ABOUT
Small Town Records is an independent record label which was started in 2004. In truth it happened completely by accident. Unlike many labels which start out with a money making aim* and then progress to finding bands, Small Town Records found it's band first and created a label around them. Where we are now is a long, long way from where we were back then.
If you download music illegally, your parents don't love you. Fact.
*If you're entertaining that thought in all honesty you're probably better off working in Woolworths.
CONTACT
If you want to discuss anything, for example bookings or press please send an email to either of these addresses:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
If you have a problem with a MERCH ORDER, or an enquiry regarding our webstore, please email the shop at:
[email protected]
We don't do beef. Thanks.
DEMO POLICY
Sadly we do not yet have a P.O. Box address to fill with your lovely demos so if you want to show your band off to us, drop us a myspace message and we'll try our best to take time out and listen to your tunes. Please don't message constantly, we've only a few hands and ears between us.
NEW MERCH IN THE SHOP
MY AWESOME COMPILATION
"A superbly executed exercise in stupidly catchy rock. You cant argue with an enormous tune and MAC boast several of the buggers" Kerrang!
"Sticky choruses, massive hooks...exceptional British rock music" Rock Sound
"A rip-roaring family affair, MAC should be permanently glued to your CD player and blasted out until your eardrums implode!" Total Guitar
"Catchy tunes with riffs and hooks galore. MAC are one of the best around." The Independent
"For want of a better word, Awesome!" Big Cheese
MY AWESOME COMPILATION - "Ghosts On The Underground"
Released: May 19th 2008
DIVIDING THE LINE
Like the Frankenstien love child of Ian Watkins and Matt Tuck raised on a diet of Enter Shikari, DLT will excite and terrify you into submission. Frantically thrilling and overflowing with enthusiasm. Room Thirteen
"Kicking and screaming through the underground ranks for the last year or so to become one of the UK's most wanted. Synth laden, metal edged pieces of very pleasurable listening." Rock Industry
DIVIDNG THE LINE - "Foundations"
Released: April 7th 2008
TEMPLETON PEK
"Sound like a corss between Hundred Reasons and the early nu-metal edge of Lostprophets. this lot could be onto a winner.Kerrang!
"Some seriously kick ass tunes on this melodic punk rock punch to the face of an album" Rock Sound
"If you like fast-paced melodic punk rock then you’re going to love this three-piece. The first single from the record, the intense, punchy ’If All Else Fails’, is testament to that, with the powerful vocals and backing vocals bouncing off eachother over a blazing skate punk tune. The impressive title track is another highlight though, with heartfelt vocals and a fast rhythm, where as the soaring ’Shikata’ shows they can kick out a great rock song too. Definately ones to watch this year" Big Cheese
"Melodic punk rock at its heart, this is music gunning for the big time. Templeton Pek are reaching for the stars and their high aspirations can be heard within every beat and every note: this is music that wouldn't sound out of place on any of the huge American punk rock tours that traverse over the states and beyond in summer." Room Thirteen
"...tore its way out of my speakers and shoved itself down my throat. Bland this wasn't going to be." Die Shellsuit Die
TEMPLETON PEK - "No Association"
Released: March 31st 2008
RIG UP EXPLOSIVE
"they're the cask of The Mighty Boosh trying to cause an arguement between Idlewild and The Mars Volta and then pushing them both down the stairs. By Christ, it's one of a gloriously deranged cacophony." Kerrang!
"Take note of the name Rig Up Explosive. If there's any justice they'll be massive by the Summer. The nattily-attired five piece somehow manage to hit influences from Refused to Jesus Lizard to At The Drive In to Tellison to The Get Up Kids at the same time, all the while instilling their debut EP with a strong identity of their very own." Big Cheese
"pissing on most mainstream indie from a great height by blending pop sensibilities with heavy experimental leanings. These include anthemic Incubus choruses, football chants, beautiful Brand New melodies, and wonderful jazzy passages. More please!" Rock Sound
"A missile making a jazzy, ska-punk-rock-core crackle and pop instead of that cartoon whine, but a rocket-powered super-smart thing nonetheless. Further listens and a few deep breaths will reveal subtle melodies and a myriad of hooks, most as intriguing as they are puzzling, and a memorable power that’ll have licks like ‘Hats Off To Leonard’ rolling around your brain for days. Their artful genre-dodging is bound to make a giant and genuine impact. Ace." New Noise
"Part indie, part punk, part rock but with a vital quantity of pop catchiness, Rig Up Explosive burst into your life and instantly become a vice that will be hard to resist." Room Thirteen
"It doesn't really sound like too many other bands around right now - it fuses really intracite melodies with some tight, twisting guitar riffs...
