Enigma Records (also known as Enigma Entertainment Corporation) was a popular rock and alternative American

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 prod ...

in the 1980s.

History

Enigma Records launched as a division of Greenworld Distribution, an independent

music Music is generally defined as the The arts, art of arranging sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Exact definition of music, definitions of mu ...

importer/distributor, in 1981. Four years later, in 1985, Enigma severed ties with Greenworld and became its own company. Enigma was initially located in Torrance, California, then El Segundo, California and finally

Culver City, California Culver City is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 40,779. Founded in 1917 as a "whites only" sundown town, it is now an ethnically diverse city with what was called the "third-most ...

. Enigma was founded and run by brothers William and Wesley Hein. Jim Martone joined the company in 1984. Enigma focused on punk rock, alternative, and heavy metal music though it also released

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

(Synthicide Records),

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

(Intima Records) and classical music (Enigma Classics) through subsidiary labels. The label's first release was

Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee, lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil. Mötley Crüe has sold over 100 million albu ...

's '' Too Fast for Love''. The album was initially released under the band's own Leathür Records imprint but manufactured, marketed and distributed by what would become the Enigma Records team. After the band moved on to

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between th ...

, the Enigma Records name was adopted and all subsequent artists were released under this new name. Enigma's next major success was with the pop band

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

. Enigma Records was initially distributed through independent record importers/distributors such as Jem Records and

Important Records Important Records is an American independent record label based in Groveland, Massachusetts. The idea behind the label is to be like a good record store, with releases from diverse artists and genres. History John Brien started Important Records ...

. In 1984, Enigma entered into a joint venture with EMI America to sign and develop new artists. Among the artists signed under the venture were the Red Hot Chili Peppers and SSQ (later renamed Stacey Q and signed to

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most ...

). In 1986, Enigma moved its distribution to Capitol/ EMI, a major record label, while leaving its Restless Records division with the independent distributors that had previously distributed Enigma.

Poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...

, a glam rock band, and The Smithereens were two of the first artists released under the joint Enigma / Capitol relationship, both of which had significant success. That same year it launched a music video line, which was also distributed by Capitol. One of Enigma's biggest commercial successes was with the Christian rock band

Stryper Stryper is an American Christian metal band from Orange County, California. The group's lineup consists of Michael Sweet (lead vocals, guitar), Oz Fox (guitar), Perry Richardson (bass guitar), and Robert Sweet (drums). Formed in 1983 as Ro ...

, which had several gold and platinum records on the label as well as significant international success. In addition to the primary Enigma Records label, the company had two smaller subsidiary labels as well as a music publishing company (La Rana / El Porto Music administered by Bug Music). Enigma Retro focused on re-issues of material licensed from other labels such as Straight Records, Bizarre Records, and DiscReet Records. The Restless Records division focused on alternative artists not intended for major label distribution. Enigma also released film soundtracks including '' The Terminator'' and '' River's Edge''. Enigma released a compilation album, '' Enigma Variations'', with various artists. Enigma had a joint venture with Mute Records and released certain Mute titles in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

. Sonic Youth's landmark 1988 album '' Daydream Nation'' was originally released on Enigma Records, in association with Blast First Records. Enigma was formally acquired by Capitol/EMI in 1989. Some of its catalog and operations were merged into the still independent Restless Records in 1991. Enigma's Canadian division was closed in 1992 and was reorganized into

FRE Records FRE Records, a.k.a. Flood Ross Entertainment, Inc., was a Mississauga, Ontario based independent record label in the 1990s. It was originally formed by former employees Terry Flood and Derrick Ross of Enigma Records after that label's Canadian oper ...

before shuttering in 1999, after which its back catalogs was sold to

DROG Records Dave's Records of Guelph, or DROG, was a Canadian independent record label.Michael Barclay, Ian A.D. Jack and Jason Schneider, '' Have Not Been the Same: The Can-Rock Renaissance 1985-1995''. ECW Press. . It was founded in 1993 in Guelph, Ontario by ...

. The Enigma catalog is controlled by

Capitol Music Group Capitol Music Group (CMG) is an American front line umbrella label distributed by Universal Music Group which oversees handling of record labels assigned to UMG's Capitol Records division. It was inherited from UMG's acquisition of EMI's catalog ...

, owned by

Universal Music Group Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as just Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum, Netherlands and its ...

which acquired Capitol's former parent EMI and the majority of its recorded music operations in 2012. Disney Music Group's Hollywood Records, distributed by UMG, handles the reissues of Stryper's Enigma albums. The catalog of Devo's albums and Enigma titles that were merged into Restless is owned by

Warner Music Group Warner Music Group Corp. (trade name, d.b.a. Warner Music Group, commonly abbreviated as WMG) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational entertainment and record label Conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered in New York C ...

, which acquired Restless's previous parent Rykodisc in 2006, and distributed by the Alternative Distribution Alliance.

