| Dischord Records | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | 1980 (1980) |
| Founder | Ian MacKaye Jeff Nelson |
| Genre | |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Location | Washington, D.C. |
| Official website | dischord |
Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.–basedindependent record label specializing inpunk rock. The label is co-owned byIan MacKaye andJeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to releaseMinor Disturbance by their bandthe Teen Idles.[1][2][3] With other independent American labels such asTwin/Tone,Touch and Go Records, andSST Records, Dischord helped to spearhead the nationwide network of underground bands that formed the 1980sindie rock scene.[4] These labels presided over the shift from thehardcore punk that then dominated the American underground scene to the more diverse styles of alternative rock that were emerging.[5]
The label is most notable for employing thedo it yourself ethic, producing all of its albums and selling them at discount prices without finance from major distributors.[6] Dischord continues to release records by bands from Washington D.C., and to document and support the Washington D.C. music scene.[7] As of October 2016, the label employs four people.[8]
Dischord was a local label in the early days of hardcore, and is one of the more famous independent labels, along with the likes ofAlternative Tentacles,Epitaph Records,SST Records, andTouch and Go Records.[6]
The logo of the label was created by Nelson, who has anassociate degree in advertising design.[9]
Influenced by existing labels likeDangerhouse Records,[10] MacKaye and Nelson took up residence in the now known "Dischord House" and ran the label out of its premises.[10]
Dischord's first release wasMinor Disturbance byTeen Idles[11] released in 1980.[12] The band members cut, folded, and glued the record packaging themselves to keep costs down.[11] The label's firstsplit 12" wasFaith / Void Split by the bandsthe Faith andVoid.[12]
Dischord limits itself to bands fromthe D.C. scene. The label offers the same basic deal to all artists: Dischord fronts a certain amount of money to record and manufacture[13] and once those costs are recouped, the label's distributor takes 30 percent of the profit[14] and the band and label split the remainder.[13][14]
"We don't use contracts, lawyers, any of those kinds of things", MacKaye says. "We are partners – they make the music, and we make the records."[11]
Jeff Nelson has claimed the venture was never intended to be profit-making but was instead simply a way to get their friends albums in fans’ hands.[14]
In spite of criticism over the years about how the label is run, MacKaye claims everything works and will continue to operate in the same fashion of no contracts or lawyers.[15]
"From the beginning of this label, people have said that the way we do things is unsustainable, unrealistic, idealistic, and we were just dreaming", he said. "Well, the dream is now 35 years old, so they can go fuck themselves."[15]
In 2017, they put their catalog onBandcamp for free streaming or purchase.[16]
In May 2021, it was announced that Dischord would be re-releasing the label's first six 7" records in a remastered box set.[17] With the catalog number "Dischord 200", it consisted of singles and EPs byMinor Threat,Government Issue, Teen Idles,SOA, andYouth Brigade.[17]
Bands such asMinor Threat,[18]Government Issue,[19]the Faith,[20]Void,[21]Iron Cross,[19]Embrace,[22]Rites of Spring,[22]Nation of Ulysses,[22]Scream,[23]Soulside,S.O.A.,the Teen Idles,Gray Matter,Jawbox,[22]Marginal Man,[22]Shudder to Think,[22]Dag Nasty,[22]Lungfish andFugazi[6] have released records on Dischord.
Additions to the Dischord roster as of the late 1990s and 2000s includeQ and Not U,[6]Beauty Pill, Antelope,Soccer Team,[24]French Toast,Faraquet,Black Eyes,the Aquarium,Title Tracks, Edie Sedgwick,Slant 6, and Andalusians. Many of these acts, notably Q and Not U and Black Eyes, are influential and experimentalpost-hardcore bands.
Dischord Records influenced many other labels such asSimple Machines,[13] Lovitt Records andDeSoto Records.[13]
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