Label Me / 4AD Records
Words by Rick Moslen
I briefly considered having a Part 1 and Part 2 for this segment. Why? Well your favorite bands showcased their best work on this English label, and a list of thirty-five albums still runs far too short. A speedy mention of 4AD’s 30-year old history recalls the sweat-enduring mystic of the Cocteau Twins or the glacial European folk of Dead Can Dance. You piss your pants from The Birthday Party’s nihilistic insanity, while tears trickle from your eyes when reading Mojave 3’s still, melancholy lyrics. So no matter how you look at it, the label makes you wet…yeah I said it.
Peter Kent and Ivo Watts-Russell formed 4AD in 1979 after working at the Beggers Banquet record store in London. Releasing off-kilter bands like Watts-Russell’s This Mortal Coil and Bauhaus (one of the world’s first gothic bands…and maybe the best one at that), the label had a glum musical anesthetic from the beginning and favored drum machines, delayed guitars, and a range of synths and keyboards instead of live bands. When bands were more traditional guitar/bass/drums, they were far from anything remotely familiar (the first five seconds of any Birthday Party album proves this). Modern English soon brought the label some sunshine (and money) with the future Burger King commercial hit “I Melt with You” (it’s already in your head).
Most of their early releases had a cult following around England, but in the early 90’s, with the success of both Throwing Muses and this little American band called the Pixies, Watts-Russell’s team planted an office in Los Angeles. They signed more US bands like Belly and Unrest…bands who rocked. After further success stateside, the excitement decreased and things fizzled during the late 90’s—why? I don’t know…maybe they ran out of money? With the exception of maybe a decent Piano Magic album, the label sort of disappeared. Bummer.
Things changed in 2004 when 4AD reinvented itself again as the label a step ahead of everyone else. Their artists have since monopolized your iPod. “Big deal” bands like Bon Iver, Stereolab, Beirut, Deerhunter, The National, The Mountain Goats, TV on the Radio, and Camera Obscura lead their current roster. Pretty impressive. Their recent flow of talent proves how the legendary label will probably lead independent music, for say, another thirty years.
Here are a few essential 4AD recordings. Whittling this down to only ten albums sucked, so I hope you enjoy!
Rema-Rema, Wheel in the Roses (1980)
The band members moved onto bigger (Adam and the Ants) and better (Wolfgang Press) bands before this record was even pressed. Their brief existence survives via this EP. The highlight on here is the song “Rema-Rema” with a vibe that matches a sludgy male-vocaled Stereolab playing a dance party (holy shit—does anyone want to start that band?). Where did Steve Albini’s (Shellac, Big Black) sinister howl come from? Listen below for the answer. (Big Black actually took a stab at covering this, but their version can’t compete with the original.)
Cocteau Twins, Treasure (1984)
They weren’t “dreamy” based on looks alone (no offense, I mean, they were a more than a decent-looking band), but a common analogy is that if God were a chick fronting a dream pop band, she’d have Elizabeth Fraser’s voice (even if you can’t understand what the hell she’s singing). Sounding like no other band at the time, their dreamscapes were the inspiration for many early 90’s shoegaze bands and the (unfortunate) epidemic of sub par goth bands. Responsible for creating the “classic 4AD sound,” their nine albums are all essential, but Treasure is perhaps the most legendary (and maybe a bit “godly”).
Throwing Muses, untitled (1986)
Paroozing through song titles like “Hate My Way,” “Rabbit’s Dying,” and “Delicate Cutters” foreshadows some beautiful rage felt through Kristin Hersh’s lyrics. Hell, we’re even rewarded with violent mid-song mood swings like in “Vicky’s Box!” The perplexing yet VERY satisfying ride through their first album prescribes catchy bass lines, dancey rhythms, and song structures that are a bit unexpected, but gel with Hersh’s innocent lyrics.
