Sub Pop
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Sub_Pop".

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Sub Pop Records
Founded 1986
Founder Bruce Pavitt
Jonathan Poneman
Genre Alternative rock
Grunge
Indie rock
Country of origin United States
Location Seattle, Washington
Official website http://www.subpop.com

Sub Pop is a record label in Seattle, Washington that achieved fame in the late 1980s for first signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney and many other bands from the local Seattle music scene. They are often credited with taking the first steps toward popularizing grunge music, and have continued to achieve critical and commercial success in the new millennium, with popular bands such as The Postal Service and The Shins on their roster. Sub Pop is 49% owned by Warner Bros. Records[1]. Sub Pop owns a 5% stake in the Alternative Distribution Alliance, with Warner Bros. Records owning the other 95%. Sub Pop recently earned the label's first Grammy Award for Flight of the Conchords' album The Distant Future for Best Comedy Album.

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History

Sub Pop was started by Bruce Pavitt in Olympia, Washington in 1980 as a fanzine called Subterranean Pop (shortened to Sub Pop after the first issue). Inspired by the cassette fanzine Fast Forward, Sub Pop began alternating issues with compilation tapes of underground rock bands. There were nine issues of Sub Pop in all: six magazines and three cassettes (the fifth, seventh, and ninth issues). In 1983, Pavitt moved to Seattle, Washington where Sub Pop continued life as both a column in the Seattle newspaper The Rocket, as well as an independent-label specialty show on KCMU.

In 1986, Pavitt released the first Sub Pop LP, the compilation Sub Pop 100. In 1987, Sub Pop released the Dry as a Bone EP by Green River. Later that year, Kim Thayil of Soundgarden suggested that Pavitt team up with Jonathan Poneman. The pair then decided to release the debut EP by Soundgarden entitled Screaming Life, effectively turning Sub Pop into a full-fledged record label. Over the next few years, Sub Pop released many influential records from independent rock artists such as Nirvana, Mudhoney, Soundgarden, Sunny Day Real Estate, and Tad.

An important and notable aspect of the label's early days was the Sub Pop Singles Club, a subscription service that would allow subscribers to receive singles by independent bands on a monthly basis by mail. The club made Sub Pop a powerful force in the Seattle scene, and effectively made the label's name synonymous with the music of the Seattle area (much in the same way Motown Records was to Detroit), and helped to secure the label's cashflow.[2] The first release of the Singles Club was also Nirvana's first single, Love Buzz/Big Cheese, in November 1988. The original series was discontinued in 1993, followed by Singles Club V.2, launched in 1998 and discontinued in 2002.[3] In August 2008, Sub Pop relaunched the singles club for one year to celebrate its twentieth anniversary.[4]

To further increase the label's popularity, Pavitt and Poneman flew journalist Everett True, then working for the British magazine Melody Maker, to Seattle to write an article on the local music scene. Poneman explained the label's success:

"It could have happened anywhere, but there was a lucky set of coincidences. Charles Peterson was here to document the scene, Jack Endino was here to record the scene. Bruce and I were here to exploit the scene."[2]

When Nirvana moved to Geffen Records, Sub Pop received royalties from sales of Nevermind that kept the label going for years afterwards.[2] After the mainstream success of Nirvana, many successful grunge bands had left Sub Pop for major record labels. Soon afterwards, a joint venture was formed with Warner Bros. Records.

Poneman and Pavitt had a disagreement about the direction the label should take, with Poneman wanting the label to become larger and more financially successful.[2] In 1996, unable to take the new corporate culture following the Warner partnership, Bruce Pavitt left the label to spend more time with his family.[5]

The label opened offices worldwide and began major investment in new artists, but without achieving great commercial success, prompting a scaling down and a return to Seattle.[2]

In 2006, Sub Pop Records became the first Green-e certified record label. Through work with the Green-e program and the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, Sub Pop "greened" their label by purchasing enough renewable energy certificates to offset 100 percent of the electricity they use in their office, showing their commitment to putting renewable energy in the mainstream as a way consumers can take action to do something about global warming.[6]

In early 2007, Sub Pop started a sister label by the name of Hardly Art.[7][8] The sub-label is run out of the same offices as Sub Pop, and its name comes from a lyric in a song by the Thermals.

Commercial Success

Sub Pop has one platinum record, Nirvana's Bleach, and two gold records, The Postal Service's Give Up and The Shins' Wincing the Night Away. The Shins' "New Slang" has gone gold digitally, and The Postal Service's digital single for "Such Great Heights" has also gone platinum. On January 31, 2007, Sub Pop announced that The Shins' third full-length for Sub Pop, Wincing the Night Away, debuted at #2 on the Billboard charts, reporting first week sales of 117,991 (35K in digital sales). This is the first time any album in Sub Pop history has ever charted in the top ten or broken 100,000 in the first week of sales.

Artists who have worked with Sub Pop

Main article: List of artists who have worked with Sub Pop

Label compilations

The following are "various artists" compilations released by Sub Pop to promote the label's bands.

Record Store Day

Sub Pop participated in the nation-wide Record Store Day event on April 19, 2008 by issuing a new compilation sampler of Sub Pop artists.[9] This CD, given away free at participating record stores, invites owners to send in an included card in celebration of the label's 20th Anniversary. The CD included songs by The Helio Sequence, Flight of the Conchords, and a new song by grunge favorite Mudhoney.

References

  1. ^ Sub Pop Oral History: "Going Out of Business Since 1988!" :: Blender.com
  2. ^ a b c d e Jelbert, Steve (2008) "Labelled With Love", The Times, August 2, 2008
  3. ^ "Singles Club V.2 is Dead 2002". Sub Pop Records. Retrieved on 2006-11-24.
  4. ^ "Sub Pop Singles Club 3.0". Sub Pop Records. Retrieved on 2008-07-03.
  5. ^ Sub Pop Oral History: "Going Out of Business Since 1988!" :: Blender.com
  6. ^ "Green-e certification (press release)". Bonneville Environmental Foundation (July 31, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-12-07.
  7. ^ Sub Pop Launches New Label, Hardly Art | Pitchfork
  8. ^ Sub Pop Launches Hardly Art Imprint
  9. ^ ChrisJ (2008-04-17). "Record Store Day is Saturday, April 19, 2008". Sub Pop. Retrieved on 2008-04-28.

Sources

See also

External links
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