Thick Syrup Records 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 ...

from

Little Rock ( The "Little Rock") , government_type = Council-manager , leader_title = Mayor , leader_name = Frank Scott Jr. , leader_party = D , leader_title2 = Council , leader_name2 ...

, Arkansas. Founded by Travis McElroy in 2006, it specializes in

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

and

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 ...

. It has released the work of known acts such as

Matt Cameron Matthew David Cameron (born November 28, 1962) is an American musician who is the drummer for the rock band Pearl Jam. He first gained fame as the drummer for Seattle-based rock band Soundgarden, which he joined in 1986. He appeared on each of ...

Jad Fair Jad Fair (born June 9, 1954) is an American singer, guitarist, graphic artist, and founding member of lo-fi alternative rock group Half Japanese. Biography Fair was born in Coldwater, Michigan. In 1974, he and his brother David formed the lo-fi ...

from

Half Japanese Half Japanese is an American art punk band formed by brothers Jad and David Fair around 1975, sometime after the family's relocation to Uniontown, Maryland. Their original instrumentation included a small drum set, which they took turns playi ...

Bob Bert Robert Bertelli, better known as Bob Bert, is an American rock drummer. Biography Based in Hoboken, New Jersey, Bert initially came to prominence as drummer for the experimental rock band Sonic Youth during the early to mid-1980s. Bert playe ...

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth was an American rock band based in New York City, formed in 1981. Founding members Thurston Moore (guitar, vocals), Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar) and Lee Ranaldo (guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of th ...

Penn Jillette Penn Fraser Jillette (born March 5, 1955) is an American magician, actor, musician, inventor, television presenter, and author, best known for his work with fellow magician Teller as half of the team Penn & Teller. The duo has been featured i ...

, Don Fleming and

Velvet Monkeys Donald Gene Fleming (born September 25, 1957) is an American musician and producer. Besides fronting a number of his own bands, ( Velvet Monkeys, B.A.L.L., and Gumball) Fleming has produced Sonic Youth, Screaming Trees, Teenage Fanclub and Ho ...

. The label also releases compilation albums with multiple artists.

History

Thick Syrup Records (TSR) was founded by Travis McElroy in 2005, but the first year was spent on finances and promoting the imprint. The label's first release was 2005’s ''Gotta Get It Outta Here'' by Nathan Brown under the moniker Browningham. McElroy's friend Brian Lovell helped with the label early on, and the name was chosen in honor of Lovell swallowing

ipecac Syrup of ipecac (), or simply ipecac, is a drug that was once widely used as an expectorant (in low doses) and a rapid-acting emetic (in higher doses). It is obtained from the dried rhizome and roots of the ipecacuanha plant (''Carapichea ipecac ...

on a dare from McElroy. Kevin Rogers later began working with the label in Lovell's place. As of 2013, Thick Syrup has released about 60 albums that include genres as diverse as

art punk Art punk is a subgenre of punk rock in which artists go beyond the genre's rudimentary garage rock and are considered more sophisticated than their peers. These groups still generated punk's aesthetic of being simple, offensive, and free-spirit ...

, low-fi

, experimental exercises, and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

. According to ''

Arkansas Online The ''Arkansas Democrat-Gazette'' is the newspaper of record in the U.S. state of Arkansas, printed in Little Rock with a northwest edition published in Lowell. It is distributed for sale in all 75 of Arkansas' counties. By virtue of one of ...

'', "Thick Syrup has helped blaze a proudly twisted musical path all from the humble confines of central Arkansas."

Artists

The following is a partial list of artists, past and present, associated with the label: *The Alpha Ray *Androids of Ex-Lovers *Avondale Airforce *Bald Mountain *

Ben Lee Benjamin Michael Lee (born 11 September 1978) is an Australian musician and actor. Lee began his career as a musician at the age of 14 with the Sydney band Noise Addict, but he focused on his solo career when the band broke up in 1995. He appe ...

*Bewitched (

) *

Blag Dahlia Paul Cafaro (born May 8, 1966), known professionally as Blag Dahlia, is an American singer and record producer, best known as the vocalist for punk band Dwarves.Ritchie, Ryan (2007)Locals Only – Blood, Guts and Literacy: Blag Dahlia steps out ...

( Dwarves) *Bloodless Cooties * BMX Bandits *Bob Fay (Sebadoh) *Boister *The Book of Amy *Brothers of the Sonic Cloth ( TAD) *Browningham *Bryan Frazier *Chicken Snake *Chrome Cranks *CooCooRockinTime *

Damien Jurado Damien Jurado is an American singer-songwriter from Seattle, Washington, United States. Over the years, he has released albums on Sub Pop, Secretly Canadian, Loose, and is currently on his own label Maraqopa Records. Music career Jurado's solo ...

*David Fair *

David Greenberger David Greenberger (born June 26, 1954, in Pennsylvania) is an American artist, writer and radio commentator best known for his ''Duplex Planet'' series of zines, comic books, CDs, and spoken word performances and radio plays. From 1996 to 2009, he ...

(

The Duplex Planet ''The Duplex Planet'' is a zine edited and published by David Greenberger since 1979. It contains transcriptions of his interviews with elderly residents of senior centers and "meal sites" in the Massachusetts area. For many years, the zine focuse ...

) *

David Markey David Markey (born December 3, 1963 in Burbank, California, United States) is an American film director. Biography As a self-taught filmmaker and musician, David Markey directed, produced, edited, and photographed most of his films, the majority ...

(film director) * Don Fleming *The Empty Boat People *

Everett True Everett True (born Jeremy Andrew Thackray on 21 April 1961) is an English music journalist and musician. He became interested in rock music after hearing The Residents, and formed a band with school friends. He has written and recorded as The ...