Pixies, Surfer Rosa (1988)
Think back to when a friend or older sibling played you a Pixies CD (or that first time you watched Fight Club)—it was either life changing, or you were too perplexed by the angry dude screaming in Spanish. Watts-Russell thought they were too straightforward for 4AD, but his girlfriend persuaded him otherwise (guys, when your girlfriend tells you to sign a band to your record label, just do it…and don’t forget to take out the trash). Doolittle is often everyone’s favorite Pixies release, but C’MON! Surfer Rosa has “Gigantic,” “Vamos,” “Where is My Mind,” and “Broken Face!” I wait for an awkward opportunity to sing/scream “Tony’s Theme” at karaoke night—I search and it’s never there…one of these days.
Lush, Gala (1990)
Lush stole the dreaminess of Cocteau Twins and modified it for a guitar-based rock band. Years later they entered the world of Britpop with Lovelife (the song “Ladykillers” rocks), but Gala combines all of the thick guitar tones and catchy pop hooks of their early EPs. Newer chick-fronted bands like Vivian Girls or Dum Dum Girls (not to mention most shoegaze bands) owe their sound to some of Gala’s more raw tracks.
The Breeders, Pod (1990)
Where were Kim Deal’s vocals on the last two Pixies albums? Nobody knows. Oh wait…they were monopolized by The Breeders (along with that one really, really awesome Amps release)! Add Tanya Donelly (Throwing Muses, Belly) and Kim’s sister Kelly, and you have a band more successful than the Pixies (at the time) thanks to that MTV-friendly “Cannonball” single. Pod arrived a few years earlier and affirmed every young indie boy’s fascination with Kim Deal’s voice. The album also gave us one of the best Beatles covers ever.
The Breeders / Happiness Is A Warm Gun
Unrest, Perfect Teeth (1992)
Unrest, one of the best DC bands (recall my write-up on Dischord Records and contemplate the magnitude of that statement), formed as a joke punk group during the 80s. Thank god they morphed into the exciting indie band on Perfect Teeth. Their punk strumming disguised as jangly pop guitar tones forms what MAY be their crucial album…though I’d be foolish to not mention the greatness of Imperial f.f.r.r. Also check out the bands on singer Mark Richardson’s label, Teenbeat…so much more good stuff.
His Name is Alive, Mouth by Mouth (1993)
1993 was a big year for 4AD. They switched their distributor to Warner Bros., but avoided any “sell out” assertions by releasing some crazy albums, including Mouth By Mouth. His Name is Alive’s jigsaw puzzle of samples, random vocalists, and occasional guitar rock is best represented here, though a few of their other seven albums are just as fun. Warner Bros. didn’t notice that “Can’t Go Wrong Without You” is assembled solely of illegal samples plucked from Prince’s Purple Rain…so 4AD unknowingly stuck it to the man…sellouts they weren’t!
His Name is Alive / Baby Fish Mouth
Red House Painters, Red House Painters (Rollercoaster Album) (1993)
Mark Kozelek’s musings force you to discover emotions within that you never knew existed. A forewarning: the lyrical depth in this album’s 78 minutes is almost too much to bear in one sitting. “Tell me, why are you like this / Are you the same with anyone? / Save me from my sickness / and tell me, why do you treat me like this” he sings in “Grace Cathedral Park.” “Strawberry Hill” should be a blueprint for anyone who ever sits down to write a song. A college thesis paper’s waiting to be written about this tune, but for now, play it on a quiet summer night with a few friends, and embrace the magical moment when everyone starts crying.
Red House Painers / Strawberry Hill
St. Vincent, Actor (2009)
Annie Clark spent time in both the Polyphonic Spree and Sufjan Stevens’ band…both ensembles where musicians can get lost in the shuffle. She then formed St. Vincent and tops almost every “Best of (insert year)” list. Her second album combines dark uneasiness with a toy box of beautiful arrangements to create unconventional pop songs. Had this album existed twenty years earlier, she’d still represent 4AD with the other “classic” artists—proof that the label’s come full circle.
Filed under: Label Me, Not Blake, Jim, or Brendan
thanks for this, awesome