C/Z Records was a Seattle-based punk rock

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

that was established in early 1985 by

Chris Hanzsek Chris Hanzsek is an American musical engineer and record producer, living in Snohomish, Washington. He was co-founder, with then partner Tina Casale, of C/Z Records and their recording studio, Reciprocal Recording, in 1984. He produced bands in ...

and Tina Casale. It started with the release of '' Deep Six'' which collected the earliest recordings of what later came to be known as

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 ...

. The label was acquired by

Daniel House Daniel House may refer to: * Daniel House (musician) (born 1961), American musician and entrepreneur *Daniel House (Knoxville, Tennessee), historic U.S. home See also * Danuel House (born 1993), American basketball player *Danielle House Danielle ...

, to whom Hanzsek and Casale sold it after ''Deep Six'' proved commercially unsuccessful.

History

The label was first founded in early 1985 by

and Tina Casale. The label's first release (March 1986) was titled '' Deep Six'' (CZ001). This was a compilation LP that featured early

bands

Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yamamo ...

Melvins Melvins (sometimes The Melvins) are an American rock band formed in 1983 in Montesano, Washington. Their early work was key to the development of both grunge and sludge metal. Initially, they performed as a trio but later also sometimes appeare ...

Green River Green River may refer to: Rivers Canada *Green River (British Columbia), a tributary of the Lillooet River *Green River, a tributary of the Saint John River, also known by its French name of Rivière Verte *Green River (Ontario), a tributary of ...

, Skin Yard, Malfunkshun, and

The U-Men The U-Men was an American rock band, formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1980 and active until 1989. They toured extensively across the United States. Their musically "dirty" sound and off-the-wall sense of humor were a forerunner for the later gr ...

. Nationally, the record was something of a disappointment, and after about 18 months, Hanzsek and Casale realized that running a record label was not a career they wanted to pursue.

, bass player for Skin Yard, was in the midst of putting together the band's first record, and took over the operation of C/Z records. For several years C/Z was little more than a hobby, but quickly became an outlet for many unnoticed Seattle bands that House felt were making great music. In 1989, House began working as director of sales for a new Seattle independent record label by the name of

Sub Pop Sub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman. Sub Pop achieved fame in the early 1990s for signing Seattle bands such as Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney, central players in the grunge movement. They are often ...

. Eventually he left as C/Z became successful in its own right. He subsequently released early albums and singles by notable bands like The Presidents of the United States of America, Melvins, Built to Spill,

7 Year Bitch 7 Year Bitch was an American punk rock band from Seattle, Washington. The band was active between 1990 and 1997 and released three albums over that time. The band formed at the same time as the emergence of the riot grrrl sub-genre, which is a ...

The Gits The Gits were an American punk rock band formed in Yellow Springs, Ohio, in 1986. As part of the burgeoning Seattle music scene of the early 1990s, they were known for their fiery live performances. Members included singer Mia Zapata, guitarist ...

Silkworm The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically imp ...

and

Hammerbox Hammerbox was an American alternative rock band from Seattle, Washington. The band formed around 1990 and disbanded in 1994 when lead singer Carrie Akre left the band to form Goodness. History Hammerbox formed around 1990 in Seattle and re ...

. In 1993, C/Z entered into a production and distribution deal with

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

-owned RED Distribution. The deal quickly went sour and bled the label dry in less than a year. House was forced to downsize and re-organize, and it would be over a year before any new releases would see the light of day. In 1996, the

BMG BMG may refer to: Organizations * Music publishing companies: ** Bertelsmann Music Group, a 1987–2008 division of Bertelsmann that was purchased by Sony on October 1, 2008 *** Sony BMG, a 2004–2008 joint venture of Bertelsmann and Sony that wa ...

-owned Zoo Entertainment partnered with C/Z. Zoo provided a modest operating and recording budget and assisted in the development of new artists. In 1997, Zoo was to be purchased by Volcano Entertainment and all third party ventures were dropped. Daniel House returned C/Z to part-time status, releasing only occasional records on an infrequent basis.

