Misra Records
Encyclopedia
Misra Records is an independent record label run out of Durham, North Carolina with branch offices in Washington D.C., Seattle, Washington, and Los Angeles, California.
Founded in 1999, Misra Records is home to landmark releases by Phosphorescent, Shearwater
, Destroyer
, Summer Hymns
, Centro-matic
, Jenny Toomey
, Great Lake Swimmers
, Evangelicals, Palomar
, Hallelujah the Hills
, Sleeping States
, Southeast Engine
, and many more. Current Dead Oceans
Manager Phil Waldorf
sat at Misra’s helm from its founding until late 2006.
Michael Bracy, activist and co-founder of Future of Music Coalition
, launched the label, along with brother Timothy Bracy, writer and front-man of The Mendoza Line, and D.C.-based attorney and artist advocate Paige Conner Totaro. Photographer Nicholas Bischoff and musician, remixer, and music branding consultant Richard Jankovich have since joined the founding partners.
Cory Brown, owner of Absolutely Kosher, oversaw operations from 2007-2010. Brown ran Misra alongside Kosher and released many of the finest titles during this time span.
Leo DeLuca, founder of Misra/Absolutely Kosher imprint Moon Jaw Records and drummer for Southeast Engine, has now assumed management and will lead Misra into the new decade. Along with the aforementioned partners, DeLuca has compiled a team including quiet bean counter Nancy Bracy, writer and Bird of Youth accordionist Elizabeth Nelson Bracy, web designer and Bears front-man Charlie McArthur, and filmmaker Thomas R. Britt.
Founded in 1999, Misra Records is home to landmark releases by Phosphorescent, Shearwater
Shearwater
Shearwaters are medium-sized long-winged seabirds. There are more than 30 species of shearwaters, a few larger ones in the genus Calonectris and many smaller species in the genus Puffinus...
, Destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
, Summer Hymns
Summer Hymns
Summer Hymns is a band based in Athens, Georgia.Summer Hymns was formed in 1997 by singer/guitarist Zachary Gresham and drummer Philip Brown, both formerly of mid-90's Athens favorites, Joe Christmas...
, Centro-matic
Centro-Matic
Centro-Matic is an alternative country band based in Denton, Texas. It started in 1995 as a side-project for Will Johnson. It released a few singles that year and grew into a full-fledged group in 1997. The initial 60 songs recorded in a Millstadt, Illinois studio supplied the material for the...
, Jenny Toomey
Jenny Toomey
Jenny Toomey is an American indie rock musician and arts activist from Chevy Chase, Maryland, and later, Washington, D.C. She was a member of the bands Geek, Tsunami, Liquorice, Grenadine, So Low and Choke, among others, and has also recorded under her own name...
, Great Lake Swimmers
Great Lake Swimmers
Great Lake Swimmers is a Canadian band built around the melodic folk rock songs of singer-songwriter Tony Dekker. Originally from Wainfleet, Ontario, the band is currently based in Toronto....
, Evangelicals, Palomar
Palomar (band)
Palomar is an indie rock band out of Brooklyn, New York. The band originally formed in 1998; however, Rachel Warren is the only original member still in the band. Palomar has completed national U.S. tours every year since 2003, including a tour shared with nationally renowned indie band Mates of...
, Hallelujah the Hills
Hallelujah the Hills
Hallelujah the Hills is an independent rock band from Boston, Massachusetts. Their current line-up consists of Ryan Walsh, David Bentley, Dave Bryson, Brian Rutledge, and Nicholas Ward...
, Sleeping States
Sleeping States
Sleeping States is a musical solo project of British musician Markland Starkie .Started in 2004 in London, Sleeping States falls predominantly in the songwriter genre...
, Southeast Engine
Southeast Engine
Southeast Engine is an indie-folk-rock band from Athens, Ohio. With the help of The Wrens, the band signed with Misra Records in 2007 and released their first internationally distributed album, "A Wheel Within A Wheel," later that year...
, and many more. Current Dead Oceans
Dead Oceans
Dead Oceans is an independent record label based jointly in Bloomington, Indiana and Austin, Texas. The label has a small, but powerful roster of well-known acts including Akron/Family, John Vanderslice, Califone, Phosphorescent, Bishop Allen, Casey Dienel's band White Hinterland, Bowerbirds, and...
Manager Phil Waldorf
Phil Waldorf
- Biography :Waldorf began his music industry career as a student at the University of Georgia, where he was music director of WUOG, the student radio station...
sat at Misra’s helm from its founding until late 2006.
Michael Bracy, activist and co-founder of Future of Music Coalition
Future of Music Coalition
Future of Music Coalition is a U.S. 501 national non-profit organization specializing in education, research and advocacy for musicians with a focus on issues at the intersection of music technology, policy and law.- Background :...
, launched the label, along with brother Timothy Bracy, writer and front-man of The Mendoza Line, and D.C.-based attorney and artist advocate Paige Conner Totaro. Photographer Nicholas Bischoff and musician, remixer, and music branding consultant Richard Jankovich have since joined the founding partners.
Cory Brown, owner of Absolutely Kosher, oversaw operations from 2007-2010. Brown ran Misra alongside Kosher and released many of the finest titles during this time span.
Leo DeLuca, founder of Misra/Absolutely Kosher imprint Moon Jaw Records and drummer for Southeast Engine, has now assumed management and will lead Misra into the new decade. Along with the aforementioned partners, DeLuca has compiled a team including quiet bean counter Nancy Bracy, writer and Bird of Youth accordionist Elizabeth Nelson Bracy, web designer and Bears front-man Charlie McArthur, and filmmaker Thomas R. Britt.
