Mystic Records is an American

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the pr ...

and music production company specializing in

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...

crossover thrash Crossover thrash (often abbreviated to crossover) is a fusion genre of thrash metal and hardcore punk. The genre lies on a continuum between heavy metal and hardcore punk. Other genres on the same continuum, such as metalcore and grindcore, ...

underground music Underground music is music with practices perceived as outside, or somehow opposed to, mainstream popular music culture. Underground music is intimately tied to popular music culture as a whole, so there are important tensions within underground ...

, vintage and cult records. It is owned and operated by Doug Moody. The label was first established in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, and subsequently moved its operations to

Oceanside, California Oceanside is a city on the South Coast of California, located in San Diego County. The city had a population of 167,086 at the 2010 census. The city is a popular tourist destination, owing to its historic landmarks, beaches, and architecture. ...

. Mystic Records is an independent label and is a member of the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

(RIAA).

History

Background

Mystic Records is closely associated with the personality of its founder, Doug Moody, regarded as a pioneer of the independent

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm ...

industry.John Broven, ''Record Makers and Breakers: Voices of the Independent Rock 'n' Roll Pioneers.'' Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press, 2009; pg. 363. Moody's father, Walter Moody, was himself an influential figure in the music industry, running EMI Studios (

Abbey Road Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music ...

) in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

during the 1930s.Al Kowalewski et al., "Mystic Records, Doug Moody," ''Flipside,'' whole no. 42 (Summer 1984), pp. 42–43. In 1953 the family moved to the United States. Moody decided to himself become involved in the music business, first working in the A&R department of Silvertone Records in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

. A series of music industry jobs followed throughout the decades of the 1960s and 1970s, including stints in various capacities at Kama Sutra Records,

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...

, and

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

Studio and label

Seeking another place in the music industry outside of the major record labels, Moody opened a

recording studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large enou ...

Hollywood, California Hollywood is a neighborhood in the central region of Los Angeles, California. Its name has come to be a shorthand reference for the U.S. film industry and the people associated with it. Many notable film studios, such as Columbia Picture ...

, at the location of the old Mustang Studios, made famous as a facility used by the

Bobby Fuller Four The Bobby Fuller Four (sometimes stylized as Bobby Fuller 4) was a popular mid-1960s American rock & roll band started by Bobby Fuller. First formed in 1962 in Fuller's hometown of El Paso, Texas, the group went on to produce some of its most me ...

. Moody changed out the studio's superannuated 2 track

mono Mono may refer to: Common meanings * Infectious mononucleosis, "the kissing disease" * Monaural, monophonic sound reproduction, often shortened to mono * Mono-, a numerical prefix representing anything single Music Performers * Mono (Japanes ...

recording gear and replaced it with state of the art 8-track

stereo Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...

gear, leaving the recording rooms otherwise largely unaltered. In tandem with the studio was launched the Mystic Records label. During the label's peak period of activity, from 1982 through 1990, Mystic released over 200 records, many of which were multi-band compilations, involving the work of several hundred artists. Emerging as a prominent force in the

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban ...

punk rock music scene, Mystic put out an array of alternative bands, with an emphasis on the

, and

speed metal Speed metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that originated in the late 1970s from new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) roots.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' (Berg Publishers, 2007), , p. 31. ...

styles in vogue during this period. Moody claimed to have invested $70,000 in the label in 1983 alone, but taking into account recording costs and sales figures averaging about 2,000 copies per record, found the operation with about $40,000 left to recover at the end of that year. Bands would purchase studio time, with Mystic recouping its investment against royalties due, which in 1984 Moody claimed was approximately 40 cents per record. In conjunction with the label, Moody and Mystic established its own wholesale record distribution branch, MD Distributing. This distributorship handled not only Mystic releases but those of other labels as well.

Bands

Some of the best known artists on Mystic Records include

NOFX NOFX () is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1983. Vocalist/bassist Fat Mike, guitarist Eric Melvin and drummer Erik Sandin are original founding and longest-serving members of the band, who have appeared on ever ...

