Earache Records is a British

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 ...

music publisher A music publisher is a type of publisher that specializes in distributing music. Music publishers originally published sheet music. When copyright became legally protected, music publishers began to play a role in the management of the intellectu ...

and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

, England, with offices in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and New York. The label helped to pioneer

extreme metal Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tran ...

by releasing early

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 ...

and

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 ...

records between the late 1980s and mid-1990s. Its roster has since diversified into more mainstream guitar music, working with bands such as Rival Sons, the Temperance Movement, Blackberry Smoke, Scarlet Rebels and the White Buffalo. The company also hosted the 'Earache Express' stage at

Glastonbury Festival The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (commonly referred to as simply Glastonbury Festival, known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts held near Pilton, Somerset, England, in most su ...

in 2017 and 'The Earache Factory' at

Boomtown A boomtown is a community that undergoes sudden and rapid population and economic growth, or that is started from scratch. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although t ...

2018. The label's logo is a homage to ''Thrasher'' magazine, as Pearson was a

skateboard A skateboard is a type of sports equipment used for skateboarding. It is usually made of a specially designed 7–8-ply maple plywood deck and has polyurethane wheels attached to the underside by a pair of skateboarding trucks. The skateboard ...

culture enthusiast.

History

Earache was founded in 1985 by Digby Pearson who prior to launching the label proper had self-released 'Anglican Scrape Attic', a compilation of

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

and early

crossover thrash Crossover thrash (often abbreviated to crossover) is a fusion genre of thrash metal and hardcore punk. The genre emerged in the mid-1980s, when hardcore punk bands, such as Suicidal Tendencies, Cryptic Slaughter, Corrosion of Conformity and Dir ...

acts which included Hirax, Lipcream and Concrete Sox. The first official Earache release on

vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...

in 1987 with catalogue number MOSH 1, was

The Accüsed The Accüsed is an American crossover thrash band from Washington (state), Washington, formed in 1981 by Chibon 'Chewy' Batterman, Dana Collins and Tommy Niemeyer. The band was a progenitor of the crossover style that bridged the gap between th ...

's ''The Return of Martha Splatterhead''. This was followed by a split LP by the crust/crossover band Concrete Sox and the proto-

grind A blade's grind is its cross-sectional shape in a plane normal to the edge. Grind differs from Blade#Knife blade profiles .28Patterns.29, blade profile, which is the blade's cross-sectional shape in the plane containing the blade's edge and ...

band

Heresy Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, particularly the accepted beliefs or religious law of a religious organization. A heretic is a proponent of heresy. Heresy in Heresy in Christian ...

. The label's first major release of note was MOSH 3,

Napalm Death Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in Meriden, West Midlands, in 1981. None of the band's original members have been in the group since 1986, but since ''Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mi ...

's '' Scum''. Famously,

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...

was a champion of the band and supported them on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

. The record went on to reach number 7 in the UK indie chart. Following this, Earache released music by many bands from the emerging

and

scenes, such as Morbid Angel,

Carcass Carcass or Carcase (both pronounced ) may refer to: * Dressed carcass, the body of a livestock animal ready for butchery, after removal of skin, visceral organs, head, feet etc. *Carrion, the decaying dead body of an animal or human being, also c ...

, Entombed, Bolt Thrower and Terrorizer. Although intrinsically linked with death metal, the label's catalogue is varied and also includes Welsh ragga-metal act

Dub War Dub War are a four-piece metal band from Newport, Wales. Formed in 1993, the band's musical style is a mix of metal, punk, and reggae. Biography Dub War formed in 1993 in Wales. The band released two albums, via the metal label Earache Recor ...

, Birmingham's

industrial metal Industrial metal is the fusion of Heavy metal music, heavy metal and industrial music, typically employing repeating Heavy metal guitar, metal guitar riffs, sampling (music), sampling, synthesizer or music sequencer, sequencer lines, and Distor ...

pioneers

Godflesh Godflesh are an English industrial metal band from Birmingham. The group formed in 1982 under the original title O.P.D. (later Fall of Because) but did not release any complete music until 1988 when Justin Broadrick (guitar, vocals, programmi ...

, Nottingham's Pitchshifter,

hardcore techno Hardcore (also known as hardcore techno) is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany in the early 1990s. It is distinguished by faster tempos (160 to 200 BPM or more) and a distorted sawtooth ...

outfit Ultraviolence, Mick Harris's industrial/experimental group Scorn,

John Zorn John Zorn (born September 2, 1953) is an American composer, conducting, conductor, saxophonist, arrangement, arranger and record producer, producer who "deliberately resists category". His Avant-garde music, avant-garde and experimental music, ex ...

