MeteorCity | |
---|---|
Founded | 1997 |
Founder | Jadd Shickler Aaron Emmel |
Status | Active |
Genre | Stoner rock, doom metal, sludge metal, drone metal, psychedelic rock |
Country of origin | United States |
Official website | meteorcity |
MeteorCity Records is an American record label founded in 1997 by Jadd Shickler and Aaron Emmel in Albuquerque, New Mexico. With the release of its compilation album Welcome to MeteorCity showcasing young unsigned Kyuss-like bands, MeteorCity helped launch the stoner rock genre and many of the genre's first bands, plus side projects from members of well-known bands including The Atomic Bitchwax and Hermano. MeteorCity Records was one of the first record labels dedicated exclusively to Stoner rock, doom metal, sludge metal, drone metal and psychedelic rock. [1]
MeteorCity was founded in September 1997 [1] by Jadd Shickler (of band Spiritu) and Aaron Emmel in Albuquerque, New Mexico. [2] The first incarnation was an online store called All That's Heavy, which sold hard-to-find releases by stoner rock bands Kyuss, Monster Magnet, and Fu Manchu. They soon expanded the catalog to include artists that stylistically fit with the first three bands. [1]
After running the online store for about half a year, they were contacted by the former proprietor for the first Kyuss fan website. He recommended MeteorCity do a compilation of unsigned bands that Kyuss fans would enjoy. [3] MeteorCity Records was formed, and the result of the suggestion was the compilation Welcome to MeteorCity, [2] which was released in May of that year. [1] The compilation included both established desert and stoner rock acts, including new bands established by John Garcia of Kyuss (now in Unida), Ed Mundell of Monster Magnet, and Pete Stahl. The album was the first time that the bands Sixty Watt Shaman, Lowrider, The Atomic Bitchwax, Dozer, Goatsnake, Drag Pack, and Los Natas were heard on a record. [1] According to MeteorCity founders,
"When this was happening, there wasn't really a [stoner rock] scene yet, there were just a lot of people around the world who were still sad about the end of Kyuss, as well as the end of Slo Burn, and who listened to stuff like Monster Magnet and Fu Manchu but wanted more. The label took off when we appeared with Welcome To Meteor City, as though the world was waiting for someone to do what we were doing." [3]
Around this time a MeteorCity intern purportedly coined the term desert rock to describe the burgeoning genre, which is still used interchangeably with the more known descriptor "stoner rock". Stoner rock originates from the title of the 1997 Roadrunner Records compilation Burn One Up! Music for Stoners. [1]
After the first compilation was released, that summer the label received a call from customer Henry Vasquez, who had the members of the band Nebula in his store. The bandmembers, which included founding Fu Manchu members Eddie Glass (guitar) and Ruben Romano (drums), had asked to talk with them. The band agreed to release their EP on MeteorCity, and MeteorCity offered to fund the band's recording session with Jack Endino. The result was MeteorCity's second release, the Nebula/Lowrider EP, which also featured tracks by Swedish band Lowrider. In 1999, the label released Unida/Dozer , a joint EP featuring the first non-compilation tracks by Unida and Swedish band Dozer. [3]
The label soon signed a number of musicians and bands from the Palm Desert Scene of desert rock, such as Hermano and Unida, both featuring former Kyuss frontman John Garcia. They have also released albums by The Atomic Bitchwax, which features Monster Magnet guitarist Ed Mundell, and The Hidden Hand and Spirit Caravan led by Obsessed/St. Vitus guitarist Scott "Wino" Weinreich. In 2002 they released the first album by the Orquesta Del Desierto, which featured key members of the major desert rock bands.
