Founded 1992 by John Loder, Southern Records 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 ...

(Loder also ran the recording facility

Southern Studios Southern Studios is a recording studio in the Wood Green area of London. It was founded in 1974 by John Loder, and came to be the recording studio of choice for Crass and their record label Crass Records. Southern Studios Ltd. continues to grow ...

). It is based in London and until 2008 had offices in the United States, France and Berlin. The label is closely associated with Crass Records,

Corpus Christi Records Corpus Christi Records is a British independent record label started by some of the members of Crass and their recording engineer and business partner John Loder, to release records by artists who did not perhaps fit in with some of the stric ...

and

Dischord Records Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.-based independent record label specializing in punk rock. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release ''Minor Disturbance'' by their band The Teen Idles. ...

History

Background

was a recording label owned and operated by John Loder from the 1970's until his death. Loder became friends with musician Penny Rimbaud and collaborated with him in an experimental band called

EXIT Exit(s) may refer to: Architecture and engineering * Door * Portal (architecture), an opening in the walls of a structure * Emergency exit * Overwing exit, a type of emergency exit on an airplane * Exit ramp, a feature of a road interchange ...

. Rimbaud later formed anarchist punk band

Crass Crass were an English art collective and punk rock band formed in Epping, Essex in 1977, who promoted anarchism as a political ideology, a lifestylism, way of life, and a resistance movement. Crass popularised the anarcho-punk movement of the ...

, and Loder and his Southern Studios were chosen to record their first album ''

The Feeding of the 5000 In Christianity, the feeding the multitude is two separate miracles of Jesus reported in the Gospels. The first miracle, the "Feeding of the 5,000", is the only miracle—aside from the resurrection—recorded in all four gospels ( Matthew 14:1 ...

''. That record was originally released on

Small Wonder Records Small Wonder Records was a British independent record label owned and managed by Pete and Mari Stennett, that specialised in releasing records by punk rock and post-punk bands. It operated out of a record shop of the same name at 162 Hoe Stre ...

. When Small Wonder encountered problems manufacturing the release, due to the allegedly blasphemous nature of the lyrics, Crass decided they needed their own label to take full control of their output. Loder facilitated this by acting as the business manager behind Crass Records. He arranged manufacture, distribution and accounting. After the Crass record's success in 1978, Loder became the go-to alternative distributor for a generation of independent musicians. This connected Loder with the emerging international independent record business. He formed alliances with small distributors around the world to distribute Crass's output, and in the process U.S. labels like Touch and Go found outlets for their releases overseas. Circa 1984, he formed a lasting partnership with

. In 1986,

Ian McKay Ian John McKay, VC (7 May 1953 – 12 June 1982) was a British Army soldier and a posthumous recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Bor ...

traveled to London looking to forge a deal with Loder that would satisfy the demand for Minor Threat records in the UK. The deal struck resulted in the manufacture of Dischord records in a factory that Southern had contracted with on the European mainland, and for decades Minor Threat records were stamped "Made in France." Southern served as their pressing agent and distributor through 1993.

First releases

The first release on Southern Records was Babes in Toyland's album Fontanelle, in August 1992.

2000s

Label founder Loder died in 2005. In the same year Allison Schnackenberg, label boss, set up the Latitudes imprint to record and release one sessions, in a similar spirit to the BBC's

Peel Sessions John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

. Starting in late 2008, Southern closed its international office and moved all operations to London. Chicago closed November 2008,

Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...

closed July 2009, and Berlin closed December 2012.

Imprints

Other label imprints operated by Southern include Black Diamond,

Latitudes In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north–south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pole ...

and Truth Cult.

Roster

90 Day Men 90 Day Men is an American progressive rock band formed in 1995 in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, and later based in Chicago, Illinois. Their name is a slang term used by police officers to refer to prison inmates who are due to undergo ps ...

* Antisect * Action Beat *

Asva Asva is a village in Saaremaa Parish, Saare County, on the eastern part of Saaremaa Island, Estonia. (retrieved 28 July 2021) Before the administrative reform in 2017, the village was in Laimjala Parish. Prehistoric settlement Asva is kno ...

* Atombombpocketknife * Babes in Toyland * Bellafea *

Bell Gardens Bell Gardens is a city in the U.S. state of California in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Located in Los Angeles County, the city's population was 42,072 at the 2010 census, down from 44,054 at the 2000 census. Bell Gardens is part of the ...

Billy Mahonie Billy Mahonie is a British post-rock band. History British instrumental rock quartet Billy Mahonie formed in London in 1997. The original line-up consisted of Gavin Baker (guitar), Howard Monk (drums), Hywell Dinsdale (bass and guitar) and ...

* Bob Tilton * Boduf Songs * Cat On Form *

Chrome Hoof Chrome Hoof are an experimental chamber rock orchestra based in London, England. The group was formed in 2000 by Cathedral bassist Leo Smee and his brother Milo Smee. Initially performing as a duo, their music was mostly electronic. Sinc ...

* Chumbawamba *

Crucifix A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (Lati ...

* Darediablo *

Dianogah Dianogah (pronounced Dye-ah-NO-gah) is an American indie rock band formed in 1995, noted for their use of two bass guitars. Members include Kip McCabe, Jay Ryan (artist), Jay Ryan, and Jason Harvey (musician), Jason Harvey. History Dianogah's ...