-led experimental group Naked City and doom 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 ...

bands

Sleep Sleep is a state of reduced mental and physical activity in which consciousness is altered and certain Sensory nervous system, sensory activity is inhibited. During sleep, there is a marked decrease in muscle activity and interactions with th ...

and Acid Bath. In the early 1990s

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American reco ...

, seeking to break into metal, signed a deal with Earache. Columbia would license rights and market and distribute them in The Americas, with rights reverting to Earache upon completion of the deal term. It is widely accepted that Columbia failed to deliver the expected sales that they themselves had projected and thus they sought to prematurely terminate the agreement. Barney Greenway of Napalm Death objected to the deal with Columbia (a subsidiary of

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

) on the basis that it was "selling out", although Napalm Death have since released music also distributed by Columbia parent Sony Music Entertainment. The rights to all Columbia-licensed titles have since reverted to Earache, who thereafter have been wholly independent, working with distributors as opposed to licensees. The label has a number of subsidiary labels, including Wicked World Records, Elitist Records, Sub Bass Records and the short-lived Necrosis Records.

Modern era

As with many labels, Earache has transitioned over time from its initial "extreme" output and now focuses primarily on modern, accomplished guitar projects. Rival Sons were the most notable of the modern crop of artists, before signing with

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

in 2018. Newer signings include Australia's Massive, Nottingham's Haggard Cat and Lancaster's Massive Wagons. More recent grindcore and death metal signings include Wormrot and Deicide. Earache also signed the first independent label direct deal with

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

shortly after the service launched. Earache currently holds two

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a British reference book published annually, list ...

. The first is that of the World's Shortest Song, currently held by

with "You Suffer" at 1.316 seconds long. The second record is the world's shortest full music video, a record held by

Brutal Truth Brutal Truth was an American grindcore band from New York City, formed by ex-Anthrax, Nuclear Assault, and Stormtroopers of Death bass guitarist Dan Lilker in 1990. The group disbanded in 1999, but reformed in 2006 and continued to release mu ...

with their track "Collateral Damage". In 2015 Digby Pearson received the Association of Independent Music Pioneer award. In 2018 tech sitcom ''

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

'' featured "You Suffer" repeatedly in one episode. In response the label created a

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

bot (@NapalmDeathBot) which sends an hourly tweet with the price of

bitcoin Bitcoin (abbreviation: BTC; Currency symbol, sign: ₿) is the first Decentralized application, decentralized cryptocurrency. Based on a free-market ideology, bitcoin was invented in 2008 when an unknown entity published a white paper under ...

. They also inserted "You suffer" into the

blockchain The blockchain is a distributed ledger with growing lists of Record (computer science), records (''blocks'') that are securely linked together via Cryptographic hash function, cryptographic hashes. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of th ...

, a first for a label. In August 2018 Earache signed trap/rap artist ALIREZA301. Alireza is a metal influenced rapper from

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

who performs a style of trap/rap which in parts heavily incorporates guitars. Earache's newer rock signings have achieved Top 15 positions in the UK charts, including: a #6 album with The Temperance Movement's '' A Deeper Cut'' (2018), a #8 album with Blackberry Smoke's '' Find a Light'' (2018), a #9 album with Massive Wagons' '' House of Noise'' (2020), a #13 album with Rival Sons' '' Hollow Bones'' (2016) and a #14 album with Those Damn Crows' ''Point Of No Return'' (2020). To begin the new decade, Earache Records announced a compilation vinyl titled "The New wave of Rock N Roll" featuring a host of new acts.

Earache Live

In 2017 Earache were invited to host the first ever stage for heavy music at

. 'The Earache Express' was a recycled London underground tube carriage located in the 'Shangri La' area of the site. The stage featured performances from

, The Dead Kennedys, Ho99o9,

Hacktivist Hacktivism (or hactivism; a portmanteau of '' hack'' and ''activism''), is the use of computer-based techniques such as hacking as a form of civil disobedience to promote a political agenda or social change. A form of Internet activism with roo ...

Glen Matlock Glen Matlock (born 27 August 1956) is an English musician, best known for being the bass guitarist in the original line-up of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols. He is credited as a songwriter on 10 of the 12 songs on the Sex Pistols' only offic ...

of The Sex Pistols, Steve Ignorant of

Crass Crass was an English art collective and punk rock band formed in Epping, Essex in 1977 who promoted anarchism as a political ideology, a lifestyle, and a resistance movement. Crass popularized the anarcho-punk movement of the punk subculture, ...

and Wormrot amongst others. Having been well received by

(who are affiliated to Glastonbury) invited Earache to curate a stage at their 2018 event which took place in

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

during August 2018. The stage (named The Earache Factory) was designed around the concept of a disused factory within a run-down part of a futuristic town. It featured artists such as

Soulfly Soulfly is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Phoenix, Arizona in 1997. Soulfly is led by former Sepultura frontman Max Cavalera, who formed the band after he left the Brazilian group in 1996. To date the band has release ...