As the scene continued to develop, the popular website StonerRock.com was launched by Dan Beland in 1999. The website became a central community hub for heavy music artists and fans. [4] In March 2001, MeteorCity licensed StonerRock.com to take over management and operations of All That's Heavy. All That's Heavy's catalog grew to become the largest online store of stoner rock, doom metal, sludge metal, drone metal and psychedelic rock. MeteorCity in turn began to focus more on the label. All That's Heavy was officially sold to Dan Beland and Melanie Streko of StonerRock.com on May 15, 2004, [1] and renamed All That is Heavy. [2]
In 2007, Shickler and Emmel sold MeteorCity Records to Dan Beland and Melanie Streko as well. Their farewell release was a three disc compilation disc titled ...And Back to Earth Again. [2] MeteorCity continued to release albums by new bands, including full LPs from Black Pyramid, Elder, Snail and Freedom Hawk, among others. [2] In 2010 StonerRock.com was taken offline, and MeteorCity Records became the official label for All That is Heavy. [5] On September 1, 2014, Melanie Streko resigned from All That is Heavy and MeteorCity Records. Three years later, on August 1, 2017, All That is Heavy was sold to Casey and Taylor Kelch of Katy, Texas.
Year | No. | Artist | Title |
---|---|---|---|
1998 | MCY-001 | Various (Sixty Watt Shaman, Sparzanza, Fatso Jetson, The Atomic Bitchwax, Rotors to Rust, Demoncleaner, Goatsnake, Drag Pack, Lowrider, Roadsaw, Sheavy, Dozer, Los Natas, JM.J, Core, Celestial Season, etc.) | Welcome to MeteorCity |
FMC-001 | Solace, Solarized | Jersey Devils Double EP | |
MCY-002 MCY-004 | Nebula, Lowrider | Nebula/Lowrider | |
1999 | MCY-003 MCY-005 | Unida, Dozer | Unida/Dozer |
MCY-006 | Five Wheel Drive | Misdemeanor | |
MCY-007 | Spirit Caravan | Dreamwheel | |
2000 | MCY-008 | The Quill | The Quill |
MCY-009 | Various (Electric Frankenstein, Solace, Sebastian Bach, Zébulon, Iron Savior, Las Cruces, Eternal Elysium, The Quill, Blind Dog, etc.) | Slave to the Power – The Iron Maiden Tribute | |
MCY-010 | Solace | Further | |
MCY-011 | Eternal Elysium | Spiritualized D | |
MCY-012 | Lowrider | Ode to Io | |
MCY-013 | The Mushroom River Band | Music for the World Beyond | |
MCY-014 | Abdullah | Abdullah | |
MCY-015 | Blind Dog | The Last Adventures of Captain Dog | |
2001 | MCY-016 | Various (Lowrider, Eternal Elysium, Sheavy, The Awesome Machine, etc.) | I Am Vengeance Soundtrack |
MCY-017 | Scene Killer (Members of The Atomic Bitchwax, Burnout King, Core, Daisycutter, Drag Pack) | Scene Killer | |
MCY-018 | Solarized | Driven | |
2002 | MCY-019 | Eternal Elysium | Share |
MCY-020 | The Atomic Bitchwax | Spit Blood | |
MCY-021 | The Ribeye Brothers | If I Had a Horse | |
MCY-022 | Orquesta Del Desierto | Orquesta Del Desierto | |
MCY-023 | Nebula | Dos EPs | |
MCY-024 | The Mushroom River Band | Simsalabim | |
2003 | MCY-025 | Spiritu | Spiritu |
2002 | MCY-026 | Abdullah | Graveyard Poetry |
2003 | MCY-027 | Solace | 13 |
MCY-028 | Gallery of Mites | Bugs on the Bluefish | |
MCY-029 | Blind Dog | Captain Dog Rides Again | |
2004 | MCY-030 | The Hidden Hand | Divine Propaganda |
2003 | MCY-031 | Spirit Caravan | The Last Embrace |
2004 | MCY-032 | Orquesta del Desierto | Dos |
MCY-033 | Black NASA | Deuce | |
MCY-034 | The Hidden Hand, Wooly Mammoth | Night Letters | |
MCY-035 | Hermano | Dare I Say... | |
2005 | MCY-036 | The Atomic Bitchwax | 3 |
2006 | MCY-037 | Spiritu / Village of Dead Roads | Human Failures |
MCY-038 | The Obsessed | Lunar Womb | |
MCY-039 | The Atomic Bitchwax | Boxriff | |
