Shelflife Records

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Shelflife Records is a Portland and Seattle based independent record label run by Ed Mazzucco and Matthew Bice and has produced such bands as Days, Acid House Kings, and The Radio Dept.

1 History
2 Bands
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] History

Shelflife Records traces its 1995 origins to a bedroom in a southern California suburb, where it began in conjunction with a mail order and distribution service. A fan of 80's English pop and inspired by labels such as Factory and Sarah, Ed Mazzucco launched the label as a way to expose foreign indie pop groups to US audiences. Shelflife's first release was the August 1996 compilation Whirl-Wheels which included tracks by Club 8, Boyracer, La Buena Vida, and Ed’s own band The Autocollants.

In 1997 Ed moved Shelflife to New York where he began long-time collaborations with graphic designer Jill Bliss and producer Jon Chaikin. The mail order and distribution service were discontinued in order to devote more time to the growing roster of artists, a move that quickly propelled the label out of its hobby status. During the late 90's Shelflife steadily gained recognition as twee pop and indie music became increasingly popular. From 1998 until 2001 the label hosted The September Set, an annual showcase of live pop music from bands on Shelflife and other labels.

In June 2007 Ed and Matthew Bice relaunched the label with a new focus on blending art with music. Their newsletter explained, "Each release will feature exclusive tracks in a limited edition, collectable package designed by various up-and-coming artists. Plans are in the works to feature this artwork in a gallery show marking every 10th release." Of this new "1000 series" of records, three have albums have been released : LIFE1001 Warm Morning "Silver Rain", LIFE1002 A Smile and a Ribbon "The Boy I Wish I Never Met," and LIFE1003 Days "Downhill".