Initial Records
Encyclopedia
Initial Records was an iconic Louisville based independent record label
during the Nineties and early part of the new millennium. Initial released records from hardcore punk to indie rock over its 12-year span. Initial was well known for releasing genre defining records from Falling Forward
, Boysetsfire
and Ink & Dagger, and creating the annual weekend long music festival, Krazy Fest
.
Initial was founded in 1992 in a Dunkin' Donuts
in suburban Detroit by three high school friends, Dennis Hepinstall, Carolyn Smith and Andy Rich. That evening the three banded together over coffee and doughnuts to re-release the 7” single from local Detroit based hardcore heroes Pittbull.
Carolyn’s interest waned early in the project after her long standing relationship with Dennis ended and she bowed out. Dennis would stick around for another few years while Andy attended the Haworth College of Business at Western Michigan University
and commuted back to suburbia to work on the label on weekends. By 1995 Dennis had enough and ended his tenure with the label as well. After graduating college with a bachelor of business administration in 1996 Andy relocated to Louisville, KY and took the still fledgling label with him. Over the next few years Initial would blossom into one of independent music’s most well known labels. The April 1998 issue of Playboy
magazine declared Initial one of the country’s ten hottest record labels alongside other notable labels such as P-Diddy owned Bad Boy Entertainment, DE based Jade Tree Records
and legendary CA punk label Epitaph Records
. The May 1998 issue of Alternative Press Magazine named Initial as one of "Ten independent labels that have helped to change not only the way hardcore sounds, but the way it does business."
Initial’s last release to date was a posthumous CD from Louisville hardcore legends By The Grace Of God in 2004. It was a benefit to help pay medical bills for local Louisville scenester Adele Collins. The band also played a well attended reunion show in conjunction with the release to help raise funds for Adele, who suffers from a rare ocular disease called Pseudotumor Cerebri.
Longtime Initial Records label chief Andy Rich now resides in Las Vegas
where he works for Caesars Entertainment
running several of their Poker Rooms.
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:...
during the Nineties and early part of the new millennium. Initial released records from hardcore punk to indie rock over its 12-year span. Initial was well known for releasing genre defining records from Falling Forward
Falling Forward
Falling Forward is the audio companion to Sandi Patty`s autobiographical book of the same name presenting a collection of the singer's Christian pop songs.-Track listings:# "Made Me Glad"# "Sing to the King"# "Falling Forward"...
, Boysetsfire
Boysetsfire
Boysetsfire is a post-hardcore band from Newark, Delaware and West Chester, Pennsylvania that formed in October 1994. Boysetsfire is composed of guitarists Chad Istvan and Josh Latshaw, drummer Matt Krupanski, and vocalist Nathan Gray. The band is currently auditioning for a new...
and Ink & Dagger, and creating the annual weekend long music festival, Krazy Fest
Krazy Fest
Krazy Fest was the brain child of Initial Records President Andy Rich. It was a weekend long music and lifestyle festival that ran annually for six years from 1998 through 2003...
.
Initial was founded in 1992 in a Dunkin' Donuts
Dunkin' Donuts
Dunkin' Donuts is an international doughnut and coffee retailer founded in 1950 by William Rosenberg in Quincy, Massachusetts; it is now headquartered in Canton...
in suburban Detroit by three high school friends, Dennis Hepinstall, Carolyn Smith and Andy Rich. That evening the three banded together over coffee and doughnuts to re-release the 7” single from local Detroit based hardcore heroes Pittbull.
Carolyn’s interest waned early in the project after her long standing relationship with Dennis ended and she bowed out. Dennis would stick around for another few years while Andy attended the Haworth College of Business at Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University
Western Michigan University is a public university located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The university was established in 1903 by Dwight B. Waldo, and as of the Fall 2010 semester, its enrollment is 25,045....
and commuted back to suburbia to work on the label on weekends. By 1995 Dennis had enough and ended his tenure with the label as well. After graduating college with a bachelor of business administration in 1996 Andy relocated to Louisville, KY and took the still fledgling label with him. Over the next few years Initial would blossom into one of independent music’s most well known labels. The April 1998 issue of Playboy
Playboy
Playboy is an American men's magazine that features photographs of nude women as well as journalism and fiction. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, and funded in part by a $1,000 loan from Hefner's mother. The magazine has grown into Playboy Enterprises, Inc., with...
magazine declared Initial one of the country’s ten hottest record labels alongside other notable labels such as P-Diddy owned Bad Boy Entertainment, DE based Jade Tree Records
Jade Tree Records
Jade Tree International, Inc. was an independent record label formed by Darren Walters and Tim Owen in August 1991, out of Wilmington, Delaware....
and legendary CA punk label Epitaph Records
Epitaph Records
Epitaph Records is a Hollywood, California based independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. The label was originally "just a logo and a P.O. box" created in the 1980s for the purpose of selling Bad Religion records, but has evolved into a large independent record...