Artists
- BabliconBabliconBablicon was an Elephant 6-related free-jazz band consisting of members of Neutral Milk Hotel and The Gerbils.The band was formed in 1996 when Dave McDonnell , Jeremy Barnes , and Griffin Rodriguez teamed up to write and improvise music...
- The Bruces
- Centro-maticCentro-MaticCentro-Matic is an alternative country band based in Denton, Texas. It started in 1995 as a side-project for Will Johnson. It released a few singles that year and grew into a full-fledged group in 1997. The initial 60 songs recorded in a Millstadt, Illinois studio supplied the material for the...
- DestroyerDestroyer (band)Destroyer is a Canadian indie pop band fronted by singer-songwriter Dan Bejar.- Overview :Daniel Bejar is an independent pop singer-songwriter from Vancouver who formed Destroyer in 1995. He self-produced his first album, the lo-fi We'll Build Them a Golden Bridge, which was recorded at his in...
- EvangelicalsEvangelicals (band)Evangelicals are an indie rock band from Norman, Oklahoma. Currently there are four members of the group: Josh Jones , Kyle Davis , Austin Stephens and Todd Jackson . Their music is renowned for its energy and unabashed enthusiasm...
- Flotation Toy WarningFlotation Toy WarningFlotation Toy Warning is a band from London, UK, formed in 2001. Their sound has been described as a cross between space rock and chamber pop, with musical similarities to bands such as Mercury Rev, The Flaming Lips, Grandaddy, Sparklehorse, The Unicorns, and Air. The band claims to consist of...
- Great Lake SwimmersGreat Lake SwimmersGreat Lake Swimmers is a Canadian band built around the melodic folk rock songs of singer-songwriter Tony Dekker. Originally from Wainfleet, Ontario, the band is currently based in Toronto....
- Hallelujah the HillsHallelujah the HillsHallelujah the Hills is an independent rock band from Boston, Massachusetts. Their current line-up consists of Ryan Walsh, David Bentley, Dave Bryson, Brian Rutledge, and Nicholas Ward...
- Will JohnsonWill Johnson (musician)Will Johnson is the leader of Texas indie rock band Centro-matic. He also fronts South San Gabriel and releases albums and tours as a solo artist. He was also a founding member of the Undertow Orchestra and Baboon and joined Monsters of Folk in 2010....
- Chris Lee
- The Low LowsThe Low Lows (band)The Low Lows is an American Americana musical band formed in Athens, Georgia in 2005, originally composed of lead vocalist and guitarist Mangham Parker , organist Daniel Rickard, and drummer Jeremy Wheatley, all of whom are former members of the band Parker and Lily...
- Marshmallow CoastMarshmallow CoastMarshmallow Coast is an indie pop band associated with the Elephant Six Collective.-Background:The band began as a solo recording project of singer/songwriter Andy Gonzales, who first recorded as Marshmallow Coast in 1996 with a self-released cassette, which featured contributions from Joel...
- The Mendoza LineThe Mendoza Line (band)The Mendoza Line were a rock and roll band whose members began playing together while in college in the mid-1990s in Athens, Georgia, and who eventually settled in Brooklyn. Their name comes from the dismal .200 batting average of Mario Mendoza...
- Mobius Band
- MonahansMonahansMonahans can refer to:*Monahans, Texas*Monahans Sandhills State Park*Monahans-Wickett-Pyote Independent School District*XScale, for which Monahans was a code-name...
- PalomarPalomar (band)Palomar is an indie rock band out of Brooklyn, New York. The band originally formed in 1998; however, Rachel Warren is the only original member still in the band. Palomar has completed national U.S. tours every year since 2003, including a tour shared with nationally renowned indie band Mates of...
- Phosphorescent
- Emily RodgersEmily RodgersEmily Rodgers is a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania based singer-songwriter. Rodgers' performs both solo and with a full band. Her music has been compared to Mazzy Star, Galaxie 500, Cowboy Junkies, and Neil Young....
- ShearwaterShearwater (band)Shearwater is an American indie rock band formed in Austin, Texas in 1999 by Okkervil River members Jonathan Meiburg and Will Sheff, although Sheff is no longer with Shearwater.-History:...
- Sleeping StatesSleeping StatesSleeping States is a musical solo project of British musician Markland Starkie .Started in 2004 in London, Sleeping States falls predominantly in the songwriter genre...
- Slow DazzleSlow Dazzle (band)Slow Dazzle is a musical duo composed of Shannon McArdle and Timothy Bracy, both also of The Mendoza Line....
- South San GabrielSouth San GabrielSouth San Gabriel may refer to:* South San Gabriel, California* South San Gabriel...
- Southeast EngineSoutheast EngineSoutheast Engine is an indie-folk-rock band from Athens, Ohio. With the help of The Wrens, the band signed with Misra Records in 2007 and released their first internationally distributed album, "A Wheel Within A Wheel," later that year...
- St. Thomas
- Summer HymnsSummer HymnsSummer Hymns is a band based in Athens, Georgia.Summer Hymns was formed in 1997 by singer/guitarist Zachary Gresham and drummer Philip Brown, both formerly of mid-90's Athens favorites, Joe Christmas...
- Jenny ToomeyJenny ToomeyJenny Toomey is an American indie rock musician and arts activist from Chevy Chase, Maryland, and later, Washington, D.C. She was a member of the bands Geek, Tsunami, Liquorice, Grenadine, So Low and Choke, among others, and has also recorded under her own name...
- Volcano The BearVolcano The BearVolcano the Bear are an improvisational/experimental English band formed in Leicester in 1995. The group's members are Aaron Moore , Nick Mott , Clarence Manuelo and Daniel Padden...
External links
- Official website
- Austin Chronicle Article, November 14, 2003
- Austin Chronicle Article, May 12 2006
- Interview with Misra co-owner Michael Bracy of The Future of Music Coalition