Song, by Toad is an

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- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

and music

blog A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order ...

based in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

. It was founded in 2008 by Matthew Young, and has released a number of critically acclaimed albums by acts including

Meursault Meursault () is a commune in the Côte-d'Or department and region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France. Etymology The oldest attested form of the toponym Meursault dates from 1094, as ''Murassalt'' and ''Mussalt'', in a charter by t ...

Rob St John Rob St. John is an English writer, artist and musician. Early life Rob St. John was born in Lancashire, and spent his childhood living on Pendle Hill. Career Music St. John's debut album, ''Weald'', was released in November 2011, and received ...

and Sparrow and the Workshop. The label takes its name from a passage in ''

The Wind in the Willows ''The Wind in the Willows'' is a children's novel by the British novelist Kenneth Grahame, first published in 1908. It details the story of Mole, Ratty, and Badger as they try to help Mr. Toad, after he becomes obsessed with motorcars and gets ...

''.

History

Song, by Toad began in 2004 as a music blog by Matthew Young, a design engineer in Edinburgh. The label was founded in 2008 after a drunken discussion with the band Broken Records, whereby Young promised to release the band's first album if they weren't signed by another record label. Although Broken Records eventually signed to

4AD 4AD is a British record label owned by Beggars Group. It was founded in London under the name "Axis" (after the Hendrix album) by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent in 1980 as an imprint of Beggars Banquet Records. The name was changed to 4AD af ...

, Young decided to found the label anyway. Following low key releases by ''Uhersky Brod'' and ''Nightjar'', the label's first major release was '' Pissing on Bonfires/Kissing with Tongues'' by the Edinburgh-based Meursault in 2009, the success of which Young credits with forcing him 'to set up a proper record label'. The album was rated by cultural magazine The Skinny as the 16th best Scottish album of the 2000-2010 decade.

Toad Sessions

Alongside the record label and the blog, Song, by Toad have also recorded and published a number of live 'Toad Sessions', mostly recorded in Matthew Young's home. The Toad sessions have featured international artists including

Mumford & Sons Mumford & Sons is a British folk rock band formed in London in 2007. The band currently consists of Marcus Mumford (lead vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, drums), Ted Dwane (vocals, bass guitar, double bass), and Ben Lovett (vocals, ...

, Josh T. Pearson,

Sam Amidon Samuel Tear Amidon (born June 3, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. Musical career In 2001, Amidon self-released ''Solo Fiddle'', an album of traditional Irish fiddle instrumentals. Amidon's first album of ...

and

Lach Lach is an American singer-songwriter associated with the anti-folk movement. As a songwriter, Lach founded the anti-folk art and music movement, which is cited as a main inspiration by contemporary performers like Beck, Jeffrey Lewis, Hamell o ...

, as well as artists from the label including Meursault, Adam Stafford and Rob St John.

Artists

These artist have all released music on the Song, by Toad label. * Adam Stafford *Animal Magic Tricks *Bastard Mountain *

Dana Gavanski Dana Gavanski is a Canadian singer-songwriter, of Serbian descent, resident in London. Her first record was released in 2017 and she is currently signed to Full Time Hobby in the UK, Ba Da Bing Records in the US and Flemish Eye in her native Cana ...

David Thomas Broughton David Thomas Broughton (, born 20 March 1981) is an English folk/avant-garde singer and guitarist. Born in Otley, West Yorkshire, he creates the sound of a large ensemble by sampling himself singing, playing acoustic guitar, and making an assor ...

*Dolfinz *DTHPDL *Dune Witch Trails * eagleowl *Ian Humberstone *Inspector Tapehead *Jesus H Foxx *Jonnie Common *

King Creosote Kenny Anderson (born January 1967), known primarily by his stage name King Creosote, is an independent singer-songwriter from Fife, Scotland. To date, Anderson has released over forty albums, with his latest full length, ''Astronaut Meets Applem ...

*King Post Kitsch *Le Thug *Lil Daggers *

Loch Lomond Loch Lomond (; gd, Loch Laomainn - 'Lake of the Elms'Richens, R. J. (1984) ''Elm'', Cambridge University Press.) is a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, often considered the boundary between the lowlands of C ...

*Magic Eye *Maxwell Panther *

*NAKED *Nightjar *PAWS *Plastic Animals *

*Sex Hands *Siobhan Wilson * Sparrow and the Workshop *

The Builders and the Butchers The Builders and The Butchers are a folk rock band based in Portland, Oregon, United States. It is fronted by singer/guitar player Ryan Sollee. The other members of the band are Willy Kunkle (bass guitar, vocals, percussion), Justin Baier (drums, ...

*The Japanese War Effort * The Leg *The Savings and Loan *The Underground Youth *Trips and Falls *Uhersky Brod *Virgin of the Birds *Waiters *

Woodpigeon The common wood pigeon or common woodpigeon (''Columba palumbus''), also known as simply wood pigeon, wood-pigeon or woodpigeon, is a large species in the dove and pigeon family (Columbidae), native to the western Palearctic. It belongs to the g ...

*Yusuf Azak *Zed Penguin

References

External links

Song, by Toad Blog

Song, by Toad Records

Toad Sessions
{{Authority control British independent record labels Record labels established in 2008