Teen Beat is an American

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 ...

, originally based in

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county is ...

, now based in

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As part of the Boston metropolitan area, the cities population of the 2020 U.S. census was 118,403, making it the fourth most populous city in the state, behind Boston, ...

. It was founded by Mark Robinson (of

Unrest Unrest, also called disaffection, is a sociological phenomenon, including: * Civil unrest * Civil disorder * Domestic terrorism * Industrial unrest * Labor unrest * Rebellion * Riot * Strike action * State of emergency Notable historical instance ...

) in 1984 at Wakefield High School, along with Phil Krauth (of Unrest), Andrew Beaujon (of

Eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

), Tim Moran (of Unrest), and Ian Zack (Thirsty Boys).

History

In 1984, when Mark Robinson was in high school, he started the label as a kind of lending library. Only one copy of each album existed and his classmates could borrow one for a few days. The albums were mostly unedited rehearsals of Robinson's band

. They were not numbered but lettered (A, B, C, etc.). Only one of these early albums is known to still exist: Unrest's ''This Side, Numskull''; catalogue number "J" (the 10th TeenBeat release); dated December 14, 1984. The first public release was a compilation cassette called ''Extremism In the Defense of Liberty is No Vice'' on February 23, 1985. This was catalog number "TeenBeat 1". This audiocassette was dubbed into multiple copies by Andrew (Riley) Beaujon and Mark Robinson, by hooking up two separate cassette machines. Robinson's original intention was to release music from the local area, inspired by

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 Idle ...

. Before the label had any distribution deal Robinson would leave a few cassettes at records stores when he visited different cities.

Style

As with its influence

Factory Records Factory Records was a Manchester-based British independent record label founded in 1978 by Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus. The label featured several important acts on its roster, including Joy Division, New Order, A Certain Ratio, the Durutt ...

, Teen Beat prominently numbered its releases, with some releases known only by catalog number (e.g., the ''TEENBEAT 100'' compilation, 1993); numbers have also been assigned to non-musical items, including

T-shirt A T-shirt (also spelled tee shirt), or tee, is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a ''crew neck'', which lacks a collar. T-shirts are general ...

coffee mugs A mug is a type of cup typically used for drinking hot drinks, such as coffee, hot chocolate, or tea. Mugs usually have handles and hold a larger amount of fluid than other types of cup. Typically, a mug holds approximately of liquid. A mug is ...

, events, its offices, and

intern An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and gover ...

List of Teen-Beat bands

Teen Beat (or "Teen-Beat" or "Teenbeat") has been home to a number of prominent

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

bands, including

, +/-, Versus,

Gastr del Sol Gastr del Sol (derived from a combination of the name of a race horse (Gato del Sol) and David Grubbs' previous band Bastro) was an American, Chicago-based band, consisting for most of their career, of David Grubbs and Jim O'Rourke. Between 19 ...

Aden Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...

True Love Always True Love Always is an American pop band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia in 1995, with a mission to play only love songs. The band was influenced by João Gilberto, Dionne Warwick, and Earth, Wind & Fire. The band has been associated with ...

and a large number of other bands and side projects. Along with

, TeenBeat was an important early independent label; while Dischord focused on punk and hardcore, TeenBeat's bands were more typically guitar-based "indie-pop". Both labels almost exclusively work with bands from the

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

area. *

Air Miami Air Miami was an American indie rock band from Washington, D.C. that was active from 1994 to 1996. The band was formed by Mark Robinson and Bridget Cross, both former members of Unrest, a few months later they became a quartet with the additio ...

Autoclave An autoclave is a machine used to carry out industrial and scientific processes requiring elevated temperature and pressure in relation to ambient pressure and/or temperature. Autoclaves are used before surgical procedures to perform sterilizat ...

* The Ballet *

Bastro Bastro was an American post-hardcore band which was active in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The band's main line-up consisted of David Grubbs on guitar, Clark Johnson on bass guitar, and John McEntire on drums. The band also experimented with ...

* Andrew Beaujon * Bells Of * Blast Off Country Style *

Bloodthirsty Butchers Bloodthirsty Butchers was a long-running indie rock and punk rock band from Sapporo, Hokkaidō, Japan. Although little-known in the West, they have contributed to two compilations on the Olympia, Washington based Yoyo label. The band has also re ...

* Mark Borthwick/hollAnd * Bossanova *

Bratmobile Bratmobile was an American punk band from Olympia, Washington, active from 1991 to 2003, and known for being one of the first-generation "riot grrrl" bands. The band was influenced by several eclectic musical styles, including elements of pop, ...

* Bridget/Kathi/Doug *

Cath Carroll Cath Carroll (born 25 August 1960)Larkin, Colin (1997) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Eighties Music'', Virgin Books, , pp. 96–7 is a British musician and music journalist. Career Carroll was born in Chipping Sodbury, England, but raised in Swa ...

* Justin Chearno * Tha Cheeky Bastid *

Circus Lupus Circus Lupus was a post-hardcore band based in the area of Washington, D.C. The band originally formed in Madison, Wisconsin, where one-time Ignition and Soul Side bassist Chris Thomson met guitarist Chris Hamley and drummer Arika Casebolt while ...

