Over Caffeinated Records

I’m thinking of doing something very dumb. Well, dumb by the accounts of strangers on the internet. And some of my friends. And a small part of my brain. And when you think about it, who cares what they say?

I’m going to be starting a record label.

Now, it’s nothing huge, obviously. Just a small indie label. My friends band Midfield is incredibly talented, and has a new EP coming out. It was mastered by Alan Day of the pop punk band Four Year Strong. I decided to put the songs out on vinyl, because why the hell not?

I’ll be honest, I have no experience in this area. I’m an English major with a minor in journalism and I can’t even get a job doing something with that. But, I do know music. I certainly know vinyl (my collection has over 250 records in it at this moment), and I know they have what it takes to make it as a band. Making this vinyl will boost them a bit further. And if nothing else, hey I get new vinyl added to my collection.

However, despite my optimism (something I certainly barely ever have), pessimism creeps in. Everything I’ve seen online has been a bunch of doomers, like multiple ghosts of Christmas future, saying my fate is sealed, and it’s an awful death. And they certainly may be right. But, it does make me wonder why they got into it in the first place. Some friends say that the vinyl won’t sell. My brain says that I’m already poor, this is an awful idea. But, nothing great has ever happened from doing nothing.

I’m someone who follows small labels. Asian Man Records, No Sleep Records, Run For Cover Records, Jade Tree, the list goes on and on, they just happen to be some of my favorite (if you don’t know any of them, please check them out!). They all have small beginnings as you would expect. And I’m sure plenty of people gave them the advice of “it’s a bad idea". But, they have released some incredibly iconic music in the punk and alternative genres, and they certainly helped people pay more attention to the little guys by doing things their own way, and being more DIY than the big guys.

This is just the first installment into my journey of losing money, but helping art thrive. Or, at the very least, doing something that’s fun where the odds are stacked against me. There are plenty of good bands who don’t have the funds to put out their music on wax. I would like to help them, especially if I dig their sound.

I’ll be exploring my vinyl collection, some great albums by some great bands, and the ups and downs of starting a label in the coming months. The record label name is Over Caffeinated Records, because I drink way too much coffee, and I’m certainly going to need the energy to pull this off.

Here goes nothing.