Flying the Flannel

I recently saw on Pitchfork that Sub Pop Records is celebrating their 20th anniversary this year. They ran a fantastic interview with founders Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman that made me desperately wish someone would write an article on the indie label boom of the 80s and 90s a la Spike, Mike, Slackers & Dykes. They nicely summarize their entire history from fanzine writing, to barely paying the rent, to working with the majors, to their current status as one of the best run labels out there.

My first run in with Sub Pop was hearing Sub Pop 200 at my friend Jonathan's house back in 1990 or s0. It was my introduction to the indie world and was pretty eye-opening. I realized that there was some serious weirdness out there like Beat Happening and Steve Fisk. I also realised that I loved what I later came to know as grunge. Opening song, "Sex God Missy" by Tad was exactly the sort of sludge I didn't even know I was looking for but once I found it, I was hooked.

Most importantly, I started to discover the world of labels and how they could be similar to a brand name where if you liked one release, you were likely to try something else from the label. They became trusted friends who were able to turn you on to new music by bands you had never heard of. Sub Pop always seemed to strike a nice balance between highlighting their local scene while also releasing music from outside of the Seattle area. Looking over their discography, I was shocked to see that they put out music by both Slayer and the Beach Boys as well as Nirvana, Soundgarden and Mudhoney. They are a label I've stuck with for nearly 20 years and my cd collection contains a healthy chunk of Sub Pop releases. Currently I have 26 albums from them although over time I've had many more but the Afghan Whigs and Jale cds have long been sold. What surprises me about this list is that it covers nearly all eras of the label and demonstrates the wide variety of bands and sounds they've championed and the stunning quality of their greatest releases. Here's the list:

SP034 NIRVANA - BLEACH
SP192 SEBADOH - BUBBLE & SCRAPE
SP196 VELOCITY GIRL - COPACETIC
SP215A SIX FINGER SATELLITE - THE PIGEON IS THE MOST POPULAR BIRD
SP221 HAZEL - TOREADOR OF LOVE
SP246 SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE - DIARY
SP247 VELOCITY GIRL - "!SIMPATICO!"
SP260 SEBADOH - BAKESALE
SP277 ZUMPANO - LOOK WHAT THE ROOKIE DID
SP299 SIX FINGER SATELLITE - SEVERE EXPOSURE
SP306 FRIENDS OF DEAN MARTINEZ - THE SHADOW OF YOUR SMILE
SP316 SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE - SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE
SP323 JEREMY ENIGK - RETURN OF THE FROG QUEEN
SP342 SCUD MOUNTAIN BOYS - MASSACHUSETTS
SP366 SIX FINGER SATELLITE - PARANORMALIZED
SP375 FRIENDS OF DEAN MARTINEZ - RETROGRADE
SP409 SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE - HOW IT FEELS TO BE SOMETHING ON
SP427 PERNICE BROTHERS - OVERCOME BY HAPPINESS
SP470 CHAPPAQUIDDICK SKYLINE - CHAPPAQUIDDICK SKYLINE
SP550 THE SHINS - OH, INVERTED WORLD
SP567 MIGALA - ARDE
SP595 POSTAL SERVICE - GIVE UP
SP625 SHINS - CHUTES TOO NARROW
SP630 IRON AND WINE - OUR ENDLESS NUMBERED DAYS
SP655 WOLF PARADE - APOLOGIES TO THE QUEEN MARY
SP705 THE SHINS - WINCING THE NIGHT AWAY