May 18th, 2007
Things you might not know about this album:
+ Jon Cohen (of Vagrant) put a 2nd mortgage on his parent’s house so that they could come up with enough to give the band a bus for touring and an advance big enough to cover recording and living expenses.
+ The Get Up Kids almost signed to Mojo after putting out a few releases on Doghouse. The offer from Vagrant and the fact that Mojo wanted the Get Up Kids to re-record “Don’t Hate Me” from 4 Minute Mile were a few reasons they did not sign.
+ Part of the deal with Vagrant was giving the band their own imprint, Heroes and Villains, who introduced the world to bands like the Anniversary, Koufax, and Reggie and the Full Effect. (not Hot Rod Circuit, thanks for the correction scott).
+ The album has sold nearly 200,000 copies in the states and still scans around 75 copies per week.
+ The Something To Write Home about tour was sponsored by Napster (in 1999, when Napster was the biggest illegal music trading P2P).
+ Doghouse released the vinyl for this album which is out of print.
+ This is the release that served as a turning point for Vagrant turning them into the indie powerhouse they are today.
When Sean Klassen of IndieHQ said he would be able to set up full album streams for the new IndieHQ site, I really wanted to highlight older albums that may not get the attention from new music fans that it deserves. This album was one of the first albums I wanted to showcase as it really made a lasting impression on me and on independent music overall. If you were around when this album was released, you would know that it kind of rewrote the thoughts and expectations of independent music and without this release, Vagrant would not have been able to sign many of the landmark acts that they have signed. I have wrote a few of my thoughts on this album and if you are so inclined to read further, click the link. Do listen to the album though as it still holds up even after having been out for 8 years. Please also post your comments and thoughts on this record. If you have a story or experience relating to this record, I would love to hear it.
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Written by Virgil Dickerson | 25 Comments
May 6th, 2007
I’ve spent a lot more of my free time than I probably should have in the last month or so dedicated to working on a new version of this site and am proud to announce the launch of IndieHQ 2.0. Aside from a pretty drastic change aesthetically there are also a number of new features that have been added. Read more if you want to check out all of the details…
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Written by Sean Klassen | 7 Comments
April 24th, 2007
Holy shit, this song absolutely kills. I have been air-tapping my air-guitar while listening to “Dr L’ing”, the first track to be posted from Minus the Bear’s upcoming album, “Planet of Ice”. You always wonder what the next record is going to sound like and if this song is any indication, this new album will be unbelievable. I am more partial to “Highly Refined Pirates” over “Menos El Oso”, but this song really knocks my socks off.
Suicide will be releasing “Planet of Ice” in August, we (Suburban Home/Vinyl Collective) will be releasing the vinyl around the same time. The release will be a double LP limited to 2,000 copies with 4 varieties of colors. It should be a pretty sweet package. I can’t wait to hear the rest of the record.
Minus the Bear “Dr L’ling” mp3
Written by Virgil Dickerson | 26 Comments
April 18th, 2007
This feature marks the first in what I hope to be another consistent, exclusive offering from your friends at IndieHQ. As we continue to discuss what labels and bands look for in each other, we wanted to showcase from time to time breakthrough acts that are unsigned. Since a number of our readers come from various labels, we are hopeful that this feature will at some point help band(s) to get the attention of various indie labels.
Corey Schmidt, associate editor at Pastepunk, was kind enough to write this first feature. He originally wrote to tell me about a band he had been digging who were unsigned. Since he has a good idea of some of the bands I love, he suggested that I give them a listen. I enjoyed the band’s songs on Myspace and asked him if he would be into writing this first unsigned band feature. He also asked the band’s permission to offer an mp3 on IndieHQ. The group is Band Marino from Orlando, Florida, and we offer you an mp3 from their latest album, “The Sea and the Beast”. The song is called “Feel It in the Air” and we hope you like it.
Click the link to read more about the band. If you know of an incredible, unsigned band, feel free to post it in the comments. Understand though that just putting your own unsigned band in the comments will not garner a guaranteed feature. I plan to reach out to a number of friends in the industry to see if they know of an unsigned band that they would like to write about for future features.
Thanks Corey for helping with this feature and please everyone, take a listen.