Rig Up Explosive are a very bright and intelligent band determined to do things a little differently and they deserve a lot of credit for not following trends. Well worth your time and money, check them out now." punktastic.com
RIG UP EXPLOSIVE - "We Come As Clouds"
Released: February 25th 2008
WITH SCISSORS / TAKE A WORM FOR A WALK WEEK / ORION ARM
"If you like your 'core spazzed to fuck you'll probably find something to your liking on this three-way split EP." Kerrang!
"3 stupendous bands on one EP, save-money-tastic… This slab of sheer bile & inventiveness will have you wearing each of the three band‘s tshirts all at once, it demands such allegiance. WS: Mix Rolo Tomassi’s juddering bile-infected spazzcore with the shrieking brilliance of early Blood Brothers. TAWFAWW: more muscular in tone, they take the shrill of Converge’s disgust and fuse it to the excitement of early Dillinger Escape Plan. OA: with a more liquid funk edge, the bands interplay more playful recalling These Arms Are Snakes in a sword duel with Mr Bungle. Genius, sheer genius. You’ll treasure this EP, then purge it from your system, before swallowing it back, whole." (J.C) Subba Cultcha
"It’s clear that the UK’s musical underground is in as good a shape as ever right now. But should you still need some reassuring then this sexy little split is just the ticket.... no matter how consistent the acts battling their corners may be, there's usually a band whose material comes out on top. Here though, with this, the real victory is for UK hardcore and the beating heart of the alternative British music scene. Long may it pound." New Noise
"Hardcore can be inventive without losing the energy... plenty to get excited about on our doorsteps!" Kerrang
"A big "fuck you" to anyone who thinks there's a shortage of brilliant UK bands" Metal Hammer
"Will leave you feeling disorientated, irreparably violated and with a charred and bloody mess where your face used to be" Rock Sound
WITH SCISSORS / TAWFAWW / ORION ARM - "Split!"
Released: February 25th 2008
THISCITY
"Suburban lives crammed into three and half minutes of sharp, disco-punk, this is a track that promises great things from the Brighton five-piece. A combination of At The Drive-In’s fire, Les Savvy Fav’s angular attack and The Automatic’s knack for an action-packed tune, 2008 could be their year".
Review for Music Week, January 2008
"ThisCity sound a bit like Bloc Party if they lightened up... Scratch deeper and you'll find a battle for their soul between Talking Heads and At The Drive-In" Dan Martin , NME
"Imagine, if you can stretch the outer reaches of your mind to conjure up such inconceivable notions, that The Automatic were a decent band rather than a bunch of grating one-tune wonders. Imagine that their idea of taking the key elements of hardcore and lashing them to strong melodies and singalong choruses had actually worked rather than become more irritating than herpes. You are imagining This City. Like The Blood Brothers younger, er, brothers" frinkmusic.com
"ThisCity can't fail" The Guardian
"Their Indie guitars and disco-pop choruses swim along happily, only broken by stormy yelps or jagged riffs reminiscent of welsh rockers The Automatic". Rock Sound
"We like it very much indeed!/ a brilliant band" Huw Stephens, Radio 1
THISCITY - "Kids With Fireworks"
Released: March 3rd 2008
(CD) SMALL TOWN STORE / /HMV
TEMPLETON PEK
TEMPLETON PEK - "If All Else Fails"
Released: November 26th 2007
(CD) SMALL TOWN STORE
(Digital) 7 DIGITAL
HAEMOSTATIC PICNIC RACES
Featuring "I'd Wear A Hat Like That If I Was From Yorkshire" as played and featured by Huw Stevens (Radio 1)
"At its best, when focusing on punchy riffs and squawked vocals, HPR make a substantial impact...an album of undeniable quality." Drownedinsound.com
"Like a rollercoaster ride in complete darkness, unpredictability is the one reliable aspect among the sporadic twists of HPR's intriguing debut. Resistance is useless as you are dragged to an impromptu jam session, swollen with their astringent sound. Meanwhile their baffling phrases stab at your subconscious leaving you little time to question what these instructions are. The jagged-melodies and shrieks on "I'd wear a hat like that if i was from Yorkshire" and "i am woodenbox", evoke test icicles and at the drive in, as opposed to comparisons some might draw with enter shikari. HPR may express a disregard for rules, yet they adhere to a successful formula, albeit under their own eccentricities, and it could be some time before hey are challenged for the title of Tunbridge Well's most curious offspring." Disorder Magazine October 2007 7/10
“The band name and song titles might be ever so slightly random (‘I’d wear a hat like that is I was from Yorkshire’ anyone?) but trust us when we say thats the only thing this quartet leave to fate and the falling breeze. More complex and tightly structures than Jose Mourinho’s tactics board, there is a maturity evident here that belied the young age of this spazzcore crew. The cheap comparisons to The Fall of Troy and Minus The Bear bestowed by all and sundry during the fledging stages of their career do nothing to speak of the originality and bloody single mindedness that seeps from this record’s every pore.†Rock Sound October 2007 9/10
