As the music industry has
continued to change over the last decade or so, and as major labels have in
large part stopped sniffing around the hardcore and punk scenes to find the “next
big thing”, it’s been a lot of fun to watch the almost meteoric rise of bigger
indie labels like Deathwish, Bridge 9, No Sleep, etc. While I certainly respect
those labels tremendously and enjoy a lot of their artists, few things get me
more pumped than when I discover a smaller, up and coming label that
consistently puts out quality releases. One such label is Escapist Records out
of Cleveland.
Having dipped my toes in the
waters of running a small DIY label myself, I know first-hand that it’s usually
the case that more money is going out the door than is coming back in (or maybe
that’s just me, haha). Anyway, Mike at Escapist has steadily built up an incredibly
solid roster that should appeal to all kinds of people in that it pulls from
all across the spectrum. He’s got indie bands, he’s got melodic hardcore punk
bands, he’s got more metal leaning
bands. Some of his artists are comprised of established vets, some are brand new
up-and-comers; some of his bands tour a ton, others mostly play locally. It
really represents an awesome cross-section of the DIY scene, and as such,
serves as almost a microcosm of the underground community. And the bottom
line is, you can tell the guy is in it for the right reasons; he fucking gets
it.
One month from today he’s
throwing a ten year anniversary show in Cleveland at The Foundry which will
feature most of his roster (Light Years, Harvey Pekar, Foxfires, Reverse the
Curse, Wasted Blood, etc.). In addition, there will be an exclusive split 7”
available from My Mouth is the Speaker and Reverse the Curse, as well as
giveaways from many local businesses he partners with on different aspects of
production. So hey, if you’re in the Midwest, get your ass to Cleveland!
Anyway, we’ve been chatting
it up about all things Escapist over the course of the past couple weeks. Check
it.
Talk a
little bit about your roots, how'd you become involved in punk and hardcore?
Growing up, I
had a neighbor down the road that was a couple years older that me. He skated
and I was just getting into that whole world.
He listened to a lot of metal - Slayer, Iron Maiden, and Faith No More -
but also punk and old school hardcore - Black Flag, Operation Ivy, Husker Du. He
would always be playing music that I had never heard. To me there wasn’t really a difference
between a Slayer song and a Black Flag song; they were both fast and loud. At the time, I had no idea there was a world
of smaller DIY bands out there, let alone in my own city.
When I went to
high school I met a few other kids that were super into punk and hardcore. We would hang out at lunch and talk about bands
we heard. They would talk about going to
small DIY shows at local places like The Euclid Tavern, The Grog Shop,
Peabody’s, Speak N Tongues, etc. I
tagged along to one and was hooked. I started
to immerse myself in Cleveland’s underground music scene and making friends
with faces I recognized from going to shows, many of whom I still know to this
day.
So Cleveland has always had a little bit
of a notorious reputation in terms of its hardcore scene….OLC, Integrity,
obviously. I know for me coming up in Detroit there were times when I felt a
little intimidated at shows from time to time. What was it like for you cutting
your teeth in the hardcore/punk scene in Cleveland?
For me, it was
one of those things that I heard about when I first started attending shows.
People would talk about avoiding certain shows or venues, but I never really
thought to take those warnings to heart. This was probably because I didn’t
really get mixed up in scene politics or any of the drama that went along with the
Cleveland hardcore scene. It’s funny because I had/have a lot of friends that
ran in different circles within the hardcore and punk scenes here and some of
them didn’t get along with each other for whatever reasons, but I was able to
float between them with ease. Maybe I was lucky in the people that I met and
the ones I avoided. Haha. But yeah, I definitely witnessed my fair share of
fights and for the most part I kept myself clear of any violent situations.
Even when going to shows in nearby cities - Club Laga in Pittsburgh, The
Shelter in Detroit, Forward Hall in Erie, etc. - I did my best to avoid the
riff-raff and make friends with the sincere kids involved with the scene for
the right reasons. In the end, a lot of
what happened was hyperbole but there certainly crazy things that happened,
which you’ll be able to hear about in the Destroy Cleveland documentary that is
coming out this year.
I’ve been involved of a couple very
humble label ventures of the years so I’m always curious what motivates others;
how did the ball get rolling for you at Escapist? Was it something you’d be
pondering for a while, or was there a particular band you saw or heard that
made you say “Fuck it, I’ve gotta do this thing”?
