It has been a while since I’ve written anything here, or even used this feature on the website, so I wanted to give everyone a real update about what has been going on with Sounds Rad, what we have coming up, and what we are hoping to do next.
First, we have some really exciting releases on the way — the kind that take a ridiculous amount of time, work, emails, waiting, more emails, and a little bit of stubbornness to finally make happen.
The first is Sweet Baby’s It’s a Girl, which we are especially excited about because it represents the culmination of about four years of work. That meant tracking down the original masters, working with Dallas and Matt from Sweet Baby, reworking the artwork with our illustrator-at-large Dominic Arce, and going back and forth with Warner Bros. / Ruby over the rights to the Slash and Ruby recordings.
It has been a long road, but it really has been a labor of love. This is one of those records that deserves to be back out in the world, and I’m really proud that Sounds Rad gets to be part of making that happen.
We are also finishing up the third of the three Pansy Division reissues we agreed to do: Pansy Division’s Pile Up. It is a fantastic compilation of rarities, and we are very excited to finally get it cut onto vinyl. Both It’s a Girl and Pile Up are slated for October release, and preorders are up now, including some really good bundle deals.
That brings me to what comes next.
Now that this round of records is finally moving across the finish line, we are getting ready to move on to additional reissues. People keep asking about more Mr. T Experience records, and yes — we are excited to get those going. They have just taken an inordinate amount of work. Some of the upcoming reissues require more than just remastering. They will require remixing, rebuilding artwork, sorting out concepts, and making sure everything is done the right way. The requirements are extensive, but I’m excited to keep working with Dr. Frank and to move those forward.
That said, Sounds Rad is, in reality, a company of one. With extensive support from the bands and buds like Domo, Chris @ Hit Points Media, Justin @ Mystery Room Mastering ... and Rachel E at Burg Bookkeeping. There is no giant staff behind the curtain. It is mostly me doing the best I can to keep things moving, answer emails, pack orders, work with bands, coordinate artwork, deal with manufacturing, manage delays, fix mistakes, and keep the website from falling apart.
Speaking of the website: over the summer, I’m going to be rebuilding it. The goal is simple: make it easier to use and, frankly, less crappy. I’ve done my best to keep the current site updated, but over time it has gotten messy. The ordering and inventory system has also been frustrating. There have been times when people ordered something that appeared to be in stock, only for the inventory not to match what the site showed. That is not good enough, and I know how disappointing that can be.
So we are moving to a new platform where the website, store, inventory, and point-of-sale system are integrated properly. The hope is that everything will be cleaner, easier, more accurate, and less likely to leave anyone disappointed.
I also want to say something directly: sometimes I get things wrong. Sometimes shipping is slower than I want it to be. Sometimes the website creates problems. Sometimes I get overwhelmed. And when that happens, it genuinely bums me out.
Sounds Rad really is a labor of love. I care about these records, I care about the bands, and I care about the people who support what we do. If something goes wrong with your order, please email me. I will do my best to make it right. I’ll fix it, discount it, replace it, sort it out — whatever I can reasonably do. I try to treat our customers like friends, because that is honestly how I think about this whole thing.
I know not everyone who orders from us knows me personally, but hey reach out! I love chewing the fat. If you came through Maryland and hit me up, I’d be happy to sit down, have a beer, and talk about punk rock, power pop, pop punk, Lookout-era records, and all the music that made us care about this stuff in the first place.
Part of the reason things sometimes move slowly is that I also have a whole life outside of Sounds Rad. I’m finishing a PhD, managing work, family, and all the normal human things that sometimes pile up. I’m a scholar, a punk rocker, a dad, a teacher, and a record nerd trying to keep all the plates spinning. Sometimes I pull it off. Sometimes I don’t. But I’m always trying.
Looking ahead, we also want to expand the distro side of Sounds Rad. The goal is to carry more records from bands and labels around the world and make the site a one-stop shop for music I love and want to share. Our markups are not huge, and we try to keep prices fair — especially when people bundle records together with flat shipping. Ideally, buying from us should be cheaper than most record stores, and that is something I want to keep committing to.
So that is the update. New records are coming. More reissues are in the works. The website is getting rebuilt. The distro side will grow. And I’m going to keep trying to make Sounds Rad better, more reliable, and more useful for the people who care about this music.
Thank you for sticking with us, supporting the releases, sending kind notes, asking about future projects, and being patient when things take longer than expected.
