Fall of the West Records (FOTW) is 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 ...

based out of San Francisco, California,

Oak Park, Illinois Oak Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, adjacent to Chicago. It is the 29th-most populous municipality in Illinois with a population of 54,583 as of the 2020 U.S. Census estimate. Oak Park was first settled in 1835 and later incorporated in ...

, and

Amherst, Massachusetts Amherst () is a New England town, town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Connecticut River valley. As of the 2020 census, the population was 39,263, making it the highest populated municipality in Hampshire County (althoug ...

. FOTW was started in May 2005 by Brian Van Slyke and Alex Felsinger after networking on the internet. Their releases consist of punk and

folk punk Folk punk (known in its early days as rogue folk) is a fusion of folk music and punk rock. It was popularized in the early 1980s by the Pogues in England, and by Violent Femmes in the United States. Folk punk achieved some mainstream success in ...

bands from across the United States and Canada.

Beliefs

The name is tongue-in-cheek. The label was formed during the height of the Bush administration when conservative political pundits would argue that gay rights, an end to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and other leftist ideas (which FOTW supports) would lead to an end to western civilization as we know it. The label is currently on hiatus and is trying to restructure after being robbed while simultaneously having all of its major equipment malfunction. During these rebuilding efforts, the collective members have agreed to volunteer their time and not get paid.

Means of production

Originally, Van Slyke produced the releases in the basement of his Oak Park home, doing every step of the production with the exception of cutting the booklets—a task that is now easily performed. Most production—with a few exceptions (including the label's first cassette release which was produced from Felsinger's home in San Francisco) -- occurs in Van Slyke's residence in Amherst. The label has officially become collectivized and a group of friends have come together to assist with the production of the label's 14 releases.

List of bands

* Bookends * Captain Chaos * The Capstan Shafts * David and the Bear * The English Work Standard * Forgotten Voices * Gator Country * Giant Squid March on Washington * The Le Nouns * Mancub * On the Strings Of * The Riot Before * Tennessee and the Wolf * This One's on Me * This Ship Will Burn

External links

Fall of the West Official Site

Official Myspace Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fall Of The West Records American independent record labels