2007 | MCY-040 | Various (Solace, The Atomic Bitchwax, Unida, Lowrider, Blind Dog, Dozer, Black NASA, Cosmosquad, Las Cruces, Spiritu, I am Droid, Truckfighters, etc.) | ...And Back to Earth Again – Ten Years of MeteorCity |
2008 | MCY-041 | Farflung | A Wound in Eternity |
MCY-042 | Dead Man | Dead Man | |
MCY-043 | Elder | Elder | |
MCY-044 | Eighteen Wheels Burning | Tweak'd Out, Strung up and Redlined | |
2009 | MCY-045 | Nightstalker | Superfreak |
MCY-046 | Freedom Hawk | Freedom Hawk | |
MCY-047 | Leeches of Lore | Leeches of Lore | |
MCY-048 | New Keepers of the Water Towers | Chronicles | |
MCY-049 | Black Pyramid | Black Pyramid | |
MCY-050 | Snail | Blood | |
2008 | MCY-051 | Let the Night Roar | Let the Night Roar |
2009 | MCY-052 | Flood | Native |
2010 | MCY-053 | Valkyrie | Valkyrie |
MCY-054 | Valkyrie | Man of Two Visions | |
2009 | MCY-055 | Ararat | Musica de la Resistencia |
MCY-056 | Village of Dead Roads | Desolation Will Destroy You | |
MCY-057 | Whitebuzz | Book of Whyte | |
MCY-058 | Egypt | Egypt | |
2010 | MCY-059 | Humo Del Cairo | Humo del Cairo |
2011 | MCY-060 | New Keepers of the Water Towers | The Calydonian Hunt |
2010 | MCY-061 | SardoniS | Sardonis |
2010 | MCY-063 | Dozer | In the Tail of a Comet / Madre de Dios |
MCY-064 | Farflung | Live at Roadburn 2009 | |
MCY-065 | Olde Growth | Olde Growth | |
2010 | MCY-666 | Various (Crushed Skulls, Flood, Egypt, Whitebuzz, SardoniS, Ararat, Freedom Hawk, Elder, Farflung, Black Pyramid, etc.) | Welcome Back to MeteorCity |
2011 | MCY-066 | Elder | Dead Roots Stirring |
2012 | MCY-067 | Black Pyramid | II |
Year | No. | Artist | Title |
2005 | MCY-999 | The Atomic Bitchwax | Atomic Bitchwax I (limited edition with alternate cover art) |
2005 | MCY-998 | Solace | Further (reissue) |
MCY-997 | Unida, Dozer | Unida/Dozer (reissue) | |
MCY-996 | Truckfighters | Gravity X | |
2006 | MCY-995 | Village of Dead Roads | Dwelling in Doubt |
2007 | MCY-994 | Los Natas | El Universo Perdido De Los Natas |
2008 | MCY-993 | The Atomic Bitchwax | Tab 4 (limited edition with alternate cover art) |
Kyuss was an American stoner rock band formed in Palm Desert, California, in 1987, and considered one of the pioneers of the genre. After disbanding in 1995, a number of band members have gone on to form or play in several notable bands including Queens of the Stone Age, Screaming Trees, Fu Manchu, Dwarves, Eagles of Death Metal, Mondo Generator, Hermano, Unida, Slo Burn and Them Crooked Vultures.
John Garcia is an American singer and songwriter. He is best known as the vocalist and founding member of stoner rock bands Kyuss, Slo Burn, Unida and Hermano. Garcia also performed in Vista Chino, formerly Kyuss Lives!, with former Kyuss members Brant Bjork and Nick Oliveri. Garcia has since decided to pursue his solo career, having formed his band, John Garcia and the Band of Gold, in 2019.
Brant Bjork is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the drummer and founder of the influential Californian stoner rock band Kyuss. Bjork has also been a member of Fu Manchu, Mondo Generator and Vista Chino, the latter with former Kyuss members John Garcia and Nick Oliveri. He is currently the frontman and co-founder of the stoner rock power trio, Stöner. Bjork is one of the more notable figures in the stoner rock and Palm Desert scene and maintains a prolific solo career with over a dozen released albums.
Fu Manchu is an American stoner rock band formed in Orange County, California in 1985. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout the 80s and 90s, but has remained consistent since 2001. The band currently consists of founding guitarist turned lead vocalist Scott Hill, bassist Brad Davis, lead guitarist Bob Balch and drummer Scott Reeder.
