Label Profile: Not Not Fun

So I'm going to start a series of sorts focusing on independent labels that I've taken an interest in and would like to share with others. I think labels are invaluable to the music industry nowadays, because they provide a sort of community and springboard for dialogue and artistic growth. When I look for new music, I don't go to record stores (I wish I could say I did), rather, I have about ten blogs whose judgment I trust and a handful of labels that consistently put out good music. In my world, blogs and record labels are tastemakers--not magazines or Pandora or Pitchfork. People tend to whine about the lack of "personality" in the music world, as Mp3s allow us to lie in bed and download music at the touch of a button as opposed to going out to a record store, handing over cash and buying records or CDs from a real, live human. I agree, it's harder to have face-to-face interactions these days in the music world, but it's certainly not something to be cynical about.

Haha so really I think music is still a pretty good way to make friends. As well as blogging and researching labels, student radio is another way I find community in the music world. For me, WNYU allows me to be social and talk about music with like-minded people, as well as exposing me to a wide range of genres. For many people, running a label serves the same purpose. For others--blogging is a way to connect. People will always find a way to share the things they love with others, whether through the internet, face to face, or both.

(Now back to what I was actually talking about.)

The first label I'm going to profile is Not Not Fun Records; an LA-based label whose sound is impossible to pin down. NNF toys with drone, psychedelic, lo-fi, industrial, and noise-punk--and their releases range from the whimsical to the eerie, to the mechanical and the crass. NNF will put out a U.S. Girls record, and follow it up with a Skullflower record. The only uniting factor is the quality of the releases.

Please enjoy the following compilation of my favorite Not Not Fun releases, here's the tracklist:

1) Blood Is Bloodstone: LA Vampires & Zola Jesus
2) Mandy: The Goslings
3) Honeymoon Babylon: Sex Worker
4) Someone Chasing Someone Through A House: Umberto
5) Lotus Cloud: Barn Owl
6) Me + Yoko: U.S. Girls
7) Tarot Harem: Topaz Rags
8) Mutilated Angel: Skullflower
9) Dreamtime/Machinetime: Pocahaunted
10) Resolution Of All My Family Sisters: Inca Ore
11) Key Sparrow: Peaking Lights

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