about us
Slumberland began operations in 1989 as a collective effort consisting of members of DC area bands Velocity Girl, Big Jesus Trash Can/Whorl, Black Tambourine and Powderburns. We were inspired by such musical happenings as C86, early Creation, Postcard, K, Bus Stop, lower East Side noise, and also the renegade art aesthetics of people like Cage, Burroughs and Duchamp. We were complete musical neophytes but so pumped-up about all the amazing things going on in post-punk independent music that we just had to jump in.
The explosion of punk had left behind a thriving network of 'zines, labels and distributors and we felt that there was room for our noise-loving, pop-obsessed aesthetic. While there were loads of US indie labels releasing a steady stream of 7"s, there wasn't much pop going on. Notable exceptions included Bus Stop, K and Picture Book, and we hoped to join that group and help chisel out some space for melodies amongst the noise.
Early releases from Velocity Girl and Black Tambourine struck a note, and we found like-minded popsters getting in touch from all over the world. As we expanded the label roster and our own horizons, the goal was always to bring you great songs and interesting sounds from a range of styles. We are justifiably proud of our influential series of releases that lasted throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, bringing you seminal records by legendary bands like Rocketship, The Ropers, Lorelei, The Aislers Set, Hood and Boyracer.
By the mid 2000s we were starting to see a resurgence of interest in guitar pop and the start of the ongoing vinyl revival: the perfect environment for Slumberland! We launched into our latest phase of activity with as string of classic releases from The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, Crystal Stilts, Frankie Rose, Veronica Falls, Allo Darlin', Joanna Gruesome and so many more.
2018 is our twenty-ninth year we are still going strong, ploughing our own furrow and bringing you unique, genre-defining (and genre-defying!) releases from bands like Smokescreens, Tony Molina, The Proper Ornaments, D.A. Stern, The Spook School, Frankie Rose, Young Guv, Terry Malts and many, many more. As always, we operate entirely outside of the echo chamber of trends, fashion and phoney hipness. Slumberland bands are independent in the best way possible -- making music devoid of bullshit and true to their own voices, regardless of current popular taste.
mailing list
Subscribe to our very low-traffic mailing list. We will not share your information.privacy policy
At Slumberland we collect very little information about you and share none of it. The only data we store is your email address, and optionally your name and address if you've placed an order. All billing information is kept by the payment processors. We never share or trade info with anybody — we have your info because you've shared it with us, and you can always unsubscribe from our mailing list through the unsubscribe link that's in the footer of every mailing or by contacting us at: slrlist@slumberlandrecords.com.
demo policy
- Yes, we listen to them. All of them.
- Streams (Bandcamp, Soundcloud, etc) get listened to in the most timely fashion. Downloads come next, then CDRs, with tapes way behind. Sorry.
- Email demo links to . NO ATTACHED MP3s please. Also, please don't send them to our Facebook page or Mike's personal account.
- Bummer fact: You probably will not get a response. The sheer volume of demos we receive precludes responding to each one. We just can't; we'd get nothing else done. With that in mind, please don't keep sending demos over and over; carpet-bombing our email/Facebook/Twitter is one sure way to NOT get your demo listened to.
- A cover letter that shows some familiarity with what Slumberland is about always catches the eye. Humility is appreciated -- being told that your kick-ass band is going to launch our label to fame and fortune doesn't make a great impression.
- Please keep in mind that we're a very small label (one person doing everything at the time of writing) with very limited resources, and generally only start working with a few new bands a year. We can't put out everything we like, as much as we'd like to.