Pressing Client Spotlight: SofaBurn Records
Originally called Orchard Records, indie-record label SofaBurn Records was launched in 2006. Its initial purpose: To represent and produce the music of the bands in which founder Chris Mueller played. “We couldn’t find a label,” he explains, so he thought, “I’m going to make it look like we have someone advocating for us.”
His band at the time was known for rowdy shows in Cincinnati. At one such concert the lead singer announced to a sold-out crowd that there would be a party after the show at Chris' house. Hijinx ensued, including setting a couch on fire in the back yard — and that’s where the name SofaBurn came from.
Mike Montgomery, a fellow musician, sound engineer and the owner of Candyland Studio, joined SofaBurn full time in 2015 as a label manager, but he had already been working with Chris for years before that, releasing some of his projects through the indie label.
The first album released on SofaBurn that was not from one of Chris' or Mike’s bands was Jeremy Pinnel’s OH/KY in 2014.
SofaBurn’s current roster of 22 artists includes singer-songwriter and poet Andrew Hibbard, Swedish blues-rockers Black River Delta, composer-cellist Lori Goldston (David Byrne, Nirvana), and Mojave Desert-based duo Starlight Cleaning Co.
Bands come to the label — whose offices are in Dayton, Kentucky’s Historic District — any number of ways. “Sometimes a band is referred by another band or a manager,” Mike says. “I used to meet a lot of bands on tour.” His current project is R. Ring, a duo with Kelley Deal of The Breeders, also on the SofaBurn Roster.
Operations Manager Grant Garner currently serves as tour manager for Jeremy Pinnel and also meets a lot of artists on the road. But, “we’re staunchly non-genre-specific,” says Chris. “We will always remain open to any artist.”
One of Chris’ past musical collaborations was with Seth Alder, who is now Citizen Vinyl’s Production Manager. Seth introduced SofaBurn to Citizen Vinyl. “We did one album with you guys and haven’t worked with anyone else since,” Chris says.
Mike’s job is to be the final set of ears to proof any test pressing. “It’s important to have someone to communicate with if there’s an issue,” he points out. While some pressing facilities lower costs with automated communication, “I don’t want to flag an error in a portal and wait for a chat bot to get back to me,” Mike says. “We may be able to save a buck, but I don’t care. I want to talk to a human.”
In addition to advocating for artists through album releases and tours, SofaBurn also added a non-profit arm, SofaBurn Inc., following the Covid Pandemic. The organization helps artists build long-term sustaining careers by subsidizing health care costs while providing financial education.