Sonic Unyon 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 and medium-sized enterprise, small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels ...

based in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. The label has put out releases by bands including Tristan Psionic, Sianspheric, Shallow North Dakota, Eric's Trip, Hayden, Chore,

Frank Black and the Catholics Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV (born April 6, 1965), better known by the stage name Black Francis, is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He is the frontman of the alternative rock band Pixies (band), Pixies. Following th ...

, A Northern Chorus, Raising the Fawn, Teenage Head, Simply Saucer, and Voivod. The label’s current artist roster includes

Big Wreck Big Wreck are a Canadian-American Rock music, rock band formed by Ian Thornley and Brian Doherty in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1992. The band was rounded out with David Henning and Forrest Williams. They disbanded in 2002 and Ian Thornley pursued ...

Danko Jones Danko Jones is a Canadian hard rock trio from Toronto. The band consists of Danko Jones (vocals/guitar), John "JC" Calabrese (bass), and Rich Knox (drums).Terra Lightfoot, and Basement Revolver.

History

Formation

Sonic Unyon was founded in Burlington, Ontario in

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

by Mark Milne and Sandy McIntosh, guitarists of the band Tristan Psionic."Sonic Unyon wafts to greatness"
''Toronto Star'' - Toronto, Ont.By Ira Band Dec 19, 1996 Page: G.9 (The label’s name was inspired by the title of a ''Guitar Player'' magazine interview with My Bloody Valentine guitarist

Kevin Shields Kevin Patrick Shields (born 21 May 1963) is an Irish musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer, who achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and guitarist of the alternative rock band My Bloody Valentine (band), My Bloody Valenti ...

.) Sonic Unyon's ownership expanded six months later with the addition of partner Tim Potocic, the band’s drummer. Each put up $2,000 and the company took its first steps.

Early Years (1993-1998)

At first, Sonic Unyon exclusively released Tristan Psionic's music, but the label soon began releasing and promoting music by other local bands. Sonic Unyon's first eight releases were issued on individually dubbed, hand-packaged cassettes. The label's first vinyl pressing was a 7" sampler released in 1994. A compilation, the label's tenth release, followed later that year on compact disc. Sonic Unyon regularly organized concerts in traditional and non-traditional spaces featuring artists on the label's roster, but became increasingly ambitious as momentum behind the young label grew. The label’s first large-scale event, Woolsock, was a one-day festival held in a farm field south of Campbellville, Ontario on August 20, 1994. The lineup included Change of Heart, Gorp, Shallow, Smoother, Spool,

Treble Charger Treble Charger is a Canadian rock band formed in 1992 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, consisting of vocalist and guitarist Greig Nori, vocalist and guitarist Bill Priddle, bassist Rosie Martin and drummer Richard Mulligan. They began with a melo ...

, 13 Engines, and Tristan Psionic. Woolsock ’95 was staged a year after the initial Woolsock, this time at a rural property in Pelham, Ontario. Following logistical hurdles, the festival ultimately relocated to Hamilton’s X-Club. The event featured Another White Male, Choke To Start, Gorp, Hayden, hHead, Hip Club Groove,

Kittens A kitten is a juvenile cat. After being born, kittens display primary altriciality and are fully dependent on their mothers for survival. They normally do not open their eyes for seven to ten days. After about two weeks, kittens develop quick ...

