Relapse Records is an American

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small and medium-sized enterprise, small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels ...

based in Upper Darby Township, Pennsylvania. It was founded by Matthew F. Jacobson in 1990. The label features many

grindcore Grindcore is an extreme metal, extreme fusion genre of heavy metal music, heavy metal and hardcore punk that originated in the mid-1980s, drawing inspiration from abrasive-sounding musical styles, such as thrashcore, crust punk, hardcore punk, e ...

death metal Death metal is an extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep death growl, growling vocals; aggressive ...

metalcore Metalcore is a broadly defined fusion genre combining elements of extreme metal and hardcore punk, originating in the 1990s United States and becoming popular in the 2000s. Metalcore typically has aggressive verses and melodic choruses, combined ...

and

sludge metal Sludge metal (also known as sludge doom or simply sludge) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that combines elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. The genre generally includes slow tempos, down-tuned guitars and nihilis ...

artists.

History

The label was started by Matthew F. Jacobson in August 1990 in his parents' basement in

Aurora, Colorado Aurora (, ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city located in Arapahoe County, Colorado, Arapahoe, Adams County, Colorado, Adams, and Douglas County, Colorado, Douglas List of counties in Colorado, counti ...

. The first two releases on the label were 7-inch singles by the bands Velcro Overdose and Face of Decline, Apparition 7" came next R003closely followed by three death metal bands that would become among the biggest on the label, Deceased, Suffocation, and

Incantation An incantation, spell, charm, enchantment, or bewitchery is a magical formula intended to trigger a magical effect on a person or objects. The formula can be spoken, sung, or chanted. An incantation can also be performed during ceremonial ri ...

. After this, Jacobson became acquainted with William Yurkiewicz Jr, who became his partner in the record label. Yurkiewicz had founded his own record label, which was soon to release albums from the bands

General Surgery General surgery is a Surgical specialties, surgical specialty that focuses on alimentary canal and Abdomen, abdominal contents including the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine, liver, pancreas, gallbladder, Appendix (anatomy ...

, Disrupt, Destroy, Misery, and Yurkiewicz's own grindcore band Exit-13. The two joined forces to create Relapse Records, aiming to release high-quality, professionally packaged extreme music. In 1991, the label moved their headquarters to

Millersville, Pennsylvania Millersville is a borough in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 7,629 and in 2021 it was estimated at 7,593. Millersville is home to Millersville University of Pennsylvania. History Origina ...

. In 1992, the label expanded its range with the creation of its subsidiary label called Release Entertainment, which specializes in

experimental An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs whe ...

, ambient, industrial, and

noise Noise is sound, chiefly unwanted, unintentional, or harmful sound considered unpleasant, loud, or disruptive to mental or hearing faculties. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrat ...

titles. With continued growth came a mail-order/wholesale operation that soon became the largest underground distribution center for all things metal in the United States . The mail-order service carried a wide array of extreme music recordings and merchandise, as well as publications from around the world. Throughout the years Relapse has continued to grow and sign on more influential artists from a broader range of genres. In 1996, Relapse unveiled the Resound Music Resource Guide. Resound gave fans direct access to the label's roster through interviews and reviews, as well as being part mail-order catalog. In 1998, Relapse opened a promotions office in Berlin, as well as establishing a German distribution deal. In 2003, Relapse held a music festival - the Relapse Contamination Festival took place on January 18 and 19 at the Trocadero Theatre in

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

and featured various Relapse artists. In 2000, the label relocated to

Upper Darby Upper Darby Township, often shortened to Upper Darby, is a home rule township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. As of the 2020 census, the township had a total population of 85,681, making it the state's sixth-most populated mun ...

, outside of

and began plans to include a physical record store . In June 2001, the label opened their first record store off of South Street in

. In 2010, Relapse announced that they had done a deal with intellectual property lawyer Eric Greif and Perseverance Holdings Ltd. to take over

Chuck Schuldiner Charles Michael Schuldiner (May 13, 1967 – December 13, 2001) was an American musician. He cofounded the pioneering Florida death metal band Death in 1983, in which he was the guitarist, primary songwriter and only continuous member until his ...

's catalog and the

Death Death is the end of life; the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain a living organism. Death eventually and inevitably occurs in all organisms. The remains of a former organism normally begin to decompose sh ...

and

Control Denied Control Denied was a progressive metal band formed by death metal musician and Death co-founder Chuck Schuldiner. History Background Schuldiner, in a 1993 Terrorizer interview with Borivoj Krgin, mentioned that he had entertained the possibili ...

names internationally. Death's 1995 sixth studio album, Symbolic was excluded from the deal as the rights for said record remain with

Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records is a Dutch–American record label focused on Heavy metal music, heavy metal and hard rock music. Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, it is now a division of Warner Music Group and is based in New York City. Formerly seen as ...

. On August 5, 2011, Relapse announced a 24-week

pay what you want Pay what you want (or PWYW, also referred to as value-for-value model) is a pricing strategy where buyers pay their desired amount for a given commodity. This amount can sometimes include zero. A minimum (floor) price may be set, and/or a suggest ...

partnership with Moshpit Tragedy Records, issuing one mp3 album from the Relapse catalog every week through Moshpit Tragedy's website.

Artists

Current artists

Former artists

References

External links

*
Relapse's entire back catalogue
on

Bandcamp Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...

{{Authority control American independent record labels Heavy metal record labels Hardcore record labels Death metal record labels Grindcore record labels Record labels established in 1990