Starting a label
was something that I always wanted to do from the time I really started getting
involved with the scene - writing for zines, doing a college radio show, and
booking shows. Seeing that other people
could do it locally and in smaller cities and not just in Chicago, New York,
and Los Angeles really inspired me. It
seemed like the next logical step. I was
living in Pittsburgh at the time and booking shows, and the topic of covering
Integrity came up. I knew a lot of bands
that were heavily influenced by them, not just because I grew up in Cleveland
but all over the world. And yeah, it basically became a “Fuck it. I’ll do an
Integrity tribute album.” I reached out
to Dwid and he gave me his approval to do so and at that point the ball was
rolling with talking to bands I knew and others that I thought would be
fitting. It sucks that a few that had intended to do something fell through or
never materialized - Pulling Teeth, Shipwreck, Bleeding Through, Dead Wrong -
but I still feel it is a very solid release and helped set the label on its
path.
Your roster is really diverse, running
the gamut from dirty hardcore bands like Withdrawal to more indie punk oriented
stuff ala Reverse the Curse with a lot in between. Do you tend to pursue bands
you’re friends with, work with bands that send in demos, or a mix of different
things?
Diversity is
something that I feel makes Escapist unique from most labels. I grew up listening to my mom’s Beatles and
Bob Dylan records and checking out any record I could find from my local
library. Duran Duran, Weird Al, Billy
Joel - it didn’t matter what genre, I just wanted to hear new music and look at
the layouts. As I was discovering music I never restricted myself to one genre.
In the 90’s and early 00’s it seemed that a lot of kids were just hardcore
kids, just metal kids, or just punks.
But I didn’t feel that it should be that way, which is reflected in the
variety you find on Escapist. There isn’t an Escapist sound and I like that we
aren’t pigeonholed like many other labels are with regards to that.
When I first
started the label, releasing primarily CD’s, I was pretty naïve. I worked with bands I pursued on my own or discovered
through various message boards, so I didn’t really know them well. I didn’t really put much thought into how we
would sell the albums and promote the bands and get them on tours. I got lucky with a distro deal, but the rest
was a crapshoot. The lifespan of the label
bands was pretty short and it made it difficult to push a band that either
broke up before or shortly after releasing their album. There was a brief period where I thought
about completely stopping the label but it was the idea of working with a band
I was friends with that inspired me to revive Escapist.
So I went
vinyl-centric and I began working with friends - Light Years, Harvey Pekar,
Foxfires. As things have developed and
grown I have begun working with bands that I have either pursued myself - Territory,
Sworn Vengeance - or ones that have reached out to me - Purgatory, Wasted Blood.
At this point in the label, it’s kind of a mixed bag. The Internet has made the
world a much smaller place so finding new music is no issues now. Before you had to go to shows and see the
opening bands or look at the liner notes to albums and see whom your favorite
bands thank. Nowadays you can just go online and find a hundred similar bands
in the blink of an eye.
Related to the web, we’ve talked before
about how the Internet can be a double-edged sword of sorts….on the one hand it
makes it easier to get stuff out there, on the other hand bands and labels are
judged on silly things like number of likes or whatever. From your perspective,
what are the most effective ways for bands and labels to use the internet and
social media to promote themselves?
I have a
love/hate relationship with technology.
When I started the label there was pretty much only Myspace and
message boards. There was no Facebook, no Instagram, and no Twitter. There are
so many resources nowadays it's unreal.
It is very easy to get your information out to the masses. But as the Internet has grown the attention
span of fans seems to have shrunk. You
can’t rely on everyone seeing what you are doing at any given moment. So the most effective way to stay relevant is
to constantly be active, both on and off the Internet. If you book a tour, you
better promote it online. But you also better make sure you have local bands
passing out flyers and promoting it. You have to have a presence and you have
to find ways to stay relevant or you’re just going to be forgotten just as
quickly as you were noticed. The music
scene is vastly different from the one I grew up in. You no longer have to go
to the shows to discover new bands and make friends. Everything is at your
fingertips and only a tap away.