Dead Kennedys Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk bands during its initial eight-year run. Initially consisting of lead guitarist East Bay Ray, bassist Klaus Fl ...

and

Enter Shikari Enter Shikari are a British Rock music, rock band formed in St Albans in 1999 by bassist Chris Batten, lead vocalist and keyboardist Rou Reynolds, and drummer Rob Rolfe. In 2003, guitarist Rory Clewlow joined the band to complete its current li ...

not to mention a headline set by British upstarts

Idles Idles are an English post-punk band formed in Bristol in 2009. The band consists of Adam Devonshire (bass), Joe Talbot (singer), Joe Talbot (vocals), Mark Bowen (guitar), Lee Kiernan (guitar), and Jon Beavis (drums). After spending eight yea ...

. In 2019 Earache will be hosting an evening at Camp Bestival in Dorset bringing along

, Lawnmower Deth, Diamond Head, Phil Campbell & The Bastard Sons and Nosebleed.

Criticism

Over the years, the relationship between the label and some of its former artists have become fraught, and Pearson has made a number of disparaging blog posts about, among others, JS Clayden from Pitchshifter and Barney Greenway of

. Greenway responded that Pearson "expects everybody to be subservient", while Clayden called Pearson "petty and vindictive" and criticized the label for not allowing fans to

stream A stream is a continuous body of water, body of surface water Current (stream), flowing within the stream bed, bed and bank (geography), banks of a channel (geography), channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a strea ...

or purchase Pitchshifter's albums that were released on Earache. In the documentary ''Slave to the Grind'', Scott Carlson from Repulsion accused Earache of not paying the band, adding "I'm sure they sold way more records than they told us they did." Former Iron Monkey drummer Justin Greaves accused Earache of refusing to support the band financially in an emergency when during a European tour, singer Johnny Morrow fell sick and needed to return to the UK, which the band couldn't afford to cover.

Notable artists

Adema Adema () is an American rock band from Bakersfield, California. The band formed in 2000 with members vocalist Mark Chavez, guitarist Tim Fluckey, guitarist Mike Ransom, bassist Dave DeRoo, and drummer Kris Kohls. After their first two albums ...

(2005–2006) * Akercocke *

Anaal Nathrakh Anaal Nathrakh are a British extreme metal band formed in 1999 in Birmingham by multi-instrumentalist Mick Kenney and vocalist Dave Hunt (musician), Dave Hunt. They are currently signed to Metal Blade Records. The band's name is Irish language, ...

* Anata * Annihilator (for Europe) * Arsis *

At the Gates At the Gates is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Gothenburg, formed in 1990. The band was a major progenitor of Gothenburg-style melodic death metal alongside In Flames and Dark Tranquillity. Prior to their first disbandment in 1996, At ...

Anal Cunt Anal Cunt, also called AxCx and A.C., was an American grindcore band that formed in Newton, Massachusetts, in 1988. From its inception, the band underwent a number of line-up changes and never had a bassist. The band, known for its flippant and ...

(1994-2000) * Beecher * The Berzerker * Biomechanical * Biters * Blackberry Smoke (European Deal) *

Black Star Riders Black Star Riders is a hard rock band formed in December 2012. The band began when members of the 2011–2012 line-up of Thin Lizzy decided to record new material, but chose not to release it under the Thin Lizzy name. While Thin Lizzy continues ...

* Blood Red Throne * Bolt Thrower (1989–1997) * Bonded By Blood *

The Browning The Browning is an American electronicore band formed in Kansas City, Missouri in 2005. The band's musical style is characterized by an eclectic blending of electronicore and deathcore. The group currently consists of vocalist Jonny McBee, dr ...

Bring Me the Horizon Bring Me the Horizon are a British Rock music, rock band, formed in Sheffield, England in 2004. The group currently consists of lead vocalist Oli Sykes, drummer Matt Nicholls, guitarist Lee Malia and bassist Matt Kean (musician), Matt Kean. T ...

Buckcherry Buckcherry is an American hard rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1995. The band released two albums, ''Buckcherry (album), Buckcherry'' (1999) and ''Time Bomb (Buckcherry album), Time Bomb'' (2001), before dissolving in 2002. Buckche ...

Cadaver A cadaver, often known as a corpse, is a Death, dead human body. Cadavers are used by medical students, physicians and other scientists to study anatomy, identify disease sites, determine causes of death, and provide tissue (biology), tissue to ...

Candiria Candiria is an American band from Brooklyn, New York, mixing progressive metal, metalcore, jazz fusion and hip hop. They are part of the precursors of the mathcore genre with bands like Deadguy or Lethargy.Kevin Stewart-Panko, "The Decade in N ...