Here’s to a great coming year — and probably more diatribes soon.
— Chris/ Sounds Rad
First, we have some really exciting releases on the way — the kind that take a ridiculous amount of time, work, emails, waiting, more emails, and a little bit of stubbornness to finally make happen.
The first is Sweet Baby’s It’s a Girl, which we are especially excited about because it represents the culmination of about four years of work. That meant tracking down the original masters, working with Dallas and Matt from Sweet Baby, reworking the artwork with our illustrator-at-large Dominic Arce, and going back and forth with Warner Bros. / Ruby over the rights to the Slash and Ruby recordings.
It has been a long road, but it really has been a labor of love. This is one of those records that deserves to be back out in the world, and I’m really proud that Sounds Rad gets to be part of making that happen.
We are also finishing up the third of the three Pansy Division reissues we agreed to do: Pansy Division’s Pile Up. It is a fantastic compilation of rarities, and we are very excited to finally get it cut onto vinyl. Both It’s a Girl and Pile Up are slated for October release, and preorders are up now, including some really good bundle deals.
That brings me to what comes next.
Now that this round of records is finally moving across the finish line, we are getting ready to move on to additional reissues. People keep asking about more Mr. T Experience records, and yes — we are excited to get those going. They have just taken an inordinate amount of work. Some of the upcoming reissues require more than just remastering. They will require remixing, rebuilding artwork, sorting out concepts, and making sure everything is done the right way. The requirements are extensive, but I’m excited to keep working with Dr. Frank and to move those forward.
That said, Sounds Rad is, in reality, a company of one. With extensive support from the bands and buds like Domo, Chris @ Hit Points Media, Justin @ Mystery Room Mastering ... and Rachel E at Burg Bookkeeping. There is no giant staff behind the curtain. It is mostly me doing the best I can to keep things moving, answer emails, pack orders, work with bands, coordinate artwork, deal with manufacturing, manage delays, fix mistakes, and keep the website from falling apart.
Speaking of the website: over the summer, I’m going to be rebuilding it. The goal is simple: make it easier to use and, frankly, less crappy. I’ve done my best to keep the current site updated, but over time it has gotten messy. The ordering and inventory system has also been frustrating. There have been times when people ordered something that appeared to be in stock, only for the inventory not to match what the site showed. That is not good enough, and I know how disappointing that can be.
So we are moving to a new platform where the website, store, inventory, and point-of-sale system are integrated properly. The hope is that everything will be cleaner, easier, more accurate, and less likely to leave anyone disappointed.
I also want to say something directly: sometimes I get things wrong. Sometimes shipping is slower than I want it to be. Sometimes the website creates problems. Sometimes I get overwhelmed. And when that happens, it genuinely bums me out.
Sounds Rad really is a labor of love. I care about these records, I care about the bands, and I care about the people who support what we do. If something goes wrong with your order, please email me. I will do my best to make it right. I’ll fix it, discount it, replace it, sort it out — whatever I can reasonably do. I try to treat our customers like friends, because that is honestly how I think about this whole thing.
I know not everyone who orders from us knows me personally, but hey reach out! I love chewing the fat. If you came through Maryland and hit me up, I’d be happy to sit down, have a beer, and talk about punk rock, power pop, pop punk, Lookout-era records, and all the music that made us care about this stuff in the first place.
Part of the reason things sometimes move slowly is that I also have a whole life outside of Sounds Rad. I’m finishing a PhD, managing work, family, and all the normal human things that sometimes pile up. I’m a scholar, a punk rocker, a dad, a teacher, and a record nerd trying to keep all the plates spinning. Sometimes I pull it off. Sometimes I don’t. But I’m always trying.
Looking ahead, we also want to expand the distro side of Sounds Rad. The goal is to carry more records from bands and labels around the world and make the site a one-stop shop for music I love and want to share. Our markups are not huge, and we try to keep prices fair — especially when people bundle records together with flat shipping. Ideally, buying from us should be cheaper than most record stores, and that is something I want to keep committing to.
So that is the update. New records are coming. More reissues are in the works. The website is getting rebuilt. The distro side will grow. And I’m going to keep trying to make Sounds Rad better, more reliable, and more useful for the people who care about this music.
Thank you for sticking with us, supporting the releases, sending kind notes, asking about future projects, and being patient when things take longer than expected.
Here’s to a great coming year — and probably more diatribes soon.
— Chris/ Sounds Rad
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