Pirates Press Records is a

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

record label founded in 2005. The label is based in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

, with its headquarters located in Emeryville,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

. The label releases music representing a variety of punk rock subgenres, including

Oi! Oi! is a subgenre of punk rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The music and its associated subculture had the goal of bringing together punks, skinheads, and other disaffected working-class youth. The movement wa ...

street punk Street punk (sometimes alternatively spelled streetpunk) is an urban working class-based subgenre of punk rock, which emerged as a rebellion against the perceived artistic pretensions of the first wave of British punk. The earliest street pun ...

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

ska-punk Ska punk (also spelled ska-punk) is a fusion genre that mixes ska music and punk rock music. Ska punk tends to feature brass instruments, especially horns such as trumpets, trombones and woodwind instruments like saxophones, making the genre ...

, and

pop-punk Pop-punk (also punk-pop, alternatively spelled without the hyphen) is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop music, pop. It is defined by its fast-paced, energetic tempos, and emphasis on classic pop s ...

, as well as related genres such as

ska Ska (; , ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a w ...

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

, and

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

. Some of the best-known artists who have released music with the label include Rancid (as well as several members' individual side projects and other bands),

Cock Sparrer Cock Sparrer () is an English punk rock band formed in 1972 in the East End of London. Although they have never enjoyed commercial success, they helped pave the way for the early '80s punk scene and the Oi! subgenre. Their songs have been cover ...

, Subhumans,

The Aggrolites The Aggrolites are an American reggae band from Los Angeles, California, United States, which formed in 2002. Overview The Aggrolites are an amalgamation of two previous Los Angeles reggae and ska bands, the Vessels and the Rhythm Doctors. Th ...

The Slackers The Slackers are an American ska band, formed in Manhattan, New York in 1991. The band's sound is a mix of ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub, soul, garage rock, and jazz. The Slackers' notability is credited to their prolific career, tours of Nort ...

, The Bar Stool Preachers, and more. Bands affiliated with the label regularly feature on lineups at major festivals such as BYO Punk Rock Bowling & Music Festival in

Las Vegas Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

, NV,

USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

;

Rebellion Festival The Rebellion Festival, formerly Holidays in the Sun and the Wasted Festival is a British punk rock festival first held in 1996. The festival has attracted mainstream press coverage from such sources as The Independent, The Daily Telegraph and ...

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

, UK; and

Riot Fest Riot Fest is an annual three-day punk rock music festival held at Douglass Park in Chicago, Illinois. It is known for booking reunions, guest performances, and full album performances. Riot Fest is one of the largest independently-owned music fe ...

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, IL,

. The label has also released several notable compilations, including the ''Oi! This is Streepunk!'' series, label sampler ''One Family One Flag'' (and its follow up ''For Family and Flag''), and ''Oi! 40 Years Untamed'', a 40th anniversary follow-up to

Garry Bushell Garry Bushell (born 13 May 1955) is an English newspaper columnist, rock music journalist, television presenter, author, musician and political activist. Bushell also sings in the Cockney Oi! bands GBX and the Gonads. He managed the New York C ...

's Oi! compilation series. The label also released ''Under One Flag'', a year-long, weekly 7" record subscription. The label is a sister company of

Pirates Press Pirates Press is a vinyl manufacturing and production located in Emeryville, California, that was founded in 2004. The company was started in the bedroom of owner Eric Mueller and has grown into a full-scale operation that now includes offices in ...

, a manufacturing & production company that is responsible for pressing all of the label's releases, in addition to releases from many outside customers. Due to the close relationship with the pressing company, the label is known for featuring unique pressings featuring a variety of color configurations and packaging options. The label's first release was a box set of 7-inch picture discs, and subsequent releases have included features such as hologram vinyl, glow-in-the-dark vinyl, UV digitally printed vinyl, custom shapes or text milled out of the vinyl, and a flexi disc released in a custom-labeled glass bottle designed to resemble a Molotov cocktail.

History

Eric Mueller started Pirates Press Records in 2005. Mueller saw the label as an opportunity to have a direct hand in releasing music he and his employees were excited about, as well as to make special vinyl releases that showed off the capabilities of

as a manufacturer.

''Essentials'' Box Set Series

In 2010, after having worked with the band on the a handful of singles and the US release of their LP ''Here We Stand'', Pirates Press Records released a

box set which included many of the band's releases. Entitled ''Cock Sparrer Essentials'', the package includes 6 studio albums, 4 full live albums, singles, picture discs and more. It also included sides of remixed, remastered, or otherwise previously unreleased 180gram heavyweight colored vinyl, a book, two posters, a limited edition metal lapel pin, screenprint and more. In addition, the label released a live LP/DVD, ''Back In SF'', recorded in 2009 at the Pirates Press fifth anniversary party at Great American Music Hall. The label also released a second box set called ''Cock Sparrer Live Essentials'', which exclusively featured live recordings. In 2012, Rancid's first release with the label was a new song called "Fuck You" on the 2012 compilation ''Oi! This Is Streetpunk'' Vol. 2. That same year, the label released the second artist's ''Essentials'' box set, ''Rancid Essentials'', a 20-year anniversary box set which contains all of the band's releases to date on 46 7" vinyl records housed in a faux-leather box. A deluxe mailorder version was sold including a limited edition Rancid-branded baseball bat made by

Louisville Slugger Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

. Sets of 7"s representing each individual album were also released. The label has continued working with Rancid as well as numerous projects by individual members. In 2015, the third artist's ''Essentials'' box set was released, featuring San Francisco's Reducers SF. In 2018, the fourth artist's ''Essentials'' box set was released, featuring New Jersey's The Ratchets. The Ratchets had been one of the bands included in the 7" box set that was the label's first release, and their debut LP ''Glory Bound'' had been the label's first LP release. In 2019, Pirates Press Records issued the new album ''Reggae Now!'' by

, as well as reissuing the band's debut LP, ''Dirty Reggae''. The following year, ''The Aggrolites Essentials'' became the fifth artist's ''Essentials'' box set, including all of the band's studio LPs recorded to date in a window-box slipcase. In addition to the box set, each album was also newly pressed for individual sale, some appearing on vinyl for the first time.

