Publication:
MaximumRockNRoll

Author:
Felix Von Havoc

MRR #178-record distribution
It has been suggested in some quarters that I Felix Von am "stuck in the eighties." If I am stuck anywhere its in 1998. I give props to the old school at every opportunity yet I am very much a participant in todays scene. I can't turn back the hands of time or bring back an era that was a flawed in is own way as today. I run a record label which releases 7"s by what I think are some of the best underground political hardcore bands around. I booked shows at Studio of the Stars and the Bombshelter until about a year ago. I quit booking shows so I could concentrate on records which I felt had greater potential to spread ideas as well as entertainment. I helped found Extreme Noise Records a co-operative hardcore/punk record store in Minneapolis. I have volunteered eight hours every Sunday at Extreme Noise since we openned in 1994. Working in a record store that only carries punk I would consider myself pretty "up" on the current music scene. I buy a lot of new records and I avidly follow quite a few bands. I'm quite keen on all the hardcore which comes out of Japan, Sweden and Finland not to mention our great American Hardcore such as Assuck, Capitalist Casualties, Detestation, State of Fear, Drop Dead, Los Crudos, React, Suppression, Spazz, Devoid of Faith, MK-Ultra, His Hero Is Gone, Hellnation, etc. Lastly I sing in a band (Code 13) which has a totally 90's sound albeit influenced by 80's hardcore. Playing out and touring keeps me very much in touch with what goes on in the music scene across the country. As for growing up, in the words of an 80's band "I'm gonna stay young until I die."

I stepped on a lot of toes with my assault on post-hardcore college rock bands. A lot of people I considered true believers have soft spots for bands like Fugazi. Politics and economics aside I will restate my opinion on purely aesthetic and stylistic grounds. That is to say I would rather hear a real hardcore band with nothing relevant to say (Fear, Fang, Dayglo Abortions) than wimpy college rock with something to say (Fugazi, Chumbawamba). I have the greatest of respec for Dischord Records, their business practices and non-comecialism are a model to labels and distributors everywhere, they just havn't put out a hardcore record in more than a decade. Also let it be said that I can accept commercial music for what it is, its the band who attempt a political stance while playing corporate schlock which arouse my ire. Judas Priest or Adam and the Ants never claimed to be anarchist DIY bands

This month Jen has assigned us the topic of economics. Some columnists may wish to discuss economics as a science. Some may wish to comment on the economic system we live under and its faults. I will pick up where I left off a few months ago discussing the politics and economics of putting out and distributing your punk record.

As I touched on last time actually getting paid for your records is about the single most difficult thing about being in a band or running a small label. This is due to the peculiar consignment system of distribution which exists in hardcore. This system places all the cards in the hands of the distributor. The Band and label have to pay cash for their recording, mastering, printing and pressing costs. The stores and vendors (people who sell records out of a box at shows) pay the distributor cash for their records. And of course the kids pay cash for the records from the stores and vendors. However, the distributor receives its stock on consignment and pays only after the records have sold. As we saw last time this system would work well in a perfect world where deadlines were met and bills paid on time. But the real deal is that most labels only get paid after much haggling with their distributor or when they have a new release coming out. Not getting paid on time is what kills most small labels. They ambitiously line up releases based on making back their money on the last release. As distributors drag their feet or go belly up these releases get postponed, bands royalties don't get paid, ads don't get sent out etc.

It would be nice for a label to only sell their stock on cash and carry basis. I'd like to do so, but I know I'd sell a lot fewer records in the long run. I previously decried the increasing centralization in the scene with several of what I consider the best labels in hardcore moving into exclusive distribution arrangements with distributors. I felt that this centralization would drive up prices and limit access to some of the best music and ideas. I have since heard from some of the parties involved and it all boils down to getting paid on time. Most record label cats would much rather spend their time working on their releases and helping out their bands rather than being a collection agency. Those I have talked to have said that trying to squeeze money out of distributors was their biggest headache and entering into an exclusive enables them to concentrate on putting out top quality records on time because they can count on regular payments for stock sold. Indeed, it has been pointed out to me that many of the 80's labels I'm fond of had exclusives with distributors, and those who failed did so often due to non-payment from distributors. I personally would like to see the whole business radically altered so that everybody gets paid, and gets paid on time. This goal seems far off since the consignment system is so deeply entrenched. For now the best suggestion I can make is that labels and bands try to hold distributors more accountable. To labels I'd also like to say "don't quit your day job." It is inevitable that you will experience cash flow problems that will hamper your tempo of releases and the quality of your recording and packaging. I for one like to know that I have a regular income to count on to help keep my label rolling.