, Kottmeier, The Mercury Men, Monster Voodoo Machine, The New Grand, Poledo, Project 9, Rheostatics, Shallow, Sianspheric, Smoother, Sparkmarker, Treble Charger, and Tristan Psionic. In honour of the label’s second anniversary, Sonic Unyon rented the 44-meter yacht Captain Matthew Flinders for a floating party tour of Toronto’s waters on September 17, 1995. Bands playing that party included Change of Heart, Die Cheerleader, and Huevos Rancheros. By 1995, Sonic Unyon had grown to be one of the largest independent labels in Canada. In 1997, Sonic Unyon’s partners moved to a three-storey 14,000-square-foot commercial building at 22 Wilson Street near James Street North in downtown Hamilton thanks in part to a friendly relationship with then-owner Sam Manson, whose namesake sporting goods store had closed at the same address three years earlier. The label, which had been operating out of a warehouse in Hamilton’s Corktown neighbourhood, was able to purchase the Wilson Street building after being granted a year of rent-free tenancy there. The basement of their headquarters often held shows, and many local musicians got jobs working for the record label and some would go on to operate their own record labels out of the building. On October 3, 1998, Sonic Unyon marked the label’s fifth anniversary with a celebration that included the release of the Now We Are 5 compilation, the grand opening of the Sonic Unyon Record Store (located on the main level of 22 Wilson Street), an all-ages show at its headquarters, and a licensed concert in an upstairs hall of the nearby Fortune Village restaurant. The latter concert featured sets from

Blonde Redhead Blonde Redhead is an American alternative rock band composed of Kazu Makino (vocals, keyboards, rhythm guitar) and identical twin brothers Simone (drums, keyboards) and Amedeo Pace (lead guitar, bass, keyboards, vocals) that formed in New York ...

Danko Jones Danko Jones is a Canadian hard rock trio from Toronto. The band consists of Danko Jones (vocals/guitar), John "JC" Calabrese (bass), and Rich Knox (drums).The Mooney Suzuki, The New Grand, Bill Priddle,

Julie Doiron Julie Elaine Doiron (born June 28, 1972) is a Canadian singer-songwriter of Acadian heritage. She has been the bassist and co-vocalist for the Canadian indie rock band Eric's Trip since its formation in 1990. Doiron has also released ten solo al ...

, Thrush Hermit, and Tristan Psionic. The concert’s lineup had initially included

The Flaming Lips The Flaming Lips are an American psychedelic rock band formed in 1983 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The band currently consists of Wayne Coyne (vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards), Steven Drozd (guitars, bass, keyboards, drums, vocals), Derek Brown ...

’ Boombox Experiment, but the band ended that series five nights earlier in Boston, Massachusetts and did not appear in the final lineup. Label zine ''The Stink'', produced by label staff, was used to showcase company news, upcoming events and releases, artist Q&As and touring updates, scene reports, independent label profiles and Sonic Unyon's ever-growing mail order catalog. The direct-mail newsletter, published every one to three months, was used to contact media and fans across Canada in the label's early days. The zine was discontinued following the opening of the label's in-house record shop, launch of an associated website, and the dawn of the distribution era.

The Distribution Era (1998-2008)

Following the collapse and eventual bankruptcy of Cargo Records, Sonic Unyon Distribution was founded in 1998 to distribute Sonic Unyon and other labels in Canada, amassing a roster that included dozens of domestic imprints as well as exclusively representing over 250 international independent labels within Canada. The company distributed releases in Canada from independent labels from around the world and issued select co-releases with other independent labels, including Amphetamine Reptile,

Dischord Records Dischord Records is a Washington, D.C.–based independent record label specializing in punk rock. The label is co-owned by Ian MacKaye and Jeff Nelson, who founded Dischord in 1980 to release '' Minor Disturbance'' by their band the Teen Id ...

Epitaph Records Epitaph Records is an American independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. A large portion of the record label, known as Hellcat Records, is owned by Tim Armstrong, frontman of the punk rock band Rancid. Several ...

, Fat Wreck Chords, Fearless,

Jagjaguwar Jagjaguwar is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana. History In 1996, in Charlottesville, Virginia, University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public resear ...