* Clarence *

Cobalt Cobalt is a chemical element with the symbol Co and atomic number 27. As with nickel, cobalt is found in the Earth's crust only in a chemically combined form, save for small deposits found in alloys of natural meteoric iron. The free element, pr ...

* Jonny Cohen * Containe * Cotton Candy *

Crispy Ambulance Crispy Ambulance are an English post-punk band, formed in Manchester in late-1977 by Keith Darbyshire (bass), Robert Davenport (guitar), Alan Hempsall (vocals), and Gary Madeley (drums).Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', ...

* Currituck Co. * Draw the Kitten *

Dustdevils The Dustdevils (sometimes styled as DustDevils, Dust Devils, or DUSTdevils) were a noise rock band which was based in New York City for most of its history. It was active from the 1980s to the mid 1990s, and was among the first artists to be signed ...

* DVS *

The Feminine Complex The Feminine Complex were an all-female American garage rock band in the 1960s. The band formed while the girls were attending Maplewood High School (Tennessee) in Nashville. They released only one album, '' Livin' Love'', in 1969. The album ha ...

* Flin Flon * Flowers of Discipline * Flying Saucer * The Fontaine Toups/TFT * Fred & Ginger *

Gene Ween Aaron Freeman (born March 17, 1970), better known by his stage name Gene Ween, is an American singer, guitarist and a founding member of the experimental alternative rock group Ween. Freeman, along with childhood friend Dean Ween (Mickey Melch ...

* The Gollipopps *

Grenadine Grenadine is a commonly used nonalcoholic bar syrup characterized by its deep red color. It is a popular cocktail ingredient renowned for its flavor as well as its ability to give a reddish or pink tint to mixed drinks. Grenadine is traditiona ...

* Helter Skillet * Kevin Hewick * hollAnd * horse ing two=HIT * Hot Pursuit *

In Camera ''In camera'' (; Latin: "in a chamber"). is a legal term that means ''in private''. The same meaning is sometimes expressed in the English equivalent: ''in chambers''. Generally, ''in-camera'' describes court cases, parts of it, or process wh ...

* In Interview * Jungle George & The Plague * The Krokodiloes * K-Stars * Phil Krauth * The Last Wave * Latin Hustle * The Long Goodbye * Los Marauders * Loudest Boom Bah Yea * Lu *

Barbara Manning Barbara Manning (born December 12, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist whose albums blend elements of rock, folk, pop and proto-punk. She's also known for her cover versions of often obscure pop songs. In addition to an acclaimed ...

* Mark E. Superstar * Maybe It's Reno * Mirah & Ginger * MMM's Live Archive * The Naysayer * Nethers * New Carrollton *

No Trend ''No Trend'' was an American noise rock and hardcore punk group from Ashton, Maryland, formed in 1982. They were considered anti-hardcore, with the members, especially guitarist and lyricist Frank Price, vehement about their abhorrence towards th ...

* Olympic Death Squad * The Pacific Ocean * Panax * +/- * Pocket Rockets * The Positions * Que Verde * Rhonda Harris * Rive Gauche * Mark Robinson * Romania *

The Rondelles The Rondelles were an American indie pop band, originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico. Their first album ''Fiction Romance Fast Machines'', was released in 1998 by Sonic Youth drummer Steve Shelley's Smells Like Records. History The Rondelles th ...

* The Ropers * Scaley Andrew * Robert Schipul/Ascension * The Screamer * S.C.U.D. * Section 25 * Sexual Milkshake * Sharky Favorite * Tracy Shedd * Sisterhood of Convoluted Thinkers * Sprites *

Stereolab Stereolab are an Anglo- French avant-pop band formed in London in 1990. Led by the songwriting team of Tim Gane and Lætitia Sadier, the group's music combines influences from krautrock, lounge and 1960s pop music, often incorporating a repetit ...

Stick Insect The Phasmatodea (also known as Phasmida, Phasmatoptera or Spectra) are an order of insects whose members are variously known as stick insects, stick-bugs, walking sticks, stick animals, or bug sticks. They are also occasionally referred to as ...

* The Still * Subject to Change * Superconductor * Synthetic Socks * Juliet Swango * Teenage Gang Debs * Tel Aviv * Thirsty Boys *

* The Tube Bar *

Tuscadero Tuscadero was an American indie rock band from Washington, D.C., one of the most prominent on the TeenBeat Records roster. Biography Melissa Farris and Margaret McCartney met while working at the Zig Zag Cafe in Washington, D.C. They founded T ...

* Uncle Wiggly *

Velocity Girl Velocity Girl was an American indie rock band formed in 1989 in College Park, Maryland, and active in the Washington, D.C., area. The band released three albums before splitting up in 1996. History The band started as the duo of Kelly Riles ...

* Versus * Viva Satellite! * Volumia * Vomit Launch * Wall Drug * Whysall Lane * William & Vivian * Butch Willis * Naomi Wolff * Jeff & Robert Zitofsky

References

External links

TeenBeat Records
{{DEFAULTSORT:Teenbeat Records Record labels established in 1984 American independent record labels Indie rock record labels 1984 establishments in Virginia

History

Style

List of Teen-Beat bands

See also

References

External links