I think I speak for a lot of older
hardcore kids when I say I was beyond stoked last year when I saw you were
re-issuing Turmoil’s classic “The Process Of”. Talk to me about how the
re-issue came together. Also, do you know if they have plans to do more, or was
it the re-issue, TIHC, and then they’re putting it back to bed?
The Process Of
is one of my favorite hardcore records of all time. Everything about that album
- from the music, the lyrics, the production - is flawless. The original pressing that Trustkill was long
out of print and although there was a repress on a European label, they changed
the artwork, which I felt was iconic to that album.
As for the
process, I reached out to Century Media about the possibility of re-issuing it
on vinyl and they put me in touch with their licensing department and the
band. We discussed what my vision was
for the release and how we could make it into something a bit unique and
special seeing as it was 15 years from its release. They liked what I had in mind and gave me the
go ahead. In the midst of that discussion they informed me they were asked to
play This is Hardcore the upcoming year, so it would be a great combination to
have those two things happening at once.
In addition to
re-issuing the LP, I was able to secure the rights to release the final three
songs the band recorded and released (though never on vinyl). We made this a limited 7” to accompany the
release for the diehard fans. I had a
lot of fun working with this 7”. I got a
friend that works for a local screen printing company to make screens for the
covers and we hand screened the covers.
I made all the inserts on a copy machine. Everything was cut and folded by hand. It harkened back to the 90’s DIY style of
releases, which I thought was cool considering the band and release.
As for what the
future holds for Turmoil. I know they
had hoped to do a few more shows but managing the schedules of individuals with
full-time jobs living all over the US can be difficult. I attempted to lure them
out of hiding for my ten-year showcase this August but they had prior
commitments. As far as I know they
haven’t laid it to rest. Hodges told me
that if they got a European offer they’d be there in a heartbeat… so there is
hope for more.
I noticed you have been doing most of
your pressing through Gotta Groove who I believe are based right near you out
of Cleveland. How do they compare to other plants you’ve worked with and how
much of a big deal is it to have a plant pressing records for you locally?
Everything I
have done since the label went exclusively vinyl has been done with Gotta
Groove and I have been extremely happy with everything. I remember reading about the plant when it
opened in 2009 and thinking to myself how great it would be to be able to work
with a local company, something I try to do with as many aspects of my releases
as possible. So in 2011 when I started
planning the Light Years EP it was a no-brainer. They have been an amazing partner and always
handle every release perfectly. It’s awesome to see them getting these huge
pressing jobs after seeing them essentially start from scratch.
As for how they
compare, I can’t speak of other companies but I know there are a lot of gripes
with pressing plant turn around times.
However, I have never had anything take longer than I was originally
quoted. It really boils down to planning
and time management. Additionally, I know Gotta Groove have taken steps to
speed up the process and make sure there are as few delays as possible. I have a number of friends that run labels who
use other pressing plants and often vent about being frustrated with turn
around and quality issues. I’ve
suggested to a few that they give Gotta Groove a try. And when they do they tell me they’ll never
go back to any other plant because of how smoothly things went with Gotta
Groove.
Besides the sonic diversity on your
label, you have some artists that seem to hit it pretty hard in terms of
touring and others who I assume have a lot of life responsibilities who play
locally and maybe do some weekends occasionally. For you, how do you balance
marketability, a bands level of activity, and how you feel about them as
musicians and as people when you decide whether or not to work with artists?
I think you hit
the main point of contention for me with your last statement. Before working with a band I usually have a
long string of emails and phone calls.
In these conversations we end up talking about what my vision for the
label is and what the band is looking to do.
I know the reasons I got involved with the hardcore scene and what
fueled my passion to be involved. When I work with bands - whether they are
hardcore or pop punk or indie - I look for that same passion and sense of
sincerity. I’ve been contacted by a
number of bands and either initially or over the course of the conversations I
could tell we were in different worlds and that it just wouldn’t be a good
fit. When a band comes into the fold of
Escapist Records I refer to them as part of the “Escapist Family,” which is
exactly how it feels. I’ve become such
good friends with the members of the bands that are on the label, even the ones
I didn’t know prior. We all talk regularly and hang out when we can, even if we
are in other cities. After all of that,
whether a band is “marketable” or not doesn’t really matter to me. Whether they
want to spend nine months a year on the road or just playing locally/regionally
isn’t something that sways me too much.
