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In this prefab age, it's more impressive than ever when up-and-coming indie labels care more about the bands than the bucks. Here's a look at our recent favorites.
STARTIME INTERNATIONAL
Home Base: Brooklyn
Claim to Fame: Stylishly moody bands the Walkmen and French Kicks
Back Story: ''A
lot of the music business is incredibly bleak and depressing, but
I really love records,'' says honcho Isaac Green. ''So I started a
label. I bought Business Plans for Dummies and did it with
extremely little money.''
What the Name Means: It's from James
Brown's Live at the Apollo (''Ladies and gentlemen, it's star
time!'')
Upcoming: Albums from overlooked former Virgin
singer-songwriter Brendan Benson and new signing the Natural
History.
YEP ROC
Home Base: Chapel Hill, N.C.
Claim to Fame: The latest
from the great Nick Lowe, as well as impressive discs by Swag and
the Mayflies U.S.A.
Back Story: Label manager Glenn Dicker built
Yep Roc from the ashes of his defunct Upstart Records. Signing
Lowe (who recorded for Upstart) was the turning point. ''That
means a ton to the people we'd be interested in,'' says Dicker.
What the Name Means: It's a term invented by oddball jazz singer
Slim Gaillard.
Upcoming: New CDs from Whiskeytown's Caitlin Cary
and former dB Chris Stamey.
ROPEADOPE
Home Base: New York City
Claim to Fame: Eclectic fare
like gospel jam band the Word and Questlove-helmed fusion project
the Philadelphia Experiment.
Back Story: When 'dope head Andy
Hurwitz ran the Knitting Factory's label, he wanted to sign DJ
Logic but ended up quitting and managing him instead. ''Nobody
wanted to sign him, so I decided to put out his record on my
own.''
What the Name Means: It's from the Beastie Boys' ''Sounds of
Science.''
Upcoming: A record from the Roots' Scratch (featuring
Jill Scott and Bilal); the Detroit Experiment, with DJ Carl Craig
and jazz musicians like Geri Allen and Regina Carter.