"'impressive debut from young sound-sculptors'This debut is an album of two sides, delicacy verses pure thunder. It's a deeply textured release, guitar lines peal from the fret-board in such intricate ways (not heard since Storm and Stress) that they dance dizzily, before plundering into thrash bombs. It's a very satisfying process to experience. The vocals are interesting too, bending and swaying in interesting approaches and alternative melodic nuances. The rhythm section is also sorted, drums swagger in an offbeat before songs crash in with perfect cohesion; the arrangements are incredibly strong. This album on a whole is a masterpiece, an album you can thrash-out to or listen to with the deepest of concentration it will leave both urges fully contented." Big Cheese September 2007 5/5
"Well timed, razor sharp rhythms" Rock Sound September 2007 8/10
"Having developed their playing and assimilated a lot more influences has really opened them up. The biggest surprise was that it sounded a lot like one of my favourite bands, The Murder Of Rosa Luxembourg. With a more melodic bent in places and some nice little indie touches. Fans of The Murder Of..., ATDI, Kids Near Water and The Standard would do well to check them out." Die Shellsuit Die 7/10
"Coming across like some hybrid of Fugazi, ATDI, Bloc Party and Snapcase?, they mix driving, heavy guitars with intricate picking and screamed/shouted vocals." Die, Shellsuit, Die.
"HPR do it very well, making the style very listenable and enjoyable without being too weird and make the average listener switch off in confusion." Punkscene
"The sampler shows just how versatile and inventive HPR are across just a few songs. First track proper I am woodenbox is just magical." East Magazine
"Competent, creative and with enough pizzazz to blow Horse, The Band or The Fall Of Troy out the water, HPR are now so close they must be able to taste the big time. Watch them fly." Moderate Rock
"Alternative and Ambient songs which are so melodic theyll be on your mind all week, this EP has not only shown each members talent but how they have merged this together to create something special." Freshmag UK
"you'd be an idiot to cast doubt over their sheer potential."Distort Records
"Fearlessly experimental and talented these young boyz made everyone in the vicinity shut up and pay attention. Basically they get it spot on with musical ideas that are seemingly ridiculous in brilliantly titled songs such as 'OrangutangOrang' and 'I Am Woodenbox."Disorder Magazine
HAEMOSTATIC PICNIC RACES - "Helios! These Are Instructions"
Released: October 15th 2007
(CD) SMALL TOWN STORE / /AMAZON / /PLAY
AND THEIR EYES WERE BLOODSHOT
"Merciless onslaught of metalcore that would be right at home on Solid State. With complex rhythms and epic soundscapes, this is what Isis would resemble if they went death metal." Tuned
"Add to your watchlist ATEWB who have emerged with a blazing debut EP that draws healthily from its inspirations while still painting its own picture." Rock Sound September 2007 8/10
SINGLE OF THE WEEK
"Growling out of the north on England with some extreme off-centre skin-scraping hinge-wrecking metalcore goodness. Ferociously good, extremely heavy – primal, cathartic, guttural, churning up your insides and regurgitating your soul. Man the lifeboats and call the thunder stealing crocodile, they well and truly sound like they’re going to poison far more than the pissy little well." Organ Magazine
AND THEIR EYES WERE BLOODSHOT - "Prologue"
Released: September 10th 2007
(CD) SMALL TOWN STORE / /HMV / /AMAZON
(Digital) ITUNES
TROPHY SCARS
"Gem of An Album. Inspiring, exciting, and uplifting. Like all good music should be. Rock Sound August 2007 9/10
"If I was the head of Ferret, Trustkill or Victory Records, I'd be knocking on the door of the A&R departments demanding why Trophy Scars weren't part of my roster...Trophy Scars are on top of their game right now." Punktastic.com 4.5/5
"Absolute Ace. Absolutely Aces." Subba-Cultcha 4/5
"Trophy Scars have to be awarded full points for effort... an adventurous band." New Noise
"With a total of 16 tracks on Alphabet. Alphabets... it's not to be overlooked. In fact it's supposed to be looked at, picked up and taken to the nearest cash register." Room Thirteen 10/13
"Alphabet. Alphabets. is a huge step up for the Trophy Scars, both in intent and execution." Stewart Mason for Billboard.com/All Music Guide
"Brutal, beautiful, and everything in between, please learn your Alphabets and get this album today." Absolutepunk.net
"Trophy Scars' influences combine to create a fairly refreshing and unexpected listen; the album is both catchy and fun while remaining emotional and aggressive. Recommended for anyone looking for an alternative to the junk on Victory Records." Lambgoat.com
"The songs are even more epic, extracting moments of prog and post-rock to make up near atmospheric backgrounds [as] the backdrop to Jerry Jones' shaky sneer." Punknews.org
"Here comes Trophy Scars with the rebuttal. Post Hardcore is not lost, it just needed to be done with style for once." Punkbands.com
TROPHY SCARS - "Alphabet. Alphabets."
