Indie city
We bring you the latest on Chicago bands -- CD releases, shows, arrests, etc.
The Strange Tale of Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde Records
By Brandon Forbes | May 04, 10:00 AM
Historically, college scenes have been some of the most productive indie rock breeding grounds. From the Merge records explosion in Chapel Hill, NC to the Elephant 6 collectivists in Athens, GA, to even the Talking Heads origins at RISD in Providence, RI, the rough mixture of youth, vitality, and boredom found on college campuses can often spontaneously combust in a highly energetic and creative way. Of course, they can also backfire miserably in a Dave Matthews/Phish cover band kind of way.
Luckily, Hyde Park's own Mr. Hyde Records is much more of the former rather than the latter. Intimately connected to the U of C, Mr. Hyde Records is the work of a couple of former students, including Loren Jan Wilson, who garnered quite a few internet hits a few years ago for his senior project. Entitled Pitchformula, Wilson's project was an attempt to utilize computer-based content analysis of Pitchforkmedia.com's review system to ascertain what types of song descriptions gained the most praise. Wilson's own band, Starlister, even used some of the results of the study in crafting some catchy tunes that would make Ted Leo proud.
As the Mr. Hyde Records site states, however, the purpose of the label's creators is not to turn such Hyde Park based ear candy into profit, however, but rather "to exist as historians and archivists of our scene." This mission statement is enacted by Mr. Hyde's newest release, Hyde Five, which came out April 20th. Featuring everything from girl-fronted twee (The Passerines) to shoegaze swagger (Health & Beauty) to eclectic, jittery rock (Plastic Faces), the release gathers together 19 tracks from Hyde Park based bands and is limited to 300 handmade copies. Costing only $5, the comp can be ordered through the Mr. Hyde website via Paypal or can be found at quality indie retailers like Hyde Park Records or Dr. Wax. - Brandon Forbes
Luckily, Hyde Park's own Mr. Hyde Records is much more of the former rather than the latter. Intimately connected to the U of C, Mr. Hyde Records is the work of a couple of former students, including Loren Jan Wilson, who garnered quite a few internet hits a few years ago for his senior project. Entitled Pitchformula, Wilson's project was an attempt to utilize computer-based content analysis of Pitchforkmedia.com's review system to ascertain what types of song descriptions gained the most praise. Wilson's own band, Starlister, even used some of the results of the study in crafting some catchy tunes that would make Ted Leo proud.
As the Mr. Hyde Records site states, however, the purpose of the label's creators is not to turn such Hyde Park based ear candy into profit, however, but rather "to exist as historians and archivists of our scene." This mission statement is enacted by Mr. Hyde's newest release, Hyde Five, which came out April 20th. Featuring everything from girl-fronted twee (The Passerines) to shoegaze swagger (Health & Beauty) to eclectic, jittery rock (Plastic Faces), the release gathers together 19 tracks from Hyde Park based bands and is limited to 300 handmade copies. Costing only $5, the comp can be ordered through the Mr. Hyde website via Paypal or can be found at quality indie retailers like Hyde Park Records or Dr. Wax. - Brandon Forbes
Tagged: music
MOST viewed
Copyright 2005-2008 PublicMedia, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation | 5412 N. Clark, Suite 218, Chicago, IL 60640 | 773.362.5002 | editors (at) chitowndailynews (dot) org
Comments
Please log in or register to post your comment.