A Different Drum was an

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

and

online store Online shopping is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser or a mobile app. Consumers find a product of interest by visiting the website of the r ...

based in Smithfield,

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, founded in 1996. The label specialized in

synthpop Synth-pop (short for synthesizer pop; also called techno-pop; ) is a subgenre of new wave music that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s a ...

and related genres. A Different Drum has released hundreds of albums, singles, and compilations and was the biggest synthpop label in the U.S. The label is credited with helping to keep the

genre progressing during the

grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock genre and subculture that emerged during the in the American Pacific Northwest state of Washington, particularly in Seattle and nearby towns. Grunge fuses elements of p ...

rock mid-1990s and into the early 2000s, particularly supporting American Synthpop Groups ( Cosmicity, The Echoing Green,

B! Machine B! Machine is a synthpop band from San Francisco, California. The band was formed in 1996, consisting of the sole founding member, writer and musician, Nathaniel Leigh Nicoll. The current line-up of the band varies but typically consists of Nath ...

and others) in their early years. The label also supported older synthpop bands which previously had

Billboard chart The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in ''Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, pr ...

hits during the 1980s, such as

Alphaville (band) Alphaville is a German synth-pop band formed in Münster in 1982. They gained popularity in the 1980s. The group was founded by singer Marian Gold, Bernhard Lloyd, and Frank Mertens. They achieved chart success with the singles " Forever Young" ...

, and

Real Life (band) Real Life are an Australian new wave and synth-pop band that achieved international chart success with their 1983 singles " Send Me an Angel" and "Catch Me I'm Falling", both of which were taken from their debut studio album, ''Heartland'' (19 ...

, putting out releases for both bands during this time. In the early to mid 2000s, A Different Drum signed new acts such as

Iris Iris most often refers to: *Iris (anatomy), part of the eye *Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess * ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants * Iris (color), an ambiguous color term Iris or IRIS may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional ent ...

and Provision. The label held a yearly Synthpop Music Festival which ran for 3 years, from 2004 to 2006; in Salt Lake City, Utah at the Red Lion Hotel. The festival featured label acts that were signed to A Different Drum, performing alongside new unsigned Synthpop bands in a musical showcase spanning three days over Labor Day weekend. The festivals were called ADD2K4, ADD2K5, and ADD2K6; respectively. The first year of the festival was recorded live and released as a 2 C.D. Limited Edition titled ''SLC 2K4 Official Bootleg''. A selection of songs from the label's artists have been featured on various versions of

Konami , is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company, video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machin ...

Dance Dance Revolution (''DDR'') is a music video game series produced by Konami. Introduced in Japan in 1998 as part of the Bemani series, and released in North America and Europe in 1999, ''Dance Dance Revolution'' is the pioneering series of the rhythm and dance ...

series, including the arcade version of

Dance Dance Revolution X ''Dance Dance Revolution X'' is a music video game developed by Konami. A part of the ''Dance Dance Revolution'' series, it was announced in 2008 for Japan and on May 15, 2008 for the North American PlayStation 2. The arcade version was announced ...

. The label formally ceased operations in 2014. A Different Drum published more than 350 albums, singles, and various artist compilations.

Notable artists

*Alien#Six13 * Alphaville *

Blu Mar Ten Blu Mar Ten is a music production outfit based in London, and is made up of Chris Marigold and Michael Tognarelli. History Blu Mar Ten's first track to be released was "The Fountain" / "Lunar" in 1996 on Way Out Records. The track appeared on ...

Blue October Blue October is an American rock band originally from Houston, Texas. The band was formed in 1995 and is currently composed of singer/guitarist Justin Furstenfeld, drummer Jeremy Furstenfeld, multi-instrumentalist Ryan Delahoussaye, bassist M ...

* Blume *

Code 64 Code 64 is an electronic music band from Sweden. Their music can best be described as a mixture of synthpop, electronic body music and electropop. Biography Code 64 is a synthpop, darkwave, electronica band that signed with the small Norweg ...

* Cosmicity *

De/Vision De/Vision is a German synthpop musical group formed in 1988. The band started as a quartet consisting of Thomas Adam, Steffen Keth, Stefan Blender, and Markus Ganssert. Blender left the band in 1991 and Ganssert departed in 2000. The name De/V ...

Daybehavior Daybehavior is a Swedish indie-pop trio, founded in Stockholm, in 1993 by Tommy Arell, Paulinda Crescentini and Carl Hammar. The trio's music is heavy influenced by movies, electronics and beats. History Their debut album ''Adored'' was rele ...

* Droom *

Echo Image Echo Image is a Norway, Norwegian synthpop band from Fredrikstad. The band started in the summer of 1997 when Pål Magnus Rybom and Jon-Ivar Berg started experimenting with electronic music. That summer the two of them recorded a demo. Berg left ...

* The Echoing Green *

Endless Shame Endless Shame is an electronic band from the South of Sweden. The music is inspired by various types of electronic music and alternative rock and pop. Endless Shame started in the 90s but it wasn't until 2007 that they released their debut album ...

*Faith Assembly *

Fischerspooner Fischerspooner were an electroclash duo and performance troupe formed in 1998 in Chicago after meeting in school. The name is a combination of the founders' last names, Warren Fischer and Casey Spooner. Career Originally a duo formed by clas ...

Freezepop Freezepop is an American electronic music, electronic band from Boston, Massachusetts, United States, formed in 1999 by Liz Enthusiasm, Sean T. Drinkwater, and The Duke of Pannekoeken (an alias for Kasson Crooker). Since December 2009, the curre ...

Jondi & Spesh Jondi & Spesh is an American dance music production and DJ duo, based in San Francisco and composed of J.D. Moyer (Jondi) and Stephen Kay (Spesh). They have founded their own record label, Loöq Records, and are the hosts of Qoöl, a weekly pr ...

*Junk Circuit *

Leiahdorus Leiahdorus is a synthpop band on the independent Section 44 Records label. Leiahdorus was created by Jason Smith in 1998. When Joey Belville of The Echoing Green acquired a demonstration tape, he took Jason under his wing and produced a demo w ...

Midnight Resistance is a side-scrolling run and gun game produced by Data East and released in arcades in 1989. ''Midnight Resistance'' is set in a dystopian future where the player controls a member of a resistance movement who goes on a mission to rescue his kidn ...

Monolithic A monolith is a monument or natural feature consisting of a single massive stone or rock. Monolith or monolithic may also refer to: Architecture * Monolithic architecture, a style of construction in which a building is carved, cast or excavated ...

* Moulin Noir *

Neuroactive Neuroactive is a Synthpop, Futurepop, EBM music group from Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the nort ...

*Neuropa *Neverever *Provision *

Raindancer Raindancer was an electroacoustic rock band formed in Newport, Wales in the early 1990s. The band featured Grant Nicholas and Jon Lee, who later became founding members of Feeder. History On 20 June 1991, Raindancer were invited by ITV t ...

Real Life Real life is a phrase used originally in literature to distinguish between the real world and fictional, virtual or idealized worlds, and in acting to distinguish between actors and the characters they portray. It has become a popular term on th ...

* Syrian * T.O.Y.

References

External links

* Official site (www.adifferentdrum.com) (defunct) {{DEFAULTSORT:Different Drum, A American independent record labels Companies based in Utah Electronic music record labels Synth-pop record labels 1996 establishments in Utah 2014 disestablishments in Utah