You’ve got a new Foxfires LP on the
docket, as well as new releases and/or re-issues from Reverse the Curse, Wasted
Void, Purgatory, etc. Talk a little bit about each release, why you’re pumped
on it, and what those bands are bringing to the table that people should be
stoked on.
The Foxfires LP
has been a long time coming. It wasn’t
long after The Golden Age 7” was released that they told me they were already
writing new songs. And I was like, “It
has to be an LP and I want to do it.” The new songs are so damn good, and they
have built on that rock and roll meets hardcore vibe and added nuances to their
sound to make it sound fresh and modern.
And the recording quality of the LP is so far superior to anything they
have had before - both Will Killingworth and Carl Saff did an amazing job with
the recording and mastering. I’m extremely excited for people to hear the
entire record and I know the band is itching to get out and play the new songs.
I am digitally
re-releasing the Reverse The Curse LP that the band put out in 2011, Hither
& Yon. Escapist released Existent
earlier this year and that was supposed to be released by their former label
but the label just never pressed it. The band got the rights to both releases
and we made Existent happen and now we are making Hither & Yon available
digitally. Reverse The Curse is a band with so much talent when it comes to
songwriting. It blows my mind that they aren’t huge; they should be opening for
Brand New. It’s unfortunate that they
lost some stream with the label issues but I think their next release is going
to be the one that takes them to the next level.
Wasted Blood is
a band that reminds me of when I first got into hardcore. They’re a bunch of young kids from Ashtabula
- a town about an hour from Cleveland that also gave us Homewrecker - playing heavy
hardcore and having the time of their lives. It is insane how driven these kids
are for their age; most of them just graduated high school this year. The VOID LP deserved a proper vinyl release
in addition the cassette (Toxicbreed) and CD (Black Void) release it was
scheduled for getting and I am proud to be making that happen. A lot of kids
into newer hardcore - Code Orange, Expire, Harms Way - are going to love this
record when they finally hear it.
Purgatory is a
band that actually came to me about releasing a record together. And the funny
thing is I had already said, “No more records this year” before they hit me
up. But the songs are just so damn good
I couldn’t say no. I literally just got
the masters for the 7” and I am totally floored by how heavy the songs are. Old
school hardcore fans into All Out War and newer kids into Xibalba will be eating this up. Can’t wait to get this out and have them tour in support of it.
That’s all that is on the books for now, but I do have hopes to do another reissue in the future assuming I can secure it. It’s not quite as old as the Turmoil LP but an album that I feel defined an era of hardcore and has never been released on vinyl.
Lastly, you’ve got the 10 year showcase
coming up in August. I’m guessing you’re thinking of it as a celebration not
just of all the bands you’ve worked with, but also the people who have
supported the label and hell, your own hard work! Looking back on a decade of
doing records, what are you most proud of and what would you say have been the
biggest lessons you’ve taken from it?
Celebration is absolutely
how I would describe it. I wanted to do something fun and involve as many bands
as possible. Plus, a lot of friends have
helped me with the label over the years and I think this is a great way to say
thank you to them. Initially it was just
going to be a show with as many label bands as possible but it has turned into
so much more thanks to the awesome sponsors I have partnered with - all of
which have been extremely supportive of the label for years. Now on top of an amazing lineup we are able
to offer a free split 7” thanks to Gotta Groove to all that attend plus a bunch
of awesome raffle prizes: free records, My Minds Eye Records gift certificate,
and more. I’m way stoked on how it turned out.
Reflecting back
on the past ten years is a bit surreal.
I can’t really say there is any regret or any one moment I am most proud
of. If I am proud of anything it is the
friendships formed as a result of the label. When I started I didn’t know how
long it would last and there have certainly been moments where it hasn’t been
easy and I thought about just giving up on it.
In the end, its something I am extremely passionate about and I continue
to focus on the positive experiences and friendships it has given me.
Thank you so
much for taking the time to ask me questions about the label and the
bands. Meeting people like you who
understand and appreciate what goes into running a label and being in bands at
this level makes doing this so rewarding. So thank you so much for your
support. It means the world.
Escapist HQ: http://www.escapist-records.com/
Purchase: http://escapistrecords.bigcartel.com/
