainbows' made it common practice). And even now when they all live in different cities and such — they are still more prolific and more creative than most bands will ever be.

My best friends will tell you: if you get me drunk enough, Berry IS coming on the stereo and YOU WILL LISTEN. I feel about Berry how a religious evangelist must feel when they believe they've "discovered the secret" or whatever. I have no religion, but I do have a secret, and it's a band called Berry." 

- Dale Nixon

Ahead of this announcement Berry have gone on to grab the attention of Brooklyn Vegan and landed a premiere of the digital tracks. You can check that out here.

We are sold out of our copies of this year's subscription, but you can share Berry's Bandcamp where they are selling 100 of the LPs while supplies last.

The month of December is upon us and with it the last installment of our 2017 White Label Series. This month our curator is Devendra Banhart, with his choice of Noah Georgeson, Osian. This album is a bit different than the other White Label offerings, for one Noah is a Grammy winning record producer, engineer, mixer, as well as being a solo musician. Georgeson has produced four of Banhart’s albums, including co-writing a number of the songs, and frequently tours as a member of his band. Read Devendra's note below:

This album is Noah Georgeson’s score to the fear-joy-exhaustion-wonder-bewilderment-awe that comes with the first days of being a parent.

It is a gift, a tangible expression of love…in that sense, it is a concept album, and perhaps the most tender and beautiful concept I can imagine, I’ll let Noah further explain…. for now, I just want to thank you for taking this journey with a human being so very close to my heart.

Love above all,
- Devendra Banhart 

We are sold out of our 2017 subscription series, but you can connect and purchase the LP Osian on his website. 

www.osian.pro