Rock the Ship Festivals

On October 25, 2014, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of

and Pirates Press Records, the label hosted a day-long show outside of Thee Parkside in San Francisco, headlined by

and

The Bouncing Souls The Bouncing Souls are an American punk rock band from New Brunswick, New Jersey, formed in 1989. By the time of their acknowledgment by the national punk rock scene, they had reignited a "pogo" element to New Jersey punk rock by playing fast li ...

, as well as a pre-party show at Thee Parkside the previous night and an after-party the same evening at the

Bottom of the Hill Bottom of the Hill is a concert venue located at the corner of 17th and Missouri streets in the Potrero Hill district of San Francisco, California. According to ''Rolling Stone'', the Bottom of the Hill is the best place to hear live music in San ...

, under the banner "Rock the Ship." From October 17–20, 2019, to celebrate the 15th anniversary of both

and Pirates Press Records, the label hosted a weekend-long Rock the Ship Festival featuring a large lineup of label artists and friends playing at venues in both

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. The festival's main event was an all-day show onboard the flight deck of the USS Hornet, a retired

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

-era

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

aircraft carrier docked in

Alameda An alameda is a street or path lined with trees () and may refer to: Places Canada * Alameda, Saskatchewan, town in Saskatchewan ** Grant Devine Dam, formerly ''Alameda Dam'', a dam and reservoir in southern Saskatchewan Chile * Alameda (Santi ...

, headlined by

and Subhumans. The festival also raised money for music and art programs in Bay Area public schools via auction items donated by the label, artists, and other local businesses.

Pirates Press Records artists

* 45 Adapters *

*Antagonizers ATL *The Bar Stool Preachers *Billy Liar *Bishops Green * Blind Pigs *

Bombshell Rocks Bombshell Rocks is a Swedish band that was founded in 1995, in Västerås, Sweden. History The group was formed in 1995 with a line-up of singer Mårten Cedergran, guitarists Richard Andersson and Sami Korhonen, bassist Mathias Lindh, and dru ...

* Charger (featuring

Matt Freeman Roger Matthew Freeman, also known as Matt McCall, (born April 23, 1966) is an American musician best known as the bassist of punk rock band Rancid. After forming several bands with guitarist and vocalist Tim Armstrong in the late 1980s and e ...

of Rancid) *

CJ Ramone Christopher Joseph Ward (born October 8, 1965), better known as C. J. Ramone, is an American musician. He is best known for performing from 1989 to 1996 as the bassist, backing vocalist and occasional lead vocalist of the punk rock Punk r ...

*Come Closer *The Complicators *DeeCRACKS *Downtown Struts *The Drowns * Harrington Saints * Landfill Crew (featuring

Tim Armstrong Timothy Ross Armstrong (born November 25, 1965) is an American musician, songwriter and record producer. Known for his distinctive voice, he is the singer/guitarist for the punk rock band Rancid (band), Rancid and hip hop/punk rock supergroup T ...

of Rancid) *

Lars Frederiksen Lars Erik Frederiksen (born Lars Erik Dapello, August 30, 1971) is an American musician and record producer best known as a guitarist and vocalist for the punk rock band Rancid, as well as the frontman of Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards and ...

(solo project of the Rancid member) *

Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards Lars is a common male name in Scandinavian countries. Origin ''Lars'' means "from the city of Laurentum". Lars is derived from the Latin name Laurentius, which means "from Laurentum" or "crowned with laurel", and is therefore related to the name ...

(side project of the Rancid member) *Lenny Lashley's Gang of One * Lion's Law *Monster Squad * The New Darkbuster *NOi!SE * Off With Their Heads * The Old Firm Casuals (featuring

of Rancid) *Plizzken * Rancid * The Ratchets *The Re-Volts *Reducers SF *

The Restarts The Restarts are a street punk band based in London. The Restarts were formed in 1995 in London with Darragh O'Neill on drums, Kieran Plunkett from Armed and Hammered on bass guitar, and Mik Useless on the guitar. They played many shows in t ...

*Roadside Bombs *Seized Up *Shuffle and Bang (featuring Korey Kingston of

, Hepcat) *

Teenage Bottlerocket Teenage Bottlerocket is an American rock band formed in Laramie, Wyoming in 2000. The rock band was formed by twin brothers Ray and Brandon Carlisle, following the dissolution of their previous band, Homeless Wonders. The band's music is he ...

Street Dogs Street Dogs is an American punk rock band from Boston, Massachusetts, formed in 2002 by former Dropkick Murphys singer Mike McColgan. The band disbanded in early 2020 after 17 years together but reunited again in 2024. History In 1997, McC ...

* Subhumans *Suedehead (featuring Davey Warsop of

Beat Union Beat Union was a pop-punk band from Birmingham, Bromsgrove and Redditch, United Kingdom. They were formerly known as Shortcut to Newark. The group has garnered comparisons to Elvis Costello and The Jam, as well as pop punk groups like Green Da ...

, Sharp Shock) *Suzi Moon (solo project by the member of

Civet A civet () is a small, lean, mostly nocturnal mammal native to tropical Asia and Africa, especially the tropical forests. The term ''civet'' applies to over a dozen different species, mostly from the family Viverridae. Most of the species's div ...

) * The Templars *Territories * Tim Timebomb and Friends (side project of the Rancid member) *The Vicious Cycles

References

External links