Messages

31

Music Shit / Re: Labels that don't keep records in print...

« on: October 18, 2011, 06:41:38 AM »

I can only speak for myself, but I have no issue keeping a record in print as long as there is demand.  I typically press an amount that will allow me to repress extremely cheaply...metal parts are already paid for, I have extra labels/covers.  I'm just paying for the cost of the vinyl, and possibly a set-up charge depending on the pressing plant.

I, like most other label owners my size, have found the golden ratio in the number of records to press for each release through trial and error.  I press the amount of records that i think I can sell, plain and simple.  If the demand is there, I will press more to satisfy that demand.

And as a hobbyist, I can relate to the fact that new titles get priority.  Every new release is an exciting new project to work on, and some people don't have the motivation and/or time to dedicate to catalog titles.  That said, I have as little time as anyone, but that would never keep me from keeping catalog titles in print if there was a demand.

32

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Household LP pre-order (for fans of Young Marble Giants, Grass Widow, Slant 6)

« on: October 18, 2011, 06:29:22 AM »

contact Forte amd demand that they carry dull knife titles!  ha.

I'm really sorry..still looking for solid, consistant European distro.  Depending on the release, dull knife titles are carried by Juno, Volcanic Tongue, Avant!, and Enfant Terrible.

33

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Household LP pre-order (for fans of Young Marble Giants, Grass Widow, Slant 6)

« on: October 18, 2011, 05:46:23 AM »

starts shipping next week for those who pre-order.  Official release date is not until November 15.

34

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Balaclavas - Snake People LP/CD OUT NOW

« on: October 18, 2011, 05:44:33 AM »

Officially out today in stores and on iTunes/Amazon/eMusic/Spotify/your digital service of choice, or direct from me.

new review from Mishka NYC:

http://mishkanyc.com/bloglin/2011/10/17/review-balaclavas-snake-people/

Balaclavas ? Snake People (2011) [Dull Knife] // Grade: A

Roman Holiday completely ruined us last year. And by that I mean it in the way that a certain obsidian monolith, you know the one, disengages and rewires the conscience of bone-flinging early man. A piece of music that, if you?ve not yet listened to it, puts an entirely new spin on post-punk as you know it. Best believe their debut full-length also made our humble ?100 Albums of 2010? list, snuggled ever-so tightly between Waka Flocka and Electric Wizard.

On to the next one! As far as I?m concerned, Balaclavas have found the pulse yet again with 2011?s Snake People, ironing out the few blemishes on the last release but, more importantly, forging a prophetic record to play in accompaniment to the human race?s almost certain plunge into extinction. The splintering wheel of time, that torture rack, slows. Guitars become detuned and voices estranged as a synthesizer drone constricts each song?s resonance.

Stylistically speaking, Snake People is more excruciating an album, in a clamorous no-wave sort of way, while also keeping up a haunting presence, through electromagnetic palpitations, on some forsaken dancefloor. No doubt you?ll hear some heavy Bauhaus influence imbued with the clanky industrialism of Einst?rzende Neubauten scattered throughout as vocals get sucked out into preservation tanks on ?Shit Meridian? and ?Snake People? or undulate over strings on ?Wrong Side of the Bars? and  ?Down and Loose?.

These Houston misanthropes are the real deal so get to know them as the record gets an official release, today.

35

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Mattress Eldorado Ep out now!

« on: October 17, 2011, 09:35:22 AM »

got this in the mail several days ago, but haven't had a chance to spin it yet.  looking forward to it.

36

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Balaclavas - Snake People LP/CD OUT NOW

« on: October 12, 2011, 07:52:17 AM »

http://builtonaweakspot.com/post/11310576510/balaclavas-snake-people-lp

"I do a lot of the writing for this blog on a laptop that has probably seen better days. The exterior is scratched, dented and what have you from numerous drops and/or beatings received from myself out of frustration. The front of the CD tray has been ripped off (again in an act of frustration) after it stopped working completely. It?s a wonder how this thing still works?but so long as it can handle the simple tasks of word processing then I am fine. I bring this up because it honestly makes me think some about Snake People, the latest album from Houston, Texas? Balaclavas. Their music has always been something vaguely helped along with electronics, tape loops, etc. But it?s always been presented in a way that allows me to believe that these sounds were created on something as lowly and trashed as the very laptop I?m using; used to soundtrack a world of ruins complete with a black clouded backdrop or landfills overflowing with mountains of discarded obsolete technology.

The bands previous album Roman Holiday was a big hit with me last year and many others as it ended up. The mixture of atonal no-wave inspired guitar damage with big archaic dub influenced beats ended up being a magnificent pairing and one that needed no help painting a bleak picture. As Balaclavas did there, they bring it all back for another round with Snake People, once again brought to us by the resurrected Dull Knife label. I honestly felt it would be a challenge to follow up Roman Holiday, as following and listening through their discography seemed to hint at nearing a peak with the album. And really, after hearing not much of anything concerning the band after the release of the the album, it was beginning to seem like it would certainly end up being just that. Alas a return was announced earlier this year and with Snake People the group takes a not so unexpected turn towards their beat driven/dub-punk influence with less of the hypnotic looping drums that seemed to be behind many of the tracks on Roman Holiday. Instead, they are split up between the thick punches of something more industrialized and the faint haunting churns of buzzing/humming. As a band that seemingly dabbled with the idea plenty in the past, the increase seeps in naturally and likely has propelled Snake People to higher level of induced fear and dread that they?ve managed to achieve before. Easily one of my favorite bands going currently. Please do give them a listen."

