It was a dolorous moment when Hydra Head Records announced they’d called it a day.
Founded my Aaron Turner (of metal bigwigs Isis) in 1993, the label had long been one of the most progressive and interesting forces in metal and beyond. Jesu, Prurient, Boris & Merzbow and Lustmord have all clocked up releases on the imprint. Despite its glittering history, the label found itself swallowed up by “years of imbalance between creative ideals and financial realities”, not to mention the “steady decline of the music industry in general”.
Good news, then: it now seems that Hydra Head may not be ceasing all operations after all. As Exclaim report, Turner has launched a new fundraising drive with the aim of keeping the label’s sizeable back catalogue in print. The “rehabilitation project” will see Turner auction off a range of HH goodies: as you can see below, they range from stickers to Turner’s old amps and guitars to test pressings. For a price of $10,000, the generous giver can also look forward to an enticing sounding “Office Spree”, which reportedly includes a trip to Disneyland.
The project will raise funds for a host of mooted vinyl reissues in 2013. The albums in question include Jesu’s Conquerer, Drowningman’s Busy Signal At The Suicide Hotline and Converge’s Caring And Killing. Reissues of Botch and Cave In records are also planned.
Posting on the Hydra Head blog, Turner said: “The selling off of all these items will allow us to do several things: fund future represses and reissues, pay our artists and remaining staff members to realize these projects, clear out our offices so we can downsize to a more functional level of operation, and provide some special artifacts to those that appreciate and support what we and our artists have built over the years”.
“While it’s not easy to part with some of these things, we do so with happiness knowing that it may allow us to continue doing what we love to do, and ensure that a lot of the great music we’ve been entrusted with disseminating continues to be available for any and all that want to hear it for years to come”.
You can browse the art of Hydra Head here.