* Geoff Farina * Frightwig *

Faucet A tap (also spigot or faucet: see #Nomenclature, usage variations) is a valve controlling the release of a liquid or gas. Nomenclature United Kingdom * Tap is used in the United Kingdom and most of the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth ...

* Glorytellers *

Hawnay Troof Hawnay Troof is an American electronic indie band formed in late 2001. Despite of the band's American punk and electronic background, many elements of pop, dance-punk, electronica, soul, noise music and club. have been incorporated into it ...

* Him *

Jenny Hoyston Jenny Hoyston is an American producer, vocalist, guitarist, and trumpeter based in Austin, Texas, United States. She composed, recorded, and toured as part of the San Francisco, California, political punk and no wave band Erase Errata from 1999 ...

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronat ...

Karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the ...

The Lapse The Lapse was an American indie band formed in late 1997. The band was first signed to Gern Blandsten, then Southern Records. A larger deal with Matador Records fell through in 2001. The Lapse was the duo of then boyfriend/girlfriend Chris Leo (ex- ...

Les Savy Fav Les Savy Fav ( ) is an American indie rock band based in New York City. Their style is influenced by art punk and post-hardcore. The group is known for the stage presence of lead singer Tim Harrington. The band is signed to Frenchkiss Record ...

Lungleg Lung Leg were a Scottish indie band, formed in 1994 and disbanded in 1999. They were influenced by Post Punk, C86, riot grrrl and the Fire Engines. History Lung Leg formed in 1994 in Glasgow, Scotland, with a lineup of McKeown ("Jane Egypt" ...

* Mothlite *

NoMeansNo Nomeansno (sometimes stylized as NoMeansNo or spelled No Means No) was a Canadian punk rock band formed in Victoria, British Columbia and later relocated to Vancouver. They issued 11 albums, including a collaborative album with Jello Biafra, a ...

The Owl Service ''The Owl Service'' is a low fantasy novel for young adults by Alan Garner, published by Collins in 1967. Set in modern Wales, it is an adaptation of the story of the Welsh mythology, mythical Welsh woman Blodeuwedd, an "expression of the myt ...

* The Paper Chase * P.W. Long *

Racebannon Racebannon was an American noise punk band from Bloomington, Indiana. The band, formed in September 1996, have cited influence ranging from Antioch Arrow to the Melvins, and have also stated that they're heavily influenced by hardcore, hip-hop, ...

* Rex *

Therapy? Therapy? are a Northern Irish rock band from Larne, formed in 1989 by guitarist-vocalist Andy Cairns and drummer-vocalist Fyfe Ewing. Therapy? recorded their first demo with Cairns filling in on bass guitar. To complete the lineup, the band r ...

The Sorts The Sorts are a primarily instrumental post-rock band based in Washington, D.C., and formed in 1994 by Josh LaRue (guitar, vocals), Stuart Fletcher (bass) and Chris Farrall (drums). LaRue, Fletcher and Farrall comprised the band's core, appearing ...

*Slow Loris * The Smoothies *

Sweep the Leg Johnny Sweep the Leg Johnny was an American experimental rock band formed in 1996. The name is a reference to a line in the film ''The Karate Kid''.Crain, Zac (1999)Sweep the Leg Johnny ''Dallas Observer'', September 16, 1999. Retrieved January 26, 2014 ...

* Tartufi * Ten Grand *

Todd Todd or Todds may refer to: Places ;Australia: * Todd River, an ephemeral river ;United States: * Todd Valley, California, also known as Todd, an unincorporated community * Todd, Missouri, a ghost town * Todd, North Carolina, an unincorporated ...

* Trencher * Ui *

William Elliott Whitmore William Elliott Whitmore (born May 11, 1978) is an American blues, country, folk singer and musician. He plays roots-folk music that is often inspired by his life on his family farm in the hills of southeastern Iowa. Early life and education W ...

Southern imprints

Black Diamond

Hella ''Hella'' is an American slang term that originated in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is used as an intensifying adverb such as in "hella bad" or "hella good" and was eventually added to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' in 2002. It is possibl ...

Goon Moon Goon Moon is an American rock band composed of Jeordie White (also known as Twiggy Ramirez) and Chris Goss. The band released the mini-LP ''I Got a Brand New Egg Layin' Machine'' in 2005 and have since recorded a full-length album, ''Licker's Las ...

* P.W. Long *

Oxbow __NOTOC__ An oxbow is a U-shaped metal pole (or larger wooden frame) that fits the underside and the sides of the neck of an ox or bullock. A bow pin holds it in place. The term " oxbow" is widely used to refer to a U-shaped meander in a rive ...

Unsane ''Unsane'' is a 2018 American psychological horror film directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Jonathan Bernstein and James Greer. The film stars Claire Foy, Joshua Leonard, Jay Pharoah, Matt Damon, Juno Temple, Aimee Mullins, and Amy I ...

Latitudes

Truth Cult

* Action Beat * Pornbow *

Japanther Japanther was an American punk band established by Matt Reilly and Ian Vanek, then students at Pratt Institute. Japanther was featured in the 2006 Whitney Biennial and the 2011 Venice Biennale, and collaborated with a diverse pool of artists su ...

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control American independent record labels British independent record labels