RKL Rich Kids on LSD (RKL) was a Californian hardcore punk band formed in 1982 in Montecito, California, a suburb of Santa Barbara. They were associated with the " Nardcore" scene that evolved out of nearby Oxnard. Their music expanded over the yea ...

Battalion of Saints Battalion of Saints was an American hardcore punk band from San Diego, California, that was founded in 1980. The band went through numerous lineup changes before touring the United States and Canada from 1984–1985 with George Anthony, Chris ...

Ill Repute Ill Repute is an American hardcore punk band from Oxnard, California, United States, formed in 1981. They are noted for popularizing the "Nardcore" sound in the mid-1980s hardcore punk scene, and recorded for Mystic Records. Their record ''What ...

, Agression,

Newport Beach Dune Buggy Band Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay Europe Ireland *Newport, County Mayo, a town on the ...

and The Mentors. Mystic Records has also released vinyl compilations featuring

Suicidal Tendencies Suicidal Tendencies is an American crossover thrash band formed in 1980 in Venice in Los Angeles, California by vocalist Mike Muir. Muir is the only remaining original member of the band. Along with D.R.I., Corrosion of Conformity, and Stor ...

, Love Canal, New Regime, Black Flag, False Alarm, Duct Tape Hostage, SIN 34, Government Issue, The Minutemen,

Burning Image Burning Image are an American deathrock band formed in Bakersfield, California in 1982. Burning Image first released a 7" single with the songs "The Final Conflict" and "Burning Image, Burning" in the summer of 1984. The compilation ''1983-1987'' i ...

, Habeas Corpus, and

Bad Religion Bad Religion is an American punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1980. The band's lyrics cover topics related to religion, politics, society, the media and science. Musically, they are noted for their melodic sensibilitie ...

Importance

Mystic Records has been credited with several innovations in the independent record industry of the 1980s. It introduced Super Sevens (7-inch 33rpm extended play records featuring seven songs) and helped popularize the manufacture of limited edition records on colored vinyl. one of the most interesting releases was from the band entitled “The Sharks” (later Shark Island). This custom shaped single, executive producer Jeff Willmitt, had 3 outer edge “shark fins” that when inserted into the sleeve appeared to cut through the water. The label was also influential through its release of multi-band compilation albums, such as its "The Sound of Hollywood" series, and promotional label samplers making use of album tracks, typified by its "Mystic Sampler" series. Moody's key collaborators on the Mystic Records project included producer and engineer Phillip "Philco" Raves, sales and distribution Randy Boyd of Cobraside Distribution, and in 2019 began a partnership with Candace D'Andrea who is Chief Operating Officer.

References

Selected artists

* Agression * America's Hardcore *

* BLEED * Bleach Party, USA * The Conservatives * Crankshaft * Doggy Style * Dr. Know * Duct Tape Hostage * Fatal Error * Fornicators * First Offense * The Grim *

* Insolent * Killroy * Manic Subsidiary * Manifest Destiny * Meatwagon * The Mentors * New Regime *

* The P.T.L. Klub * Rabid Fetus * Rich Kids on LSD *

RUNOFF Runoff, run-off or RUNOFF may refer to: * RUNOFF, the first computer text-formatting program * Runoff or run-off, another name for bleed, printing that lies beyond the edges to which a printed sheet is trimmed * Runoff or run-off, a stock marke ...

* Sado-Nation * Scared Straight * Screaming Bloody Marys * SIN 34 * Slaughterhouse 5 * Social Spit * Stäläg 13 *

* Teacherz * The Shades * Stukas Over Bedrock * Undercity Kings * Zoo

External links

Mystic Records Official WebsiteInterview with Doug Moody for the NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Oral History Program
May 2, 2008
Mystic Records newsletter, 1984
{{Authority control American record labels Alternative rock record labels Punk record labels Oceanside, California