(1987–1996) * Carnage * Carnival in Coal * Capharnaum *

Cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

Cauldron A cauldron (or caldron) is a large cookware and bakeware, pot (kettle) for cooking or boiling over an open fire, with a lid and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger and/or integral handles or feet. There is a rich history of cauldron lore in r ...

* Cerebral Bore * The Chasm * Circle of Dead Children *

Clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that allows an output shaft to be disconnected from a rotating input shaft. The clutch's input shaft is typically attached to a motor, while the clutch's output shaft is connected to the mechanism that does th ...

* Coalesce * Concrete Sox * Confessor *

Cult of Luna Cult of Luna is a Swedish post-metal band from Umeå founded in 1998. Their style of music is similar to contemporary bands Neurosis and Isis. Cult of Luna was signed to Earache Records in the early 2000s and released five albums, including th ...

(2003–2009) * Decapitated * December Wolves * Deicide (2002–2008) *

DJ Hyper Guy James Hatfield (born 23 February 1977) better known by his stage name DJ Hyper or just Hyper, is a British DJ, producer and remixer, known for his use of live bass, guitars and uncompromising vocals. He has done remixes for artists such a ...

* Electric Callboy * Enforcer * Entombed (1989–1996) * Ephel Duath *

Evile Evile are an English thrash metal band from Huddersfield, formed in 2004. They have experienced numerous line-up changes over the years, with drummer Ben Carter being the only member of the original line-up to have stayed consistently. The curr ...

* Ewigkeit * Extreme Noise Terror *

Forest Stream Forest Stream is a symphonic black / doom / gothic metal band formed in Chernogolovka, Russia in 1995. The band draws inspiration from long and harsh Russian winters. Stylistically, the band's epic sound combines the atmosphere of the British ...

* Frantic Bleep * Fudge Tunnel * Gama Bomb *

(1989–2000) * Goodbye June * Hate Eternal * Haggard Cat * The Haunted * Hellbastard *

* Hour of 13 * Ignominious Incarceration * Insision * Iron Monkey * Janus Stark * Johnny Violent * Kagoule * Lawnmower Deth *

Linea 77 Linea 77 is an Italian metal band formed in 1993. " Inno all'odio," a song from their fifth studio album, '' Available for Propaganda'' was featured on the soundtrack of '' FIFA 06''. They were formerly signed to Universal Records. In 2008, Line ...

Love and Death ''Love and Death'' is a 1975 American comedy film written and directed by Woody Allen. It is a satire on the Golden Age of Russian literature starring Allen and Diane Keaton as Boris and Sonja, Russians living during the Napoleonic Era who enga ...

Massacre A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians Glossary of French words and expressions in English#En masse, en masse by an armed ...

* Massive * Massive Wagons * Misery Loves Co. * Misfits * Morbid Angel (1988–2004) * Mortiis *

Municipal Waste Municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage in the United States and rubbish in Britain, is a waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public. "Garbage" can also refer specifically to food waste, a ...

* Naked City *

(1986–1999) * Neuraxis * Nocturnus (1989–1993) * Oceano (2008–2016) * OLD * Ol Drake * Order of Ennead *

Painkiller An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic, antalgic, pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used for pain management. Analgesics are conceptually distinct from anesthetics, which temporarily reduce, and in s ...

* Pitchshifter (1992–1996) *

Pulkas Pulkas was an English nu metal band from London, United Kingdom which later changed its name to I:AM:I. History Formative years and signing to Earache ''Pulkas'' were formed in 1995 by Luke Lloyd (vocals), Martin Bourne (guitar)m Jules McBr ...

* Rival Sons (2009–2018) * Savage Messiah * Scarlet Rebels * Severe Torture * Scorn * Society 1 *

Sore Throat Sore throat, also known as throat pain, is pain or irritation of the throat. The majority of sore throats are caused by a virus, for which antibiotics are not helpful. For sore throat caused by bacteria (GAS), treatment with antibiotics may hel ...

* SSS * Skindred *

* Tallah * Terrorizer * The Dust Coda * The Glorious Sons (Europe and Japan) * The Soulless * The Temperance Movement * Those Damn Crows * Travis Meadows * Ultraviolence * Vader * Vektor * Violator * Wakrat * Woods of Ypres * The White Buffalo (European Deal) * White Wizzard * With Passion * Wormrot * Danny Worsnop

References

External links

*
Chronicles of Chaos interview with Digby Pearson
{{Authority control Record labels established in 1985 1985 establishments in England English record labels Companies based in Nottingham British independent record labels Black metal record labels Death metal record labels Doom metal record labels Thrash metal record labels Grindcore record labels Heavy metal record labels Hardcore record labels Rock record labels Experimental music record labels Industrial record labels