Released: September 3rd 2007
(CD) SMALL TOWN STORE / /HMV / /PLAY
(Digital) ITUNES
TROPHY SCARS - "Goodnight Alchemy"
(Digital) ITUNES
FLOOD OF RED
"...one of the most exciting young UK bands for a while... poised for big things" Metal Hammer Jan 07
"Flood Of Red will be battling for your hearts and ears - and we think they'll win." Rock Sound Jan 07
"Imagine FFAF with some synths chucked in for good measure... infectious hooks, passion and energy..." Rock Sound Dec 06
"...FOR have the raw, screaming talent reminiscent of early Alexisonfire" Disorder Feb 07
"Taking inspiration from the likes of The Used and Funeral For A Friend, this Glasgow Sextet are going to appeal to a lot of people." Rock Sound Feb 07
"Big, ball-smacking screamo tunes with gritty juxtaposition" Metal Hammer Feb 07
"With songs as sharp as their haircuts, Flood Of Red look set to do for Scotland what Funeral For A Friend and Lostprophets have done for the Welsh wing of the punk/post-hardcore scene." Kerrang Feb 07
"This debut EP... is going to cement their title as one of the most promising new rock bands in Britain right now." Darren Taylor, Music Week
FLOOD OF RED - "Lost In The Light"
Released: February 19th 2007
(CD) SMALL TOWN STORE / /HMV / /AMAZON
(Digital) ITUNES / /WOOLWORTHS
PHINIUS GAGE
“The great songs outweigh the good ones – don’t even start looking for a bad song here kids… a fantastic record from start to finish.†Punktastic
"Seek Out Your Foes... sees them develop a far more complex and all-encompassing sound... Support British punk rock and pick this up!" Rock Sound March 07
"Seek Out Your Foes may sound like a routine title but at its best this album is phenomenal; a searing and intoxicating mix of pace, energy, power and talent. The band can write songs too, but it's the fact that these songs are played with the energy of fire that really sets the scene for this fabulous set." Kerrang April 07
"If you liked the first two and a half Rise Against albums you can pretty much stop reading now and go buy this, ’cos you’re pretty much guaranteed to like it. Phinius Gage has their roots firmly in the thrash and hardcore of the early 80s with breakneck drumming and chunky metal inspired riffs, but they blend it with a pop sensibility and melody all too often lacking in hardcore bands." Die Shellsuit, Die!
"With more power than ever, the 'Gage have almost captured the power of their fantastic live show... this is UK skate punk at it's best... This is a great record that shows that the UK can do skate punk just as well as the Americans" Big Cheese March 07
"Think the heavy duty metal tinged riffs of Comeback Kid meets the melody driven tunes of Taking Back Sunday… It’s hard to imagine them not doing great things. Highly recommended." Subba-Cultcha.com
PHINIUS GAGE - "Seek Out Your Foes..."
Released: March 19th 2007
(CD) SMALL TOWN STORE / /PLAY / /AMAZON / /VIRGIN
(Digital) ITUNES
AFFILIATES
Joe Latham @ Look Happy Designs
Shirty Something: www.shirtysomething.com
[PIAS]UK Distribution: www.piasuk.com
