Hanson Records
Encyclopedia
Hanson Records is an American independent record label
founded in Brighton, Michigan
and now based in Oberlin, Ohio
. It is operated by the musician Aaron Dilloway
, formerly of the band Wolf Eyes
.
(EP) by Dilloway's band Galen, in 1994. Eventually moving from Brighton, Michigan
to Ann Arbor, Michigan
, in 1997 it released the first Wolf Eyes recording, a self-titled cassette. It has since released various other Wolf Eyes recordings as well as albums by Kevin Drumm
, Smegma
, Hive Mind, Nautical Almanac
, Andrew Wilkes-Krier, Hair Police
and, following a move to its current base in Oberlin, Ohio
, Emeralds
and Skin Graft. While releasing music on a variety of formats, including CD-R
and LP
, the majority of its releases are on cassette, and as such the label is often associated with cassette culture
. Recordings for Hanson have low production costs and utilise lo-fi
recording techniques, including recording live straight to cassette.
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
founded in Brighton, Michigan
Brighton, Michigan
Brighton is a principal satellite city of Metro Detroit located in the southeast portion of Livingston County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,444. Brighton forms part of the South Lyon-Howell-Brighton Urban Area...
and now based in Oberlin, Ohio
Oberlin, Ohio
Oberlin is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States, to the south and west of Cleveland. Oberlin is perhaps best known for being the home of Oberlin College, a liberal arts college and music conservatory with approximately 3,000 students...
. It is operated by the musician Aaron Dilloway
Aaron Dilloway
-Biography:He has been releasing and recording music since the age of 16. He was a member of experimental bands Couch, Galen and Universal Indians. He is a former guitarist and tape manipulator for the experimental band Wolf Eyes, which he left in 2005 to live most of that year in Kathmandu, Nepal...
, formerly of the band Wolf Eyes
Wolf Eyes
Wolf Eyes is a post-industrial/noise band from Detroit, Michigan, United States.-History:Wolf Eyes began as a solo project of former Nautical Almanac member Nate Young, with Aaron Dilloway joining in 1998, and John Olson in 2000...
.
History
The label's first release was a 7-inch extended playExtended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
(EP) by Dilloway's band Galen, in 1994. Eventually moving from Brighton, Michigan
Brighton, Michigan
Brighton is a principal satellite city of Metro Detroit located in the southeast portion of Livingston County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,444. Brighton forms part of the South Lyon-Howell-Brighton Urban Area...
to Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
, in 1997 it released the first Wolf Eyes recording, a self-titled cassette. It has since released various other Wolf Eyes recordings as well as albums by Kevin Drumm
Kevin Drumm
-Biography:Emerging from the city's improvised music scene, in the 1990s he became one of the world's pre-eminent prepared guitar players. Since then his work has expanded to include electroacoustic compositions and live electronic music made with laptop computers and analog modular synthesizers...
, Smegma
Smegma (band)
Smegma is an American experimental noise group formed in Pasadena, California in 1973 and currently based in Portland, Oregon. Originally part of the Los Angeles Free Music Society movement of the 1970s, Smegma is one of the few music collectives of that era still active today. Author Richard...
, Hive Mind, Nautical Almanac
Nautical Almanac (band)
Nautical Almanac are a noise music group based out of Baltimore Maryland with a rotating membership based around Carly Ptak and Twig Harper. -History:...
, Andrew Wilkes-Krier, Hair Police
Hair Police
Hair Police is an American psychedelic noise band based out of Lexington, Kentucky formed in 2001. They have released records through labels such as Troubleman Unlimited, Hanson Records, Gods of Tundra, Freedom From, and Hospital Productions...
and, following a move to its current base in Oberlin, Ohio
Oberlin, Ohio
Oberlin is a city in Lorain County, Ohio, United States, to the south and west of Cleveland. Oberlin is perhaps best known for being the home of Oberlin College, a liberal arts college and music conservatory with approximately 3,000 students...
, Emeralds
Emeralds (band)
Emeralds is an ambient/drone/electronic music trio currently based in Cleveland, Ohio and Portland, Oregon, United States.-History:John Elliott, Mark McGuire and Steve Hauschildt began playing music together under the name Fancelions in 2005 in Cleveland's western suburbs of Bay Village and Westlake...
and Skin Graft. While releasing music on a variety of formats, including CD-R
CD-R
A CD-R is a variation of the Compact Disc invented by Philips and Sony. CD-R is a Write Once Read Many optical medium, though the whole disk does not have to be entirely written in the same session....
and LP
LP album
The LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
, the majority of its releases are on cassette, and as such the label is often associated with cassette culture
Cassette culture
Cassette culture, or the cassette underground , refers to the practices surrounding amateur production and distribution of recorded music that emerged in the late 1970s via home-made audio cassettes...
. Recordings for Hanson have low production costs and utilise lo-fi
Low fidelity
Low fidelity or lo-fi describes a sound recording which contains technical flaws such as distortion, hum, or background noise, or limited frequency response...
recording techniques, including recording live straight to cassette.
Partial Catalog
| Year | Cat No. | Artist | Title | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | HN001 | Galen | The Heroin Bench | 7" EP |
| 1996 | HN013 | Flossie And The Unicorns | Flossie And The Unicorns | 12" |
| HN014 | Nautical Almanac Nautical Almanac (band) Nautical Almanac are a noise music group based out of Baltimore Maryland with a rotating membership based around Carly Ptak and Twig Harper. -History:... |
Nautical Almanac | LP | |
| HN015 | Ron Of Japan | Ron Of Japan | Single-Sided 7" | |
| 1997 | HN016 | Galen | Galen | Cassette, LP |
| 1996 | HN017 | Isis and Werewolves | Isis and Werewolves | Lathe 5", CD-R |
| HN018 | The Galen / Via Hercules | The Galen Via Hercules | Cassette | |
| HN019 | The Hercules | The Hercules | Cassette | |
| HN020 | Flossie And The Unicorns | Cassingle | Cassette | |
| 1997 | HN023 | The Beast People | The Beast People | Cassette |
| HN024 | The Minisystems | Demo | Single-Sided Cassette, | |
| 1998 | HN035 | Mr. Velocity Hopkins | Untitled | Cassette |
| 1997 | HN039 | T. Harper / C. Ptak | Banjo With Ping Pong Electronics | Single-Sided Lathe 5" |
| HN043 | Wolf Eyes Wolf Eyes Wolf Eyes is a post-industrial/noise band from Detroit, Michigan, United States.-History:Wolf Eyes began as a solo project of former Nautical Almanac member Nate Young, with Aaron Dilloway joining in 1998, and John Olson in 2000... |
Wolf Eyes | Cassette | |