37

Music Shit / Re: Houston punk HC metal family tree?

« on: October 06, 2011, 11:35:28 AM »

also, the greatest band merch I have ever seen is a couple of Secret Prostitues bath robes at their LP release show.

38

Music Shit / Re: Houston punk HC metal family tree?

« on: October 06, 2011, 11:32:08 AM »

the guy on the left, Josh Wolf, is the common link between most bands.

He was in/is in:

No Talk
Homopolice
The Energy
Born Liars (I think?)
Hell City Kings
Secret Prostitutes
Bloody Hammer
Crime Wave
+ a million more that I'm blanking on

39

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Balaclavas - Snake People LP/CD OUT NOW

« on: October 06, 2011, 11:04:41 AM »

featured on Raven Sings the Blues today.


http://ravensingstheblues.blogspot.com/2011/10/balaclavas.html

Dull Knife picks up the second album from post-punk doomsayers Balaclavas. The Texas crew hovers perpetually in the darkest corners, slinking with knives and shades equally drawn. The band has an aptitude for weaving insistent rhythms, twisting with sickness, with a nail scratched doom-punk that befits titles like "Shit Meridian." The second time around the tape spool hasn't left the boys any less intense. Snake People gnaws on bad vibes like raw wire, spits blood and shrugs it off like just another day. Their fist record always felt like it should come from a place more barren than Houston and the second installment takes no detours in that respect. This is the soundtrack to Flint, MI or Gary, IN; the kind of places where the sun only occasionally shines through the smoke to bake you to a miserable crisp. This is the sound of pavement stretching to chain link for miles. Still no matter where they're from and what's channeled into it, the band have found a way to record the gnash of teeth well.



and it features a really funny picture from about 5 years ago.

40

Music Shit / Re: Houston punk HC metal family tree?

« on: October 06, 2011, 04:45:59 AM »

It would take about a year just to map the Josh Wolf bands.

41

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Balaclavas - Snake People LP/CD OUT NOW

« on: October 05, 2011, 05:42:58 AM »

First review is in:

The pitch-black noise rock of Balacalavas only continues to mature on their sophomore LP ?Snake People?. Much like?Roman Holiday? the band relies on the core rhythmic drive of dummer Charlie Patranella and a complete disregard for the trappings of contemporary rock music.

The highly stylized music on ?Roman Holiday? is continued on without missing a beat. In addition to heroic gothic drumming, the music still echoes with the sounds of grinding guitar feedback, doomy bass lines and synth tones buzzing with the ominous oscillations of a chorus of sizzling tesla coils.

Tracks on ?Snake People? vary in length from two minutes and sixteen seconds to over nine minutes. ?Snake People?, the latter of these two, completely disregards structure. Rim drumming like ?Bela Lugosi?s Dead? combined with Tyler?s dramatic cries makes for a feverish nightmare-scape that would make Peter Murphy shit his pants. This staple track also includes a number of delightfully Cabaret Voltaire tape samples in the beginning, only adding to mood.

This is not to say that the shorter tracks are not just as good. ?Down and Loose?, the album?s second shortest song, is highly organized and structured with cryptic goth-rock vocals like, ?tight black leather boots, smoking cigarettes, with no regrets?. Even on the less lengthy tracks, Balaclavas sets the mood.

Grade: A

-Free Press Houston

distros please get in touch!  i'm also into trading releases with other labels.

dullknifeproject@gmail.com

42

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Balaclavas - Snake People LP/CD OUT NOW

« on: September 27, 2011, 09:22:44 AM »

The record is now out and shipping for direct orders.  Won't be in stores until October 18.

43

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Household LP pre-order (for fans of Young Marble Giants, Grass Widow, Slant 6)

« on: September 22, 2011, 07:24:20 AM »

Items, the debut from Brooklyn's HOUSEHOLD, is 9 songs of perfect, taut, agit-pop. The band combines the aesthetics of UK DIY and the heyday of the American indie underground, sharpening them to a point and bringing to mind bands such as Young Marble Giants, Slant 6, and contemporaries Grass Widow.

You can can pre-order the LP and listen to the track "Go Away" at http://www.dullknifelabel.com

The LP will include a coupon for free digital download

You can stream the entire album and purchase a digital copy at http://household.band.com

Direct orders should start shipping in a month, ahead of the offical street date.

Also available:

Balaclavas - Snake People LP/CD

Soon:

sIngs - Skull Shaker LP
Rusted Shut - Rehab LP

44

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Balaclavas - Snake People LP/CD pre-order

« on: September 22, 2011, 07:23:05 AM »

direct orders starts shipping next week.

45

New Releases For Sale/Distro Updates / Re: Balaclavas - Snake People LP/CD pre-order

« on: September 09, 2011, 10:24:34 AM »

yes,  still doing Rehab.  Working with those guys is understandably slow.  I hope to send it to press next month.

Balaclavas Snake People test pressings are in and sound great. Orders will likely start shipping in 2 weeks, well before the official release date.  Thanks for the support so far.