The Phoenix metropolitan area might just be the next music capital added to the map. Especially considering the number of Arizona labels out there continually working to push Arizona artists to the forefront. James Fella of Gilgongo Records and Ryan Avery of Related Records are two such individuals always moving toward a more musical future for our state. They might still need day jobs, but these two record executives are helping to define the sound of our city. Over the past year both labels released several new works, hosted more shows than we could keep track of, and these execs still had time to work on their personal musical endeavors.
Through Gilgongo Records, Fella offered re-issues or releases from several Arizona bands, including Cherie Cherie, Pigeon Religion, Vial of Sound, Mallevs, and others. And, as an added bonus, he even put together a 2014 recap of his projects on Mixcloud for your listening pleasure (here). There are even a few offerings on the mix from 2015 recordings he plans on releasing. Next year you can expect to hear more from Soft Shoulder, Detached Objects, Butter Knifes, as well as some out-of-state acts like Pedestrian Deposit and Silver Shadows, all on the Gilgongo label. This past December marked the 10 year anniversary of Gilgongo Records. We’re excited to see what the next decade brings.
Over at Related Records, Ryan Avery released a host of records from some of the Valley’s more unusual artists like Serene Dominic, Dinosaur Love, Space Alien Donald, and Avery’s own band, Drunk and Horny amongst others. Fathers Day, another Avery musical endeavor, also released a compiliation to commemorate their first ten years that features Soft Shoulder, one of James Fella’s personal musical projects. Related Records is a bit younger than Gilgongo, 2014 marking its second year of operation, but the label shows tremendous promise when it comes to helping the area’s underrepresented artists. In 2015, Related Records plans on releasing a new album from Tucson’s Human Behavior as well as a project known as the “Dick Compilation”.
If you’re interested in what’s going on with local music, you better have Gilgongo Records and Related Records on your radar.