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Written by Virgil Dickerson | 19 Comments
April 11th, 2007
Have you heard the new Limbeck album? Now you can, listen to it as our friends at Mammoth Press are streaming the entire record. It rules! I absolutely love all of their records, but this could become my favorite. Their new, self-titled album, came out yesterday so make sure you pick up a copy, I am hoping the band has a great first week. They are currently on tour with Hot Rod Circuit. I am going to go see them tonight and I can’t wait. Oh yeah, we also released the vinyl. Either way, check out the album stream. Their new record has more of a Ben Kweller/Shins/Beatles vibe and I really think that this record could bring the band some much deserved attention.
Stream Limbeck’s new Self-Titled Album
Written by Virgil Dickerson | 4 Comments
April 6th, 2007
I just listened to the latest episode of Issue oriented Podcast. Ronen brings another quality podcast and this time interviews Efram of Death By Stereo and our good buddy, Jordan from Pastepunk. Check it out. It is always good for interesting discussion and although Ronen doesn’t play a lot of music, he always has a few hits.
Subscribe ti IO through Itunes
IO episode 19 - Efrem Schulz and Jordan Baker
Written by Virgil Dickerson | No Comments
March 22nd, 2007
Equal Vision has just posted a new site. I must say that it is really nice. The site is clean, sharp, and easy to navigate. I highly recommend checking out the site before redesigning your label site as it has pretty much everything you would want in a site. It even has an rss feed. Good work EVR!
While you are checking out their site, check out these mp3s from 3 recent EVR releases (all are on my favorite’s list of 2007 so far):
The Snake the Cross the Crown “Behold the River” - kind of reminds of of the Cold War Kids with a little less swagger; this album is so good! If it were on Matador, Merge, or Downtown, bloggers would commence freaking out.
Dear and the Headlights “It’s Gettin Easy” and “Run in the Front” - These guys remind me of a mixture of the Counting Crows and Bear Vs. Shark. I can’t stop listening to this album. “Run in the Front” should be the theme song of a WB TV show and I mean no disrespect when saying that.
Dustin Kensrue “Pistol” - When I first heard that Dustin was doing a solo record, I really did not expect this. This is really rootsy, soulful rock. The record features moments of Chris Isaak, Social Distortion, Johnny Cash, and maybe even a little John Mayer. I have listened to this record so much and it just keeps getting better. My only complaint is that it only has 8 songs. My favorite track is “Consider the Ravens”.
Written by Virgil Dickerson | 3 Comments
February 27th, 2007
I have received a couple of comments saying that Gatsbys is in fact not breaking up. I am glad to hear that as they are one of my favorite bands. I figured while mentioning this correction, I would also note that Red Red Blue has posted 2 more songs. I am digging them all, but still love “Our Love” the best.
Red Red Blue Myspace Page
Written by Virgil Dickerson | No Comments
February 19th, 2007
Two of my newer favorite bands, Limbeck and Portugal the Man, have recently posted new songs from upcoming releases.
Limbeck has a brand new album coming out on April 10th, their 3rd for Doghouse Records. I have been lucky enough to have received a copy from the band when they were in Colorado for a few shows. I have been a longtime fan, but I think that this newest album could be their best. It is a little less country with a Shins/Ben Kweller vibe. “Big Drag” is a good example of what you can expect on the new album and with luck, this album will get the band the attention they deserve. We are also luckily putting out their new album on vinyl and should have copies in stock before the CD’s street date. Damn I love this band.
Portugal the Man have a new EP coming out on Reincarnate Music. Does anyone know anything about this label? I was surprised to see a label other than Fearless putting this out. The track, “Ruby Magic” picks up where their album “Waiter, You Vultures” left off. It seems like Portugal are working super hard and always seem to be touring. I really like their album and this new track seems just as great. It is hard to compare Portugal to other bands, but I think of a less frantic Mars Volta and maybe a dash of Portishead/Tricky.
I highly recommend checking out both tracks as both bands are doing some amazing stuff.
Written by Virgil Dickerson | 1 Comment
February 14th, 2007
I am falling in love with the lone song on Red Red Blue’s myspace page. This is a new project from Nic, formerly of Gatsby’s American Dream. The song is very rough, but it is so insanely catchy. I have always loved Gatsby’s and Nic’s voice and “Our Love” has me eagerly waiting for more.
Written by Virgil Dickerson | 5 Comments
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