Los Natas or Natas were an Argentine stoner rock band formed in 1993 in Martínez, Greater Buenos Aires. In their later releases, they had been leaning towards a more experimental sound described by them as free rock.
The Atomic Bitchwax is an American stoner rock band from New Jersey, formed in 1992 by bassist/singer/songwriter Chris Kosnik, guitarist Ed Mundell, and drummer Keith Ackerman. They did not release their first full-length album until 1999, upon signing with Tee Pee Records. Mixing elements of 1960s psychedelic rock and 1970s riff rock filtered through modern progressive rock, their music has appeared in TV shows such as Jackass, Homewrecker, and various Fox Sports broadcasts.
Sixty Watt Shaman is an American rock band known for incorporating hard rock with blues, southern rock, doom, punk rock and heavy metal influences, originally based out of Towson, Maryland, Montgomery Village, Maryland, and currently Winchester, Virginia.
Nebula is an American stoner rock band formed by guitarist Eddie Glass and drummer Ruben Romano upon departing Fu Manchu in 1997.
Lowrider is a Swedish stoner rock band formed in Karlstad in the mid-1990s by bassist/singer Peder Bergstrand and lead guitarist/singer Ole Hellquist, along with guitarist Niclas Stalfors and drummer Andreas Eriksson.
Unida is an American stoner rock band formed in 1998. The band's current line-up consists of John Garcia, Arthur Seay, Miguel Cancino and Collyn McCoy. Their debut album, Coping with the Urban Coyote, was released in 1999. A follow-up album, initially titled The Great Divide and later titled For the Working Man, was recorded in the early 2000s, but has remained unreleased.
Unida/Dozer is a split EP featuring the stoner rock bands Dozer and Unida. It is one of the first releases for both bands. It was released in 1999 by MeteorCity and re-issued in 2006.
Fatso Jetson is an American desert rock band from Palm Desert, California, formed in 1994 by Yawning Man members Mario Lalli and Larry Lalli, along with Tony Tornay. They are often credited as the fathers of the desert strain of stoner rock later made most famous by their slightly younger neighbors Kyuss and Queens of the Stone Age. While musically similar to some of their stoner brethren, Fatso Jetson incorporate a broader variety of musical influences that includes punk and surf.
Edward Mundell is an American rock guitarist known for his space rock 1970's inspired sound. From 1992 to 2010, he was the lead guitarist for stoner rock band Monster Magnet, contributing to eight albums in total. As of 2024, Mundell contributes to various recordings and soundtracks as a studio musician based in Los Angeles.
Core was an American stoner rock band from New Jersey, active in the late 1990s.
Edward Glass is an American rock musician best known as the frontman of the stoner rock band Nebula. Glass was formerly the drummer for the punk rock band Olivelawn, as well as a guitarist of Fu Manchu. Nebula has been Glass' primary musical group since 1997, when he and drummer Ruben Romano left Fu Manchu.
The following is a comprehensive discography of Kyuss, a Southern California-based stoner/desert rock band active between 1988 and 1995 and again since 2010 as Kyuss Lives! During their initial seven-year run, Kyuss had four full-length studio albums, one split album, seven singles, and four music videos. They also released one EP under the name Sons of Kyuss.
Ode to Io is the first full-length album from the Swedish Rock band Lowrider, released on Meteor City.
Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Sleep.
All That is Heavy is an online music store based in Texas and founded in 1997. It is the first online record store dedicated exclusively to the genres of stoner rock, doom metal, sludge metal, drone metal and psychedelic rock. All That is Heavy was originally owned and operated MeteorCity Records, which was instrumental in the growth of the late 1990s stoner rock scene. Distributed labels, besides their formerly in-house MeteorCity Records, include Tee Pee, Volcom Entertainment, Small Stone Records, Rise Above Records, and others. The store was operated by the now defunct StonerRock.com from 2001 to 2010, and was owned by Dan Beland. On 25 August 2017 it was announced that All That Is Heavy would be taken into new ownership by Casey Kelch and relocated to Houston, Texas.