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, Southern Records,

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, and Warp. Sonic Unyon Distribution was ultimately sold to MapleCore in 2008. Sonic Unyon also ran hardcore label Goodfellow Records (active 1997-2009), as well as the more mainstream imprint Labwork Music (a joint effort with

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

Canada), which released Wintersleep's ''Welcome to the Night Sky,'' the album that earned them a JUNO Award for New Group of the Year. Operating out of a retail space on the main floor of Sonic Unyon’s headquarters, the Sonic Unyon Record Store showcased the thousands of independent titles stocked in the label’s distribution warehouse, located in the same building. The shop opened in October 1998 and remained in business for almost a decade, closing in spring of 2008. The label continues to operate an online storefront. Complementing the building's basement hardcore shows and in-store pop-ups, between 2002 and 2007 the label’s third floor space hosted concerts from dozens of bands including

Alexisonfire Alexisonfire (pronounced "Alexis on Fire") is a Canadian post-hardcore band formed in St. Catharines, OntarioRoss, Mike. "", Canadian Online Explorer, CANOE JAM!, April 30, 2004. Retrieved on July 17, 2007. in 2001. The band's members are Georg ...

, Frank Black and the Catholics,

Converge Converge may refer to: * Converge (band), American hardcore punk band * Converge (Baptist denomination), American national evangelical Baptist body * Limit (mathematics) In mathematics, a limit is the value that a function (or sequence) app ...

, Cursed,

The Evens The Evens are an American indie rock duo, comprising Ian MacKaye (baritone guitar, vocals) and Amy Farina (drums, vocals). Formed in Washington, D.C. in 2001 after MacKaye's band Fugazi (band), Fugazi entered a hiatus, the Evens began practicin ...

, and Voivod.

The Events Era (2009-present)

In 2009, Sonic Unyon returned to event production at scale by organizing Supercrawl, a free annual multi-arts festival dedicated to showcasing the arts scene in the James North region of Hamilton. The three-day event has featured hundreds of national and international touring artists in a range of artistic disciplines. In 2015, the festival received an Ontario Tourism Award of Excellence for Tourism Event of the Year. It was also a finalist for Event of the Year at the 2017 Canadian Tourism Awards. Sonic Unyon has since broadened its events-based business to include the annual Because Beer Craft Beer Festival, and the opening of multi-use cultural events spaces Mills Hardware and Bridgeworks in 2014 and 2020 respectively. The label left its Wilson Street offices in 2017 and is now headquartered within the Bridgeworks venue. Sonic Unyon has produced JUNOfest 2015 and 2022, JUNO Songwriters’ Circle in 2019, and Hamilton's 2015 Pan Am Games closing celebrations. Sonic Unyon also produced the 2021 and 2023

Grey Cup The Grey Cup () is both the championship game of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team playing in the namesake championship of professional Canadian football. The game is contested between the winners ...

Festivals, the 2023 and 2024

Polaris Music Prize The Polaris Music Prize is a music award annually given to the best full-length Canadian album based on artistic merit, regardless of genre, sales, or record label. The award was established in 2006 with a $20,000 cash prize. The prize was inc ...

Galas and the 2023 edition of CBC Toronto's Sounds of the Season. In 2011, roughly two decades after the term “metal” was stripped from the

JUNO Awards The Juno Awards (stylized as JUNOS), or simply known as the Junos, are awards presented by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences to recognize outstanding achievements in Canada's music industry. The Grammy Awards are the United S ...

(following the retirement of the Best Hard Rock / Metal Album category after the 1991 awards), a new category was created: Metal/Hard Music Album of the Year, the result of a two-year CARAS lobbying campaign by Sonic Unyon. In 2019, the label released a triple-LP vinyl retrospective, Now We Are 25, as well as a documentary of the same name that featured appearances from artists

Joel Plaskett William Joel MacDonald Plaskett (born April 18, 1975) is a Canadian rock musician and songwriter based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He was a member of Halifax alternative rock band Thrush Hermit in the 1990s. Plaskett performs in a number of gen ...

of Thrush Hermit, Hayden,

Chris Murphy Christopher Scott Murphy (born August 3, 1973) is an American lawyer, author, and politician serving as the junior United States senator from the state of Connecticut since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the U ...

and Jay Ferguson of Sloan, Terra Lightfoot, music media personalities George Stromboulopoulos and Alan Cross, and others. The Sonic Unyon building also housed the recording studio of Junior Boys’ Jeremy Greenspan prior to relocating to his own Barton Building Studios in 2019. In September 2024, the label announced a new event space called Sonic Hall in downtown Guelph, Ontario.

