You wont hear this stuff in Amsterdam: This is Salt Lake Citys Red Light Sounds. by Gavin Hoffman
by Gavin Hoffman [reigniforever666@gmail.com]
Issue 239 / November 2008 More from this Issue
Owners/Founders: Jared Russell and TiaMartinez.
Year Established: 2007
Current artists: N/A(not the "official" home of any single artist)
Number of releases to date: 10
National Distribution: Ebullition Records,8ctopus Records.
Is Roster Available on iTunes? No.
Number of albums sold: N/A (limited runs thus far).
Website: myspace.com/fuckingredlightsound
Photo by Dave Brewer
What seems like every indie kid’s dream––running a record shop,which spawns into a record label––is actually Jared Russell and TiaMartinez’s reality. After opening Salt Lake City’s Red Light Books inMarch of 2007, the natural progression was to begin releasing musicthe duo enjoyed. The initial idea, releasing live recordings made atquasi-illegal punk, noise, and metal shows held at the record shopitself, evolved into something much more. Red Light Sounds wasofficially launched in autumn of 2007.
Red Light Sounds is the audio extension of the store itself. Notjust anything is sold at the shop, and likewise, not just anything isreleased on the label. The label is extremely artist-oriented, andenjoys its status as somewhat of a "cult" label, even with only 10releases under their belt. Oh, sure, they aren’t exactly Interscope,but 10 releases in roughly a year all financed by a fledgling labelspecializing in very extreme forms of music is quite a feat. Beginningwith the Gudgeguh EP CD-R, the label has made something of ahabit of releasing "non-official" and almost antiquated forms of music,gradually evolving from CD-Rs to cassettes to CDs and VHS tapes.This might sound like something anyone enthralled with the darkerside of music could do with a few extra bucks and some time, but it’snot exactly that simple. Quite a bit of thought and production havegone into their releases, and the fruits of their labor are beginning topay off, as the label will be releasing the heavily anticipated EagleTwin/Night Terror split 7" in December 2008. The label isn’t showingany signs of slowing down, with 12 further releases planned withinthe next year by such varied bands as Black Seas of Infinity,AODL, Night Terror, and your humble narrator’s own Invaders.Red Light’s releases thus far have fairly limited runs, and most featureartwork by a few of Salt Lake’s local artists, such as Sri Whipple andEli Morrison. Not too shabby for a small mom-and-pop label thatspecializes in noise and extreme metal, and it brings a further senseof viability to what Russell and Martinez are doing.
It’s impossible to question the motives of Russell and Martinez interms of their sheer dedication to their shop and their label. Fewpeople would even consider attempting to run a book/music shop inconjunction with working regular day jobs and raising a family. Theydo it simply because they love it. Harkening back to their originalidea of releasing live recordings done in the store, the couple hasseen firsthand bands that they consider to be the pinnacle of extrememusic in Utah, but who weren’t exactly receiving the appreciationthey deserved. Your run-of-the-mill record buyer would almostundoubtedly not appreciate such an act such as Black Seas ofInfinity. They would almost definitely either disregard it as nothing ofany valid musical consequence, or, more likely, turn it off immediatelyin terror. Night Terror isn’t going to be appearing on MTV any timesoon, and you will never find their releases at Best Buy. GhastlyHatchling would most likely be regarded as pornography, borderingon material that should be outright banned in most countries. Butlet’s face it–– this type of music is best described as one of the onlyhonest forms of "punk rock" left, from the anti-establishment vibe ofthe music, to the do-it-yourself packaging and release.
Year Established: 2007
Current artists: N/A(not the "official" home of any single artist)
Number of releases to date: 10
National Distribution: Ebullition Records,8ctopus Records.
Is Roster Available on iTunes? No.
Number of albums sold: N/A (limited runs thus far).
Website: myspace.com/fuckingredlightsound
Photo by Dave Brewer
What seems like every indie kid’s dream––running a record shop,which spawns into a record label––is actually Jared Russell and TiaMartinez’s reality. After opening Salt Lake City’s Red Light Books inMarch of 2007, the natural progression was to begin releasing musicthe duo enjoyed. The initial idea, releasing live recordings made atquasi-illegal punk, noise, and metal shows held at the record shopitself, evolved into something much more. Red Light Sounds wasofficially launched in autumn of 2007.
Red Light Sounds is the audio extension of the store itself. Notjust anything is sold at the shop, and likewise, not just anything isreleased on the label. The label is extremely artist-oriented, andenjoys its status as somewhat of a "cult" label, even with only 10releases under their belt. Oh, sure, they aren’t exactly Interscope,but 10 releases in roughly a year all financed by a fledgling labelspecializing in very extreme forms of music is quite a feat. Beginningwith the Gudgeguh EP CD-R, the label has made something of ahabit of releasing "non-official" and almost antiquated forms of music,gradually evolving from CD-Rs to cassettes to CDs and VHS tapes.This might sound like something anyone enthralled with the darkerside of music could do with a few extra bucks and some time, but it’snot exactly that simple. Quite a bit of thought and production havegone into their releases, and the fruits of their labor are beginning topay off, as the label will be releasing the heavily anticipated EagleTwin/Night Terror split 7" in December 2008. The label isn’t showingany signs of slowing down, with 12 further releases planned withinthe next year by such varied bands as Black Seas of Infinity,AODL, Night Terror, and your humble narrator’s own Invaders.Red Light’s releases thus far have fairly limited runs, and most featureartwork by a few of Salt Lake’s local artists, such as Sri Whipple andEli Morrison. Not too shabby for a small mom-and-pop label thatspecializes in noise and extreme metal, and it brings a further senseof viability to what Russell and Martinez are doing.
It’s impossible to question the motives of Russell and Martinez interms of their sheer dedication to their shop and their label. Fewpeople would even consider attempting to run a book/music shop inconjunction with working regular day jobs and raising a family. Theydo it simply because they love it. Harkening back to their originalidea of releasing live recordings done in the store, the couple hasseen firsthand bands that they consider to be the pinnacle of extrememusic in Utah, but who weren’t exactly receiving the appreciationthey deserved. Your run-of-the-mill record buyer would almostundoubtedly not appreciate such an act such as Black Seas ofInfinity. They would almost definitely either disregard it as nothing ofany valid musical consequence, or, more likely, turn it off immediatelyin terror. Night Terror isn’t going to be appearing on MTV any timesoon, and you will never find their releases at Best Buy. GhastlyHatchling would most likely be regarded as pornography, borderingon material that should be outright banned in most countries. Butlet’s face it–– this type of music is best described as one of the onlyhonest forms of "punk rock" left, from the anti-establishment vibe ofthe music, to the do-it-yourself packaging and release.
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