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Last Updated:
Mar 19th, 2008 - 07:43:02 |
Quack! Media & Suburban Sprawl Records
This Is That Fun Sounds Like
Mutual attraction is a beautiful thing that often spawns other beautiful things.
When two Southeastern Michigan record labels (read: media entrepreneurs) found themselves admiring each other from afar, their admiration would spark a merger of juggernaut proportions. The law of mutual attraction would play the lead role in their musical (strictly platonic) romance. Theirs is a story of one young Michigan visionary attempting to carve a lasting sense of community out of a bustling music scene, and the record label he ran into along the way that was down for the cause.
In The Beginning …
In 2003, Al McWilliams, founder of Quack! Media, reluctantly began producing educational videos targeted towards high school students for his father’s company, a merchant of “everything fun for teachers,” explains McWilliams. “They thought it would be cool if someone who was 18 made a video for the same age range.” The success of the first video, which combined dubbed-over classic movies and green screen sketches to teach basic Spanish lessons, was the last thing on McWilliams’ mind as he headed off to Ann Arbor for college. “My dad kept calling me,” recalls McWilliams, “and begging me to make more, but I was doing so many other things at the time.” McWilliams eventually agreed to continue producing videos for his father ... under two circumstances: how he wanted and where he wanted. “I wanted the freedom to expand and to make a media company out of it,” tells McWilliams. “Where I wanted was Ann Arbor.”
With steady income from the videos and an office a couple blocks from The Blind Pig, McWilliams was able to gracefully shatter his way through the glass ceilings of numerous artistic mediums by seizing every opportunity he could. One of these opportunities being then Ann Arbor residents Tally Hall’s invitation to “check out their live show,” tells McWilliams modestly. “They were awesome, and I had a record label in high school — a basement sort of thing — so we decided to take them on.” McWilliams’ small media company now had a record label to account for, spawning a roster that Tally Hall would call home until Atlantic Records offered the band a major record deal in 2007. The label would grow to eventually house local heavy hitters Great Lakes Myth Society and the recently acquired The Hard Lessons.
Shortly following, after a sluggish night of drunken happenstance with Found Magazine’s main man Davy Rothbart, McWilliams found (no pun intended) himself playing publisher to the up-and-coming pop culture phenomenon. “We began talking about how [the guys at Found] were really loving what they were doing, but how it was difficult to make Found profitable," he says. "And that’s sort of what we were doing with bands — helping them do what they’re doing and make a living at it. We decided to do that with Found.” McWilliams and Rothbart continue to share a partnership on particular Found publications.
The Serenade …
Such a massive amount of success might send some ambitious college students back to the futon, but not McWilliams. As he read emails and searched the Web for possible bands to work with, he consistently met the same problem. “Suburban Sprawl Records! You have all the bands I want,” playfully shouts McWilliams. “I was so frustrated.” McWilliams eventually calmed himself down and sent an email over to Suburban Sprawl explaining not only his dilemma, but his desire to meet with the label.
“They seemed like they had their stuff together,” explains Zach Curd, a member of the 20 or so people that share ownership and operate Suburban Sprawl. “We were thinking about contacting them around the same time. We talked and eventually the idea was hatched to become a subsidiary label with Quack!.” McWilliams was immediately attracted to the expanded roster and the ability to work on multiple projects, while Curd and the rest of the crew were now able to expand distribution and promotion efforts. Remember the law of mutual attraction? However, it was an issue of concern to both sides to make sure everyone was satisfied. “You are dealing with 20 people who share ownership,” tells McWilliams of the infrastructure at Suburban Sprawl. “We wanted to make sure everyone was passionate about what was happening.”
With the contract finalized and nine releases planned for the first half of 2008, it was time to welcome the world to the new indie kid on the block. And what better way than to throw a month-long concert series named after a chilled meat product?
Cold Pork Thursdays at the Blind Pig in Ann Arbor will serve as an outlet every Thursday in January for some of the juiciest acts in southeastern Michigan. With the likes of label mates Javelins and Childbite playing each show, and such headlining acts as The Hard Lessons, Tally Hall, Deastro and Great Lakes Myth Society on particular dates. And the price for all that rock ‘n' roll under one roof? Only $5. “It was kind of a cool way of saying, ‘Hey, this is a Quack! Media thing and a Suburban Sprawl thing,’” explains Curd. “But in the big picture of things, it’s also a Michigan thing.”
To McWilliams and Curd, the big picture is to provide Southeastern Michigan with a music community that is sustainable and “doesn’t require a constant influx of effort and money,” tells McWilliams. “On any given night, there are ten shows going on with 100 people at each one [in southeastern Michigan]. At least once a month, let’s get all thousand people in the same place.” Hence the enticing $5 cover and amazing lineup. “It's definitely another contributing factor to building a scene,” adds Curd.
The relaxed indie approach to running a record label and recording your friends’ music is without a doubt a common ideology between Quack! Media and Suburban Sprawl. But McWilliams claims this laid-back disposition is simply because “people would run scared” if he shared his plan for world dominance now. “It’s a little top secret right now,” whispers McWilliams.
Here's no secret: A handful of awesome local bands for five bucks is the best deal in town. Bring it on! | RDW
More info: quackmedia.com & suburbansprawlmusic.com
Cold Pork Thursdays • Blind Pig • Every Thursday in January
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