Like I said before the best way to get paid for your last release is to put out a new record. The next best way is to get a column in Maximum Rock N' Roll and on the masthead of your column put a picture of yourself with a 9mm automatic in each hand. This may not work for everyone but it sure did for me. This said I'd like to offer my opinions on some of the distributors of the world. In my opinion the most honest righteous hepcat in hardcore distribution is Bob at Sound Idea. This cat is well organized and pays promptly if everyone ran their operation like Bob we would have no problems in distribution, unfortunately this is the exception and not the rule. Not really a wholesaler, but for mailorder Vacuum cannot be beat, another straight shooter in my book. I've always had the greatest respect for Neil at Tribal War and Kent at Ebullition, both these cats are totally committed to the DIY hardcore scene and spreading music and ideas. I can not give you my opinion of the new Lumberjack as I have not yet done business with them. I've had pretty good luck with Bottleneck and Very and the old Lumberjack was doing a fine job. Profane Existence recently published an article on distribution which has some good pointers on how to release and distribute a record. And Brian of Grand Theft Audio has provided some good insights into the distribution business in his column. Some of the other distributors I've used have been slow to pay, but I've eventually gotten my money, or records back. The worst are the mismanaged distributors who go out of business, with your stock and your money. The notorious Desperate Attempt distribution has owed me and many other labels money for a long time and seems to have gone under for good. Another outfit that went under and burned me is Network Sound. I've written, called and faxed them and their parent company Revelation for months about my outstanding invoice and unsold stock, met with only silence. You would think a big label like Victory would have plenty of money to pay labels but my one attempt to sell them records for their store ended in a lengthy struggle to get paid featuring threatening faxes and evasive phone calls.

Another area I'd like to warn bands to be careful in is royalty payments from their label. Make sure when you agree to release a record with a label that you know what kind of royalties you are going to get and when. Most labels pay their bands in copies of the record which the band can sell on tour. Usually this is a percentage of the total pressed. At havoc I give the bands 20% when the band pays for the recording, less if I have to pay for the recording. A lot of labels act like they are doing you a favor by putting out your record and put giving the band its copies or cash royalties at the bottom of its list of priorities. I know a lot of cats who put out records on well known labels and got nothing but a few copies of the record. This raises the label's profit margin greatly, no royalty payments mean that all the profit after cost goes right to the label. Another favorite scam is to lie about sales or pressings. A shifty label can increase its cut by telling the band they pressed 1,000 copies of a record when they really pressed 3,000. Likewise the label could drag its feet about paying by telling the band that the record wasn't selling many copies and hadn't reached the break even point yet, therefore it couldn't afford to pay royalties. Another notorious tactic is to "loose track" of band members after a band breaks up, but records are still being re-pressed. I've seen lots of friendships and working relationships descend into distrust and bitterness when the band felt they were not getting a fair shake from the label. To the bands, be sure you have everything spelled out in advance to avoid misunderstandings with your label further on. To labels, keep in touch with your bands and don't take them for granted without them you have nothing to release.

Struggles with the man part II. I have been audited by those feared jackbooted thugs at the Internal Revenue Service. A lengthy battle reduced the amount I owed in back taxes from the $21,000 the IRS originally said I owed to just under $5,000. As an anarchist nothing angers me more than giving the fruits of my labor to the system I hate. I'll be putting in long hours for months now and for what? To pay for a corrupt bureaucracy which is the instrument of my oppression. Fuck this fucking fucked up system.

This months forgotten hardcore band is the Authorities from Stockton California. The Authorities played a more melodic California style hardcore than most of the thrash bands I've talked about before. The anthem "I Hate Cops" is such a great expression of the kids loathing for the Man and his authority it makes up for its lack of speed with its heartfelt sentiment. The Authorities released one 7" Soundtrack for Trouble on Selecta Records in 1982, 1,000 pressed. It is now a rare collector item. However, a year or so ago an LP called Puppy Love was released which included the 7" and several unreleased tracks. This four song 7" is to my mind one of the best melodic hardcore records of the early 80's and one of the best representations of "California Style" hardcore punk, definitely worth seeking out.

Publication Date:
January 1, 1998

Previous | All articles in this category | Next