| Sonic Vista Music | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | 2005 |
| Founder | Kenneth Foster Terence Dunn Ian Smith Simon Lewis Dale Smith |
| Genre | Alternative rock Acoustic Indie rock Classic rock |
| Country of origin | England |
| Location | Hull (2005–2006), Blackpool (2006–present) |
| Official website | www |
Sonic Vista Music is an independent English record label, founded in Kingston upon Hull in 2005, notable for having business connections in Japan and Canada.
Founded by the members of the band Ernest, and shortly afterwards by promoter and Strummer [1] music magazine editor, Ken Foster, the label sought to escape the confines of the heavily London weighted UK music industry by exploring overseas markets, particularly Canada and Japan. This has led to the formation of Jaded Rebel Entertainment [2] in Canada and Sonic Vista Japan.
The first release was Pimps, B**ches (and Superheroes) by Ernest in 2005. Ernest were the only band on the label until Foster joined later that year. With the second Ernest EP release Puppies, the band were able to secure slots at the Leeds Festival in 2006. [3] and then a mini-tour of Japan in 2007. [4]
The label also released a compilation album, World of Expectation, featuring Goldblade and Roovel Oobik in the same year. The Japan trip attracted interest from BMG Japan who having heard the album demo's had requested a fully mixed and mastered copy. The band split up during this process without any official announcement although a review of the band's final gig [5] goes some way to explaining the fractures that were appearing. The album remained unreleased although it was given the catalogue number SVRCD006. [6]
The label had already signed acts such as the avant garde indie jazz outfit, Eveline, from Bologna, Italy and the singer-songwriter, Steph Fraser.
The label has continued to release music which eschews the mainstream and has focused much of its energy into developing the careers of Steph Fraser in the UK and Canada and also Man-made Noise in Japan. Man-made Noise embarked on a 20 date tour of Japan, [7] and will be returning for a second tour in October 2009. Fraser toured Canada in August 2008 and showcased at Canadian Music Week. [8] in 2008 and 2009.
The label is distributed physically in the UK and Worldwide by Code 7, [9] and digitally by Believe. [10]
2009 saw the release of the label's first DVD, which formed part of the package for the release of the CD by IT. [11]
In 2010 and 2011, the label focused more on progressive rock, and moved away from commercial genres. The first of this new direction was the release by Dropshard, [12] with their concept album, Anywhere But Home, issued on 15 February 2011.
In 2013, the label added a third progressive rock band to its roster. [13] Machines Dream are a progressive rock band from Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, Canada. Their debut album Machines Dream was made available free on the Aurovine digital music platform. [14]
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Dream pop is a subgenre of alternative rock and neo-psychedelia that emphasizes atmosphere and sonic texture as much as pop melody. Common characteristics include breathy vocals, dense productions, and effects such as reverb, echo, tremolo, and chorus. It often overlaps with the related genre of shoegaze, and the two genre terms have at times been used interchangeably.
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth by Robin Guthrie and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981 and replacing Heggie with multi-instrumentalist Simon Raymonde in 1983. The group earned critical praise for their ethereal, effects-laden sound and the soprano vocals of Fraser, whose lyrics often eschew any recognisable language. Fraser's vocals included unknown words she found in foreign language books, adding to the band's dreamy ambience. They pioneered the 1980s alternative subgenre of dream pop and helped define what would become shoegaze.
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Eric's Trip is a Canadian indie rock band from Moncton, New Brunswick. Eric's Trip achieved prominence as the first Canadian band to be signed to Seattle's flagship grunge label Sub Pop in the early 1990s. The band had a minor hit in alternative circles with the single "View Master", from the 1994 album Forever Again.
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Sonic Youth is the debut EP by American rock band Sonic Youth. It was recorded between December 1981 and January 1982 and released in March 1982 by Glenn Branca's Neutral label. It is the only recording featuring the early Sonic Youth lineup with Richard Edson on drums. Sonic Youth differs stylistically from the band's later work in its greater incorporation of clean guitars, standard tuning, crisp production and a post-punk style.
Great Lake Swimmers is a Canadian folk rock band from Wainfleet, Ontario, and currently based in Toronto.
Ethereal wave, also called ethereal darkwave, ethereal goth or simply ethereal, is a subgenre of dark wave music that is variously described as "gothic", "romantic", and "otherworldly". Developed in the early 1980s in the UK as an outgrowth of gothic rock, ethereal wave was mainly represented by 4AD bands such as Cocteau Twins, This Mortal Coil, and early guitar-driven Dead Can Dance.
Steel Pole Bath Tub was an American rock band, formed in 1986 in Bozeman, Montana, United States, by Mike Morasky (guitar/vocals) and Dale Flattum (bass/vocals).
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Kyte are an electronic indie pop group, from Leicestershire, England.
Elephant Stone is a Canadian indie rock band. Fronted by Rishi Dhir, the band incorporates aspects of traditional Indian music including the sitar, tabla, and dilruba with Western psychedelic rock.
Stephanie Fraser, is an English folk rock, singer-songwriter from Lancashire, England.
Sad Day for Puppets are a Swedish rock band, who formed in 2006 in the Stockholm satellite town of Blackeberg.
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Ringo Deathstarr is an American shoegaze band from Austin, Texas, formed by singer/songwriter Elliott Frazier in 2005. The name of the band is a combination of the Beatles drummer Ringo Starr and the Star Wars Death Star.
Dråpe ("drop"), formerly Takk, is a Norwegian shoegaze/noise pop band established in summer of 2010 in Oslo, Norway. The band signed its first record deal with Riot Factory in autumn 2011 and released its first EP Dråpe EP. In 2012 it made agreements with Danish and Japanese companies and released its debut album, Canicular Days on April 19, 2013. Dråpe have played several festivals in Norway as well as various missions abroad. They won the Norwegian Untouched award in October 2010.