Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
January 24 street date. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of The Clean's album "Modern Rock", it has been remastered from the original tapes by producer and engineer Tex Houston and preserves Hamish Kilgour's original artwork. "Modern Rock" crackles with spontaneous energy, as if The Clean - namely, Hamish Kilgour, David Kilgour, and Robert Scott - couldn't help but make music together whenever they were in the same room. Following their 1989 reunion tour and the 1990 release of "Vehicle", those opportunities were rare. Then, for nine days in April 1994, the stars aligned over Dunedin and "Modern Rock" bloomed into life. It's an album of easy charm by a band so attuned to guitar pop that they make the creation of their sonic universe seem easy, as if what you're being let in on is a long-running conversation between three masters at a point where all three are riffing off of each other, line by line and hook by hook. The reissue offers new and old fans of The Clean alike an opportunity to hear the band at a creative zenith, shining light on an era that, until now, has been the provenance of crate diggers and completionists. First time in print on vinyl since its initial release, and the first time "Modern Rock" has ever been available on LP in North America.
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
January 24 street date. 30th anniversary reissue of The Clean's "Late Last Night" 7" single, back in print for the first time since its initial release. Limited to 500 copies.
Merge Records was started in the summer of 1989, by Laura Ballance & Mac McCaughan, the same summer they formed the band Superchunk in Chapel Hill, NC. The first couple releases were cassettes (remember those?), by WWAX and Bricks, followed by the first Superchunk (then known only as "Chunk") 7" single. The vinyl 7" was the format of choice for the first 3 years of the label, with cash borrowed from friends to finance projects (including singles from Erectus Monotone, Angels of Epistemology, and more Superchunk) and bedrooms serving as Merge HQ until 1992, when the first Merge full-length release, Tossing Seeds by Superchunk, was released on CD, LP, and cassette. With this release Merge also forged a relationship with Touch and Go Records of Chicago, who have done an admirable job manufacturing and distributing the bulk of Merge's full-length releases since then. Since '92 Merge moved from one charming-yet-run-down office to another until 2001, when we finally made the move from Chapel Hill down the road to a fine old building all our own in historic Downtown Durham, NC. In 2004 Merge Records is celebrating its 15th birthday, and while our roster has changed, rotated, permutated and expanded over the last 15 years, the quality we look for in records as fans is still there in the music we put out on Merge. Thanks for listening!
March 8 street date. Following two critically acclaimed John Parish-produced studio albums - "New Long Leg" (2021) and "Stumpwork" (2022) - South London's Dry Cleaning take a moment to reflect on their journey and pay homage to their roots with the release of the band's first two EPs, "Boundary Road Snacks" and "Drinks"/"Sweet Princess", now remastered and reissued together in one package featuring the original artwork and lyric sheet. "Sweet Princess" was a thrilling debut, its dizzying and restless instrumentals with Florence Shaw's sardonic vocals delivering a satirical collage of witty observations and social commentary. A further six songs in the form of the "Boundary Road Snacks" and "Drinks" EP quickly followed two months after. With singles like 'Sit Down Meal' and 'Viking Hair', it's a powerful companion to their debut.
March 8 street date. Following two critically acclaimed John Parish-produced studio albums - "New Long Leg" (2021) and "Stumpwork" (2022) - South London's Dry Cleaning take a moment to reflect on their journey and pay homage to their roots with the release of the band's first two EPs, "Boundary Road Snacks" and "Drinks"/"Sweet Princess", now remastered and reissued together in one package featuring the original artwork and lyric sheet. "Sweet Princess" was a thrilling debut, its dizzying and restless instrumentals with Florence Shaw's sardonic vocals delivering a satirical collage of witty observations and social commentary. A further six songs in the form of the "Boundary Road Snacks" and "Drinks" EP quickly followed two months after. With singles like 'Sit Down Meal' and 'Viking Hair', it's a powerful companion to their debut.
March 8 street date. Following two critically acclaimed John Parish-produced studio albums - "New Long Leg" (2021) and "Stumpwork" (2022) - South London's Dry Cleaning take a moment to reflect on their journey and pay homage to their roots with the release of the band's first two EPs, "Boundary Road Snacks" and "Drinks"/"Sweet Princess", now remastered and reissued together in one package featuring the original artwork and lyric sheet. "Sweet Princess" was a thrilling debut, its dizzying and restless instrumentals with Florence Shaw's sardonic vocals delivering a satirical collage of witty observations and social commentary. A further six songs in the form of the "Boundary Road Snacks" and "Drinks" EP quickly followed two months after. With singles like 'Sit Down Meal' and 'Viking Hair', it's a powerful companion to their debut.
