Toxic Shock Records was an American

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 first in

Pomona, California Pomona ( ) is a city in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pomona is located in the Pomona Valley, between the Inland Empire and the San Gabriel Valley. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's population was ...

, then in

Tucson, Arizona Tucson (; ; ) is a city in Pima County, Arizona, United States, and its county seat. It is the second-most populous city in Arizona, behind Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, with a population of 542,630 in the 2020 United States census. The Tucson ...

. The label was spawned from the record store of the same name, by its founders Bill Sassenberger and Julianna Towns in 1983, when they released the first of the ''Noise from Nowhere'' series of 7-inch EP compilations. For the next decade they released singles, compilations and albums by many notable and influential bands of the

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 ...

noise rock Noise rock (sometimes called noise punk) is a noise music, noise-oriented style of experimental rock that spun off from punk rock in the 1980s. Drawing on movements such as minimal music, minimalism, industrial music, and New York hardcore, a ...

and

post-hardcore Post-hardcore is a punk rock music genre that maintains the aggression and intensity of hardcore punk but emphasizes a greater degree of creative expression. Like the term " post-punk", the term "post-hardcore" has been applied to a broad conste ...

scenes.

History

Bill Sassenberger opened his first Toxic Shock record store in

Pomona, CA Pomona ( ) is a city in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pomona is located in the Pomona Valley, between the Inland Empire and the San Gabriel Valley. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's population was ...

in 1980. He specialized in underground

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

records from independent labels. He expanded to mail-order soon after by advertising in music magazines. In 1983, he and wife Julianna Towns released ''Noise from Nowhere'', a 7-inch, 33rpm EP featuring four local underground punk bands: Kent State, Modern Industry, Manson Youth and their own band Moslem Birth (whose name was a parody of

Christian Death Christian Death is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles County, California, in 1979 by Rozz Williams. With major line-up changes over the years, Christian Death has retained "a relentlessly confrontational stand against organized religion ...

). ''Noise from Nowhere'' featured cover art by

Pushead Brian Schroeder, better known as Pushead, is an American graphic artist. He is best known for his album covers and other merchandise for bands in the hardcore punk and heavy metal genres. Career Originally from Boise, Idaho, Schroeder forme ...

. With this release, Toxic Shock Records was born. Singles from Modern Industry, Peace Corpse (the renamed Moslem Birth), and Seattle's

Skin Yard Skin Yard was an American grunge band from Seattle, Washington, that was active from 1985 to 1992. The group never gained a mainstream audience but were an influence on several of their grunge contemporaries, including Soundgarden, Screaming Tr ...

followed, as well as albums by Italian punkers

Raw Power ''Raw Power'' is the third studio album by American rock band the Stooges (credited as Iggy and the Stooges), released on February 7, 1973 by Columbia Records. The album departed from the "groove-ridden, feel-based songs" of the band's first two ...

Corrosion of Conformity Corrosion of Conformity (often abbreviated as C.O.C.) is an American heavy metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina, formed in 1982. The band has undergone multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with lead guitarist Woody Weatherman a ...

, and the Dayglo Abortions. In 1988 Bill and Julianna moved the label and the store to

. From Tucson, they released albums by Hickoids,

Th' Inbred Th' Inbred was a hardcore punk band from Morgantown, West Virginia. It released two albums, ''A Family Affair'' and ''Kissing Cousins'', and an EP, ''Reproduction''. Origins The original idea was to form punk band that incorporated a banjo into t ...

, Hullabaloo, House of Large Sizes, Sloppy Seconds and

Treepeople TreePeople is an educational and training environmental advocacy organization based in Los Angeles, California. The TreePeople organization advocates and works to support sustainable urban ecosystems in the Greater Los Angeles area through e ...

. They also re-established the ''Noise from Nowhere'' 7-inch EP as a series. ''Noise from Nowhere Vol. 2'', released in 1989, featured cover songs performed by label bands Hullabaloo (" Highway Star"), Hickoids (theme from "

Green Acres ''Green Acres'' is an American television absurdist sitcom starring Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor as a couple who move from New York City to a country farm. Produced by Filmways as a sister show to ''Petticoat Junction'', the series was first br ...

"), House of Large Sizes ("

Half-Breed Half-breed is an obsolete term to offensively describe a person of mixed race. In the United States, it has often historically referred to half Native American and half European/white. Use by governments United States In the 19th century, the ...

") and Sloppy Seconds (" Candy Man"). Eight more ''Noise from Nowhere'' volumes would follow, featuring label bands as well as one-off recordings by other up-and-coming bands, including a rare single by Green Magnet School. ''Noise from Nowhere Vol. 10'' was the last record released under the Toxic Shock imprint featuring, appropriately, four underground Tucson bands. They released a few more CDs under a new name—Westworld—including the ''Decade of Disaster'' compilation chronicling the Toxic Shock years, but soon reverted to a record store specializing in obscure, underground music, now renamed Toxic Ranch Records.

''Noise from Nowhere'' series

Roster

* Dayglo Abortions * Decry * Datura Seeds * Hickoids * House of Large Sizes * Hullabaloo * Jesus Chrysler *

* Mad Parade * Major Accident *Massacre Guys *Modern Industry *Peace Corpse *

*Red Tide *

* Sloppy Seconds *

The Stupids The Stupids are a fictional family which appear in a series of children's books written by Harry Allard and James Marshall. The Stupids draw their humor from the fact that they are incompetent to the point of confusing the most simple concept ...

Zero Boys The Zero Boys are an American hardcore punk quartet from Indianapolis, Indiana fronted by Paul Mahern that debuted in 1980. Other members include bassist Scott Kellogg, drummer Mark Cutsinger and guitarist Dave Lawson. The band was known as one ...

References

External links

Official Site
* * {{Authority control Record labels established in 1983 American independent record labels Alternative rock record labels Hardcore record labels