. The May 1998 issue of Alternative Press Magazine named Initial as one of "Ten independent labels that have helped to change not only the way hardcore sounds, but the way it does business."
Initial’s last release to date was a posthumous CD from Louisville hardcore legends By The Grace Of God in 2004. It was a benefit to help pay medical bills for local Louisville scenester Adele Collins. The band also played a well attended reunion show in conjunction with the release to help raise funds for Adele, who suffers from a rare ocular disease called Pseudotumor Cerebri.
Longtime Initial Records label chief Andy Rich now resides in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
where he works for Caesars Entertainment
Caesars Entertainment
Caesars Entertainment may refer to:* Caesars Entertainment, Inc., the now defunct company that was Park Place Entertainment, Bally's, and formerly the gambling arm of Hilton Hotels, and purchased by Harrah's Entertainment...
running several of their Poker Rooms.
Bands
- Black Cross
- Black Widows
- Blood Red
- BoysetsfireBoysetsfireBoysetsfire is a post-hardcore band from Newark, Delaware and West Chester, Pennsylvania that formed in October 1994. Boysetsfire is composed of guitarists Chad Istvan and Josh Latshaw, drummer Matt Krupanski, and vocalist Nathan Gray. The band is currently auditioning for a new...
- CriteriaCriteria (band)Criteria is an indie rock band from Omaha, Nebraska, formed in 2003 when ex-Cursive founding member Steve Pedersen returned to his hometown after graduating from the Duke University School of Law. He spent six months in a friend's basement where he wrote all ten songs for his new project's debut...
- DespairDespair (band)Despair was a technical thrash metal band from Germany, featuring multi-instrumentalist Waldemar Sorychta. They released their first album "History of Hate" in 1988 with the following line-up:* Waldemar Sorychta – guitar, vocals* Robert Kampf – vocals...
- ElliottElliott (band)Elliot is a rock band from the United States. They have released six albums and several singles in their eight-year existence, and are signed to Ten City Music. The band was created in Bend, Oregon....
- The Enkindels
- Falling ForwardFalling ForwardFalling Forward is the audio companion to Sandi Patty`s autobiographical book of the same name presenting a collection of the singer's Christian pop songs.-Track listings:# "Made Me Glad"# "Sing to the King"# "Falling Forward"...
- Guilt
- Harkonen
- Helicopter Helicopter
- Ink & Dagger
- The Jazz June
- LordsLords- Places :*Lord's Cricket Ground, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone County Cricket Club.- Politics :*House of Lords, upper house of the British parliament*Lords Spiritual, clergymen of the House of Lords...
- Blue Sky Mile
- The MovielifeThe MovielifeThe Movielife was a Long Island Melodic hardcore band, composed of vocalist Vinnie Caruana, bassist Phil Navetta, guitarist Brandon Reilly, drummer Evan Baken, and guitarist Alex Amiruddin, until 2001 when Alex Amiruddin left and was replaced by Dan Navetta....
- Pittbull
- Planes Mistaken for StarsPlanes Mistaken for StarsPlanes Mistaken for Stars was a emocore band formed in Peoria, Illinois in 1997. They released music on Deep Elm Records, Dim Mak Records, No Idea Records and Abacus Recordings.-History:...
- The ReputationThe ReputationThe Reputation were an indie rock band from Chicago, Illinois. The band was fronted by former Sarge singer-songwriter Elizabeth Elmore, with other positions filled by various members....
- RicochetRicochetA ricochet is a rebound, bounce or skip off a surface, particularly in the case of a projectile. The possibility of ricochet is one of the reasons for the common firearms safety rule "Never shoot at a flat, hard surface."-Variables:...
- RoyRoy (band)Roy was an American rock band that formed in 2002. The folk rock group was composed of drummer Dave Verellen and guitarist Brian Cook from the then recently disbanded mathcore group Botch...
- Peter SearcyPeter SearcyPeter Searcy is a musician from Louisville, Kentucky.Searcy was the frontman of the Louisville punk group Squirrel Bait in the 1980s. After Squirrel Bait disbanded, Searcy formed a funk-rock group called Fanci Pantz. Fanci Pantz garnered a lot of praise and major label attention, but they broke...
- Shipping News
- Silent Majority
- Slugfest
- Ultimate FakebookUltimate Fakebook (band)Ultimate Fakebook was a 3-piece power pop band from Manhattan, KS. They released three full-length albums—Electric Kissing Parties , This Will Be Laughing Week , and Open up and Say Awesome...
- The White OctaveThe White OctaveThe White Octave was a rock band from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. They released two full-length albums and appeared on several compilations before finally breaking up. The founding member, Steve Pedersen went back to his hometown of Omaha, Nebraska to form the band Criteria...