(

The Legend! Everett True (born Jeremy Andrew Thackray on 21 April 1961) is an English music journalist and musician. He became interested in rock music after hearing The Residents, and formed a band with school friends. He has written and recorded as The ...

) *Ezra Lbs *Frown Pow'r *Ginsu Wives *

*Herding Kittens *INT'L Shades *

*Jam Messengers *

Julie Cafritz Julia Cafritz (born May 5, 1965) is an American musician and guitarist who was a member of Pussy Galore and Free Kitten. She is regarded as a cult figure from the New York City noise music scene of the 1990s. Early life Cafritz was born in Wa ...

(

Pussy Galore Pussy Galore is a fictional character in the 1959 Ian Fleming James Bond novel '' Goldfinger'' and the 1964 film of the same name. In the film, she is played by Honor Blackman. The character returns in the 2015 Bond continuation novel '' Tri ...

) *

Ken Stringfellow Kenneth Stuart Stringfellow (born October 30, 1968) is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, and producer. Best known for his work with The Posies, R.E.M., and the re-formed Big Star, Stringfellow's discography includ ...

( Posies,

Big Star Big Star was an American rock band formed in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1971 by Alex Chilton (vocals, guiar), Chris Bell (vocals, guitar), Jody Stephens (drums), and Andy Hummel (bass). The group broke up in early 1975, and reorganized with a new ...

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American rock band from Athens, Georgia, formed in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the first alternat ...

) *Life Size Pizza *Liquid Skulls *

Lucero Lucero may refer to: * Lucero (given name) a Spanish given name * Lucero (surname) a Spanish surname * Lucero (entertainer) (born 1969), Mexican singer and actress ** ''Lucero'' (album), eponymous album released in 1993 * Lucero (band), an America ...

*Lurch and Holler *

Mike Watt Michael David Watt (born December 20, 1957) is an American bassist, vocalist and songwriter. Watt co-founded and played bass guitar for the rock bands Minutemen (1980–1985), Dos (1985–present), and Firehose (1986–1994). He began a solo ...

(

The Stooges The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, was an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Da ...

Minutemen Minutemen were members of the organized New England colonial militia companies trained in weaponry, tactics, and military strategies during the American Revolutionary War. They were known for being ready at a minute's notice, hence the name. Mi ...

) *Nine Lives Pussy *

R. Stevie Moore Robert Steven Moore (born January 18, 1952) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter who pioneered lo-fi (or "DIY") music. Often called the "godfather of home recording", he is one of the most recognized artists of the cas ...

*The Reparations *Rob Kennedy (Workdogs, Jam Messengers) *The SEE *Sit: Boy Girl Boy Girl *Smoke Up Johnny *Stella Fancy *

Stephen Egerton Stephen Egerton may refer to: * Stephen Egerton (priest) (1555?–1621?), English clergyman * Stephen Egerton (diplomat) (1932–2006), British Ambassador to Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Italy *Stephen Egerton (guitarist) Stephen Patrick O'Reilly (bor ...

(

The Descendents The Descendents are an American punk rock band formed in 1977 in Manhattan Beach, California, by guitarist Frank Navetta, bassist Tony Lombardo and drummer Bill Stevenson. In 1979, they enlisted Stevenson's school friend Milo Aukerman as a si ...

) * Steve Turner (

Mudhoney Mudhoney is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1988, following the demise of Green River. Its members are singer and rhythm guitarist Mark Arm, lead guitarist Steve Turner, bassist Guy Maddison and drummer Dan Peters. ...

) *Sweet Eagle *

The Tinklers The Tinklers are a band from Baltimore who have been together since 1979. The group consists of Charles Brohawn and Chris Mason, both of whom sing, play guitar, and percussion instruments of varying degrees of quality (including cigar boxes, spo ...

To Live and Shave in L.A. To Live and Shave in L.A. (TLASILA) is an experimental music collective founded in 1993 by avant-garde composer/producer Tom Smith (formerly of Washington, DC groups Peach of Immortality (band), Peach of Immortality and Pussy Galore (band), Pussy ...

*Twelve Tone Elevator *

*Venture Lift *

Weird Paul Petroskey Weird derives from the Anglo-Saxon word Wyrd, meaning fate or destiny. In modern English it has acquired the meaning of “strange or uncanny”. It may also refer to: Places * Weird Lake, a lake in Minnesota, U.S. People *"Weird Al" Yankovic (b ...

*The Whistling Joy Jumpers (

Thollem McDonas Thollem McDonas is an American pianist, improviser, composer, singer-songwriter, touring performer, musical educator, and social critic. His musical compositions and performances have ranged from classical, and free jazz, to experimental and p ...

, &

Brian Chase Brian Chase (born February 12, 1978) is an American drummer and drone musician who plays in the New York rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs. He was ranked at #50 in Gigwise's list of ''The Greatest Drummers of All Time''. He plays drums with traditional ...

Yeah Yeah Yeahs The Yeah Yeah Yeahs are an American indie rock band formed in New York City in 2000. The group is composed of vocalist and pianist Karen O (born Karen Lee Orzolek), guitarist and keyboardist Nick Zinner, and drummer Brian Chase. They are comp ...

) * Yuri Landman Ensemble

Discography

This incomplete list is organized by catalog number, a roughly chronological number system established by the label and assigned to each release. ::See also:
List of available releases on Blue Collar Distro
'

References

* * *

External links

Official WebsiteThick Syrup Records
on MySpace (Official)
Thick Syrup Records
on

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(Official) {{Authority control American independent record labels Indie rock record labels Companies based in Arkansas Alternative rock record labels Record labels established in 2006