March 8 street date. Following two critically acclaimed John Parish-produced studio albums - "New Long Leg" (2021) and "Stumpwork" (2022) - South London's Dry Cleaning take a moment to reflect on their journey and pay homage to their roots with the release of the band's first two EPs, "Boundary Road Snacks" and "Drinks"/"Sweet Princess", now remastered and reissued together in one package featuring the original artwork and lyric sheet. "Sweet Princess" was a thrilling debut, its dizzying and restless instrumentals with Florence Shaw's sardonic vocals delivering a satirical collage of witty observations and social commentary. A further six songs in the form of the "Boundary Road Snacks" and "Drinks" EP quickly followed two months after. With singles like 'Sit Down Meal' and 'Viking Hair', it's a powerful companion to their debut.
April 2 street date. Dry Cleaning, The South London group of Nick Buxton (drums), Tom Dowse (guitar), Lewis Maynard (bass) and Florence Shaw (vocals) will release "New Long Leg" on 2 April. The 10-track long-player was recorded over two weeks last summer at Rockfield Studios in rural Wales with producer John Parish (PJ Harvey, Aldous Harding). Following on from their thrillingly taut 2019 EPs "Boundary Road Snacks And Drinks" and "Sweet Princess", "New Long Leg" is more ambitious and complex, with Shaw's spoken vocals tightly intertwined with the band's restless instrumentals. Dry Cleaning was formed by friends Tom Dowse, Nick Buxton and Lewis Maynard after a karaoke party in 2017 inspired a collaboration. They wrote instrumentally to begin with until six months later Florence Shaw, a visual artist, university lecturer and picture researcher by day - with no prior musical experience - turned up to a band rehearsal armed with reams of her own collected writing and a copy of Michael Bernard Loggins' "Fears Of Your Life" to read out over the music. Before long she was the group's front-person, contributing words of her own, and serving as the perfect foil to the band's music.
October 21 street date. South-London based 4-piece Dry Cleaning present their sophomore record, "Stumpwork". Buoyed by the success of its predecessor "New Long Leg" they returned to rural Wales in late 2021 to partner once again with producer John Parish and engineer Joe Jones. Though it was the same studio and team, imposter syndrome and anxiety was replaced by freedom and openness to explore beyond an already rangy sonic palette. A new confidence in their creative vision was found. "Stumpwork" is inspired by a plethora of events, concepts, and political debacles, be they represented in the icy mess of ambient elements reflecting a certain existential despair, or the surprising warmth in celebrating the lives of loved ones lost through the previous year. Surrealist lyrics are as ever at the forefront - but there is a sensitivity now to the themes of family, money, politics, self-deprecation, and sensuality. Across the album's 11 tracks Dry Cleaning have crafted an ambitious and deeply rewarding work that marks them out as one of the most intelligent and exciting current UK acts.
October 21 street date. White vinyl edition. South-London based 4-piece Dry Cleaning present their sophomore record, "Stumpwork". Buoyed by the success of its predecessor "New Long Leg", they returned to rural Wales in late 2021 to partner once again with producer John Parish and engineer Joe Jones. Though it was the same studio and team, imposter syndrome and anxiety was replaced by freedom and openness to explore beyond an already rangy sonic palette. A new confidence in their creative vision was found. "Stumpwork" is inspired by a plethora of events, concepts, and political debacles, be they represented in the icy mess of ambient elements reflecting a certain existential despair, or the surprising warmth in celebrating the lives of loved ones lost through the previous year. Surrealist lyrics are as ever at the forefront - but there is a sensitivity now to the themes of family, money, politics, self-deprecation, and sensuality. Across the album's 11 tracks, Dry Cleaning have crafted an ambitious and deeply rewarding work that marks them out as one of the most intelligent and exciting current UK acts.
October 21 street date. South-London based 4-piece Dry Cleaning present their sophomore record, "Stumpwork". Buoyed by the success of its predecessor "New Long Leg" they returned to rural Wales in late 2021 to partner once again with producer John Parish and engineer Joe Jones. Though it was the same studio and team, imposter syndrome and anxiety was replaced by freedom and openness to explore beyond an already rangy sonic palette. A new confidence in their creative vision was found. "Stumpwork" is inspired by a plethora of events, concepts, and political debacles, be they represented in the icy mess of ambient elements reflecting a certain existential despair, or the surprising warmth in celebrating the lives of loved ones lost through the previous year. Surrealist lyrics are as ever at the forefront - but there is a sensitivity now to the themes of family, money, politics, self-deprecation, and sensuality. Across the album's 11 tracks Dry Cleaning have crafted an ambitious and deeply rewarding work that marks them out as one of the most intelligent and exciting current UK acts.
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