Artists

* 7 Seconds * 20/20 * 45 Grave * Agent Orange * Bardeux *

Barren Cross Barren Cross is an American Christian metal band that was formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by high school friends Ray Parris (guitar) and Steve Whitaker (drums). The band released six albums from 1986 to 1994. They have reunited for a few shows in ...

* Battalion of Saints *

* David Cassidy *

Casteel Casteel is a town in Ehlanzeni District Municipality in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. The legal name was changed to Maboke in 2008. Maboke is place consisting of Mapulana (Sepulana is the language spoken) and Tsonga people. There is pr ...

Celtic Frost Celtic Frost () was a Swiss extreme metal band from Zürich. They are known for their strong influence on the development of extreme metalBukszpan, Daniel. ''The Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal''. Barnes & Noble Publishing, 2003. p.43 and avant-gard ...

* Channel 3 * Close Lobsters * The Cramps * Dead Milkmen * Death Angel * The Descendents * Devo * The Dickies * Don Dixon * The Effigies * Roky Erickson *

Fear Fear is an intensely unpleasant emotion in response to perceiving or recognizing a danger or threat. Fear causes physiological changes that may produce behavioral reactions such as mounting an aggressive response or fleeing the threat. Fear ...

The Fibonaccis The Fibonaccis were an American art rock band formed in 1981 in Los Angeles. The band consisted of songwriters John Dentino (keyboards) and Ron Stringer (guitar), Magie Song (vocals), Joe Berardi (drums) and later Tom Corey ( bass). Formation Th ...

* Game Theory * Get Smart! * GG Allin * Girlschool * Great White * Green on Red *

Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unite ...

* Peter Hammill * Allan Holdsworth * Hurricane * Hüsker Dü * Jon and the Nightriders * Steve Kilbey * Lȧȧz Rockit * Laibach *

The Leaving Trains The Leaving Trains were an American indie rock band from Los Angeles, California. The Leaving Trains were founded in 1980 by Falling James Moreland, a frontperson who became known for her chaotic performances and penchant for (male-to-female) c ...

* Lizzy Borden * The Minutemen * Ronnie Montrose * Mojo Nixon *

* Motörhead * Bill Nelson *

Obsession Obsession may refer to: Psychology * Celebrity worship syndrome, obsessive addictive disorder to a celebrity's personal and professional life * Fixation (psychology), a persistent attachment to an object or idea * Idée fixe (psychology), a p ...

* Pere Ubu *

Plan 9 Plan 9 or Plan Nine may refer to: Music * Plan 9 (band), a psychedelic rock band from Rhode Island * ''Plan 9'', an album by Big Guitars From Memphis with Rick Lindy * "Plan 9", a song on the 1993 album ''Gorgeous'' by electronica band 808 Stat ...

* Plasticland *

* Chris Poland *

Rain Parade The Rain Parade is a band that was originally active in the Paisley Underground scene in Los Angeles in the 1980s, and that reunited and resumed touring in 2012. History Rain Parade in the 1980s (1981–86) Originally called the Sidewalks, the b ...

* Ratt *

Red Flag Red flag may refer to: * Red flag (idiom), a metaphor for something signalling a problem ** Red flag warning, a term used by meteorologists ** Red flag (battle ensign), maritime flag signaling an intention to give battle with no quarter (fight to ...

* Red Hot Chili Peppers * Redd Kross * The Residents * Sacred Reich * Greg Sage * Skid Roper *

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country ( Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the No ...

* Screamin' Sirens *

Shooting Star Shooting star refers to a meteor. Shooting star may also refer to: Film, television, and theater * ''Shooting Star'' (2015 film), a 2015 Bulgarian short film * ''Shooting Star'' (2020 film), a 2020 Canadian short film * ''Shooting Stars'' ( ...

* Slayer * The Smithereens * Sonic Youth * Al Stewart *

Tex and the Horseheads Tex & the Horseheads is an American punk rock band, which emerged in the Los Angeles punk subculture of the early-1980. Their original run was from 1980 to 1986 and during this time they enjoyed a sizeable cult following. As of 2007, the band ...

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a dr ...

Thor (band) Thor (stylized as THOR) is a Canadian heavy metal band from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Biography Thor started out as a concept band in 1973. They used the names "Thor", "Centaur" and "Mikl Body Rock". These entities were the bra ...

*Tom Peterson and Another Language * T.S.O.L. * The U-Krew * Untouchables * The Vandals *

Ben Vaughn Ben Vaughn is an American singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, composer for television and film, and syndicated radio show host. Biography Ben Vaughn grew up in the Philadelphia area on the New Jersey side of the river. South Jersey. ...

* Vinnie Vincent Invasion * Voivod * Wall of Voodoo * Wednesday Week * Wild Dogs * Ike Willis *

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* XYZ * Znowhite

References

{{Authority control Alternative rock record labels Classical music record labels Defunct companies based in Greater Los Angeles Defunct record labels of the United States Rock record labels EMI 1980 establishments in California 1991 disestablishments in California Record labels disestablished in 1991 Record labels based in California Techno record labels

History

Artists

See also

References