:: Music As Social Agitation Records::

:: Sunday, December 21, 2008 ::

lots of great exciting news here at MASA headquarters! as you can see, the site is being revamped extensively as we are approaching our 10th Anniversary and nearing 60 releases! and on top of the releases mentioned below, you might notice some new names over on the left "song bar" who we're are in talks with about winter releases! but, for now, most immediately and gearing up for these exciting times, we are stoked to tell you about some NEW releases and artists joining the family in January and February, including a 2 CDR comp of 18 friends bands:


Friends Are Relatives COMP
Various Artists "Friends Are Relatives" 2-CDR COMP
[January 2nd, 2009 release]
To celebrate our 11th anniversary we here at MASA decided to call up nearly 20 of our favorite friends and underground musicians and ask them to contribute two songs to this release. Some of these artists are past and present MASA bands, some are new projects of old MASA bands , some are friends met along the road and others are just to awesome to not notice. Contributing to this compilation is Herr Jazz, Sorry, 1985 and Alaskas [all from Seattle, WA]; Go Slowpoke, Memes, Jonathan McIntyre and Maple Nightingale [all from Bellingham, WA]; Tyson Ballew, Friedrichs Teeth and Knot Knocked Up [from Missoula, MT], Chin Up Merriwether! and Elijah Moore [Olympia, WA]; The Solvents [Port Townsend, WA] and several more TBA! Artists will be given copies to pass out for real cheap or free and the 2 disk compilation with be available for free on this site as well!


Herr Jazz "Self-Titled" CASS EP
[January 2nd, 2009 release]
Herr Jazz are an energetic, quirky and positive high school trio of indie pop-wack from Seattle, WA. The boys in the band were frequent patrons of this "hip" vintage clothing store I used to work at. One, who calls himself "Ben," was the official mascot of the store. These guys are great at sorting through multiple gaylords of used denim and will find a Big E in any giant haystack of moldy jeans. They also play thoughtful, kick-you-in-the-pants-like-green-tea sort of pop rock. The recordings have a great low-fi, reverbed out nerdiness to them. You know, smart but stinky and sitting in the back of the room with a shit-eating, know-it-all grin. Most likely to aim from the clock tower or most likely to create the internet? You Decide. 2009.


Sorry CASS EP
[February 2009 release]
Sorry like to introduce themselves at every show like this. "Hi! We're Sorry!" Ryan and Aaron have been friends of mine for a couple years, through Bellingham roots related to ex-Tri Shitties kids. Did you know that Washingotn States "Tri-Cities" have the highest doctorate degree-per-capita ratio in the country? Most people think its DC. They are wrong. I have been waiting to hear some of Ryans music for awhile now and are stoked that he finally found some buddies to play pop rock music with. The boys play fun, twee (hate to use that word these days) pop rock with clever changes, crisp guitar tones and occasional noodle-slops. This spring is the Spring of Sorry. Oh, and picnics. I can't wait to walk to Cal Anderson park with these boys on my headphones and some jacked treates from QFC.


Tyson Ballew "Fruit Trees For Cassowaries" CASS
[February 10th, 2009 release]
Tyson Ballew is a real good friend of mine. I just spent two months living in his closet in Missoula, MT while conducting "field research" on the local music scene their and setting up a local music radio show for his scene to be broadcast on Seattle-based Hollow Earth Radio. I have known Tyson for over five years and always known him to be a passionate performer, songwriter and advocate for all-ages shows and diy punk aesthetics. He always sings from his heart and he sings often of punk idealisms and small-town struggles. Though he has yet to convince me of the merits of pop-punk, its influences on him often shine through in his song-crafting and I can respect it there. I have heard much of this new album and am excited that he has finally found himself in a "professional" studio with great production and accompaniment. I am even more excited that he asked MASA to release the cassette version of this album.


1985 "Back To The Future" CASS [co-release with Brown Interiour Cassettes]
1985 "Unreleased" CD-EP
[January/February 2009 releases]
1985 is pronounced "Unifying Theories." Not quite a new MASA band and not, really, even new releases. "Back To The Future" is the full-band version of the project that was recorded near two years ago with Eli and Ashley (of Olympia band LAKE) in Langley, WA. The album has mostly been sitting on the shelf, though 150 of the rough mixes have been dispersed, and we are excited for it to get released on our friends Olympia label, Brown Interiour. Unreleased is a grab bag of loose recordings from the last six months, and features 1985 returning to low-fi, improved rambles and sentiments.

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