Music Is Not A Commodity, Its an Art. Pseudo Recordings Gets Deep on Our Asses
by JP [jonathanpaxton@gmail.com]
Issue 239 / November 2008 More from this Issue
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Owner/Founder: Ryan WorkmanYear Established: 2002Current artists: Wolfs, Red Bennies, Black Hole ,ANDALE! , Danger Hailstorm, Madraso , Vile BlueShadesNumber of releases to date: 15
National Distribution: CDBaby.com, interpunk.com, as well as directly through pseudo recordings(and 8ctopus records with certain releases)-most isdirect mail order from Ryan’s house.
Is Roster Available on itunes?: No, but youwill find most (if not all) of the catalog online fordownload by the end of the year.
Number of albums sold: Just shy of a thousandlocally and abroad.
Website: pseudorecordings.com
Photo by Sam Milianta
Maintaining anything in the local music scene can be tough for mostpeople. Bands come and go with members in various states offaltering dedication to their music. Labels spring up for a release ortwo then pass on just as quickly as they arrived. Pseudo Recordingsis a rare entity in such a scene—it’s still around after six years. Pseudohas featured some of the most talented and diverse bands Salt LakeCity has ever seen, including The Red Bennies, Cosm, Andale!,Erosion and The Vile Blue Shades. Several more acts round outthe roster of label affiliations, amounting to 15 total releases.
Some labels specialize in a niche or at least think they do, but PseudoRecordings’ owner and operator Ryan Workman has never been oneto be constrained. "I don’t want it to have a set sound. Some labels,that’s what they build their roster around: a certain style of music.But the scene here is not a certain style of music and I want it to berepresentative of that."
Looking at the long list of artists affiliated with Pseudo Recordings,including Seattle-based Madraso and local groups DangerHailstorm, Cavedoll, Blackhole, and The Wolfs, one can see thatdiversity is a factor. "I’d like to say it’s deliberate," Workman jokinglyadds. Still, he says "a lot of the bands have been on the louder side,whether it’s rock and roll, punk rock, garage rock––whatever thecurrent buzz term is. At the same time, I worked with Cosm, which istotally west of center."
Because Workman is a musician himself (he played in local actMayberry), he knows more than most about what makes a goodlabel work. "If you’re just some schmuck who comes off the streetwith a few bucks and says, ‘I want to produce your band,’ but you’venot played in a band you’re not going to know the recording process,you’re not going to know rehearsals versus shows. You’ll be justanother profiteer," Workman says.
He continues, "If anything you’re just going to see it as a commodity.And from a musician’s point of view, you’re seeing it more for the artand the music involved. You realize that ‘I helped get it into the handsof the people.’ These guys [musicians] created it. These guys wrotethe songs. And I helped get it to the public. And you feel good aboutthat because you have to feel good about the music. You can’t throwmoney at a pile of garbage and expect it to make money. You have toreally want it to succeed." He concludes, "If it was a money makingventure, though, I would have given it up a long time ago."
National Distribution: CDBaby.com, interpunk.com, as well as directly through pseudo recordings(and 8ctopus records with certain releases)-most isdirect mail order from Ryan’s house.
Is Roster Available on itunes?: No, but youwill find most (if not all) of the catalog online fordownload by the end of the year.
Number of albums sold: Just shy of a thousandlocally and abroad.
Website: pseudorecordings.com
Photo by Sam Milianta
Maintaining anything in the local music scene can be tough for mostpeople. Bands come and go with members in various states offaltering dedication to their music. Labels spring up for a release ortwo then pass on just as quickly as they arrived. Pseudo Recordingsis a rare entity in such a scene—it’s still around after six years. Pseudohas featured some of the most talented and diverse bands Salt LakeCity has ever seen, including The Red Bennies, Cosm, Andale!,Erosion and The Vile Blue Shades. Several more acts round outthe roster of label affiliations, amounting to 15 total releases.
Some labels specialize in a niche or at least think they do, but PseudoRecordings’ owner and operator Ryan Workman has never been oneto be constrained. "I don’t want it to have a set sound. Some labels,that’s what they build their roster around: a certain style of music.But the scene here is not a certain style of music and I want it to berepresentative of that."
Looking at the long list of artists affiliated with Pseudo Recordings,including Seattle-based Madraso and local groups DangerHailstorm, Cavedoll, Blackhole, and The Wolfs, one can see thatdiversity is a factor. "I’d like to say it’s deliberate," Workman jokinglyadds. Still, he says "a lot of the bands have been on the louder side,whether it’s rock and roll, punk rock, garage rock––whatever thecurrent buzz term is. At the same time, I worked with Cosm, which istotally west of center."
Because Workman is a musician himself (he played in local actMayberry), he knows more than most about what makes a goodlabel work. "If you’re just some schmuck who comes off the streetwith a few bucks and says, ‘I want to produce your band,’ but you’venot played in a band you’re not going to know the recording process,you’re not going to know rehearsals versus shows. You’ll be justanother profiteer," Workman says.
He continues, "If anything you’re just going to see it as a commodity.And from a musician’s point of view, you’re seeing it more for the artand the music involved. You realize that ‘I helped get it into the handsof the people.’ These guys [musicians] created it. These guys wrotethe songs. And I helped get it to the public. And you feel good aboutthat because you have to feel good about the music. You can’t throwmoney at a pile of garbage and expect it to make money. You have toreally want it to succeed." He concludes, "If it was a money makingventure, though, I would have given it up a long time ago."
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