Critical Recognition

Sonic Unyon’s roster makes up three of

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

's 50 best Canadian songs of the '90s and eight placements on

Noisey ''Vice'' (stylized in all caps) is a Canadian-American magazine focused on lifestyle, arts, culture, and news/politics. It was founded in 1994 in Montreal as an alternative punk magazine, and its founders later launched the youth media company ...

’s 2016 ranking of the 60 Best CanRock Songs Ever. Singles from Sonic Unyon artists represent three of

CBC Music CBC Music (formerly known as CBC FM, CBC Stereo and CBC Radio 2) is a Canadian FM radio network operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. It used to concentrate on classical and jazz. In 2007 and 2008, the network transitioned towards a ...

’s 50 Best Canadian Songs of the '90s and three of Indie 88’s Top 150 Canadian Songs of All Time. Two Sonic Unyon releases ranked on Chart Magazine’s Top 100 Greatest Canadian Albums of All Time. Thrush Hermit’s '' Clayton Park'' has been named as one of CBC Music’s 100 Greatest Canadian Albums Ever while Sianspheric’s ''Somnium'' was named as one of Chart Attack’s Top 50 Canadian Albums of All Time.

Commercial Success

Hayden’s ''Everything I Long For'' has been certified Gold by Music Canada.

Awards & Nominations

JUNO Awards

* Julie Doiron'', Julie Doiron and the Wooden Stars'' (Sappy/Sonic Unyon) - Winner, Best Alternative Album, 2000 * Thrush Hermit, ''Clayton Park'' (Sonic Unyon) - Nominee, Best Alternative Album, 2000 * Tricky Woo, ''Sometimes I Cry'' (Sonic Unyon) - Nominee, Best Alternative Album, 2000 * Wintersleep, ''Welcome to the Night Sky'' (Labwork) - Winner, New Group of the Year, 2008 * Wintersleep, ''Welcome to the Night Sky'' (Labwork) - Nominee, Alternative Album of the Year, 2008 * Terra Lightfoot, ''New Mistakes'' (Sonic Unyon) - Nominee, Adult Alternative Album of the Year, 2018 * Strongman, ''No Time Like Now'' (Sonic Unyon) - Nominee, Blues Album of the Year, 2018 * Danko Jones, ''Power Trio'' (Sonic Unyon) - Nominee, Metal/Hard Music Album of the Year, 2022 * Danko Jones, ''Electric Sounds'' (Sonic Unyon) - Nominee, Metal/Hard Music Album of the Year, 2024 * Big Wreck, ''Pages'' (Sonic Unyon) - Nominee, Rock Album of the Year, 2025 * Terra Lightfoot, ''Healing Power'' (Sonic Unyon) - Nominee, Adult Alternative Album of the Year, 2025

Polaris Music Prize

* Final Fantasy, ''He Poos Clouds'' (Blocks Recording Club/Sonic Unyon) - Winner, 2006 * Terra Lightfoot, ''New Mistakes'' (Sonic Unyon/Sony) - Long List, 2018 * Thrush Hermit, ''Clayton Park'' - Short List, Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize, 2020 * Terra Lightfoot, ''Healing Power'' (Sonic Unyon/Universal) - Long List, 2024

Selected Artists

The following artists have made at least one release through Sonic Unyon.

References

External links

Sonic Unyon
* *
1995 Sonic Unyon TV Interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonic Unyon Record labels established in 1993 Canadian independent record labels Indie rock record labels Alternative rock record labels Companies based in Hamilton, Ontario Music of Hamilton, Ontario