Releases

In 2002, C/Z released an odds-n-sods collection of unreleased and unavailable Skin Yard material, '' Start at the Top''. C/Z released several ''Teriyaki Asthma'' compilations, one of which contained

Nirvana ( , , ; sa, निर्वाण} ''nirvāṇa'' ; Pali: ''nibbāna''; Prakrit: ''ṇivvāṇa''; literally, "blown out", as in an oil lampRichard Gombrich, ''Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benāres to Modern Colombo.' ...

's song "

Mexican Seafood Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous peopl ...

". Nirvana also released their version of "Do You Love Me?" on C/Z's

Kiss A kiss is the touch or pressing of one's lips against another person or an object. Cultural connotations of kissing vary widely. Depending on the culture and context, a kiss can express sentiments of love, passion, romance, sexual attraction, ...

tribute album '' Hard to Believe: Kiss Covers Compilation''.

C/Z Records bands

* 10 Minute Warning *

* Alcohol Funnycar * Built To Spill *

Caustic Resin Caustic Resin is an American indie rock band from Boise, Idaho consisting of Brett Netson on guitar and vocals, Tom Romich Jr. on bass guitar, and James Dillion or Pat Perkins on drums. Biography Caustic Resin formed in Boise, Idaho in 1988, the ...

* Coffin Break * Crypt Kicker Five * Daddy Hate Box * Deadspot * Dirt Fishermen * Dose * Engine Kid * FEEdbACK * Gerald Collier * Gnome *

Huevos Rancheros Huevos rancheros (, 'ranch-style eggs') is a breakfast dish consisting of eggs served in the style of the traditional large mid-morning fare on rural Mexican farms. Basic dish The basic dish consists of fried eggs served on lightly fried or cha ...

Hullabaloo Hubbabaloo or hullaballoo may refer to: * Hullabaloo (band), a punk band * Hullabaloo (song), a 1990 single by Absent Friends * Hullabaloo (festival), a music festival at the University of California San Diego * ''Hullabaloo'' (film), a 1940 film ...

* Icky Joey * Jonestown *

Love Battery Love Battery was an American rock band from Seattle, Washington. History Love Battery was formed in 1989 by former rock band Room Nine leader Ron Nine (b. Ron Rudzitis), guitarist Kevin Whitworth (ex-Crisis Party), bassist Tommy "Bonehead" Simp ...

* Model Rockets *

Monks Of Doom The Monks of Doom is an American alternative rock band, formed in California in 1986. The band's music draws from post-punk, progressive rock, indie rock, psychedelic and folk rock traditions.Moonshake Moonshake were a British-based experimental rock/post-rock band, existing between 1991 and 1997. The only consistent member was singer/sampler player/occasional guitarist David Callahan, who initially co-led the project with Margaret Fiedler ( ...

* My Eye * My Name *

Pain Teens Pain Teens was an experimental noise rock band formed in Houston, Texas in 1985 by Scott Ayers and Bliss Blood. The band used tape manipulation, digital delays, sampling, tape cut-ups and other effects in their music. They also included guitar, ...

* Pop Sickle * Porn Orchard * Presidents Of The USA *

Rhythm Pigs The Rhythm Pigs were an American punk band, originally from El Paso, Texas, United States, later relocated to San Francisco. Their first two albums were among the first to be released by the influential independent Mordam Records label. Their fi ...

* Rollins /

Hard-Ons The Hard-Ons are an Australian punk rock band, which formed in 1982 in Punchbowl, New South Wales. Its founding members were Keish de Silva on lead vocals and drums, Peter "Blackie" Black on guitar and backing vocals, and Ray Ahn on bass guit ...

* Sara DeBell *

* Skin Yard * Skyward * Slack *

The Lemons The Lemons was an American rock band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1991. The first lineup of the group consisted of Jimmy Paulson (lead vocals, guitar), Greg Lovell (guitar), Brent Saunders (bass) and Jeff Ramirez (drums). Ramirez was soon ...

* The Semibeings * Thirty Ought Six * Tone Dogs *

Treepeople TreePeople is an educational and training environmental advocacy organization based in Los Angeles, California. The TreePeople organization advocates and works to support a sustainable urban ecosystems in the Greater Los Angeles area through e ...

* Tube Top * Vexed * Voodoo Gearshift * Wreck * Yeast

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:C Z Records American record labels Record labels established in 1985 Alternative rock record labels Punk record labels 1985 establishments in Washington (state)