Waterfront Records
Encyclopedia
Waterfront Records was an independent record label
based in Sydney
, that released recordings by some of Australia
's most influential bands of the 1980s and 1990s.
label Phantom Records
. The first release for Waterfront was the Careless Talk Costs Lives EP
by JFK & The Cuban Crisis that was originally submitted to, but rejected by, the Phantom label. Stavrakis heard the recordings and when Phantom passed on it he decided to release it himself. Stavrakis was later joined by Chris Dunn
who was instrumental in discovering a number of the acts that appeared on the Waterfront label.
Over the next 15 years Waterfront put out over 170 releases. Acts like Tumbleweed
and Ratcat
who would later have success on the mainstream charts released their first records on Waterfront. Waterfront also licensed some recordings from the Sub Pop
label that saw them handling the Australian releases for artist like Nirvana
, Henry Rollins
, L7
and Tad
.
The label later spawned a retail shop also called Waterfront that occupied various locations in the Sydney CBD. Stocking local and imported records by cult artists the shop also and occasionally held live performances. After the store closed down in March 2000, Waterfront was reincarnated in February 2003, in the form of online retail store.
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
based in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, that released recordings by some of Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's most influential bands of the 1980s and 1990s.
History
Waterfront records was started in 1982 by Steven Stavrakis who at the time was an employee of another independentIndependent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
label Phantom Records
Phantom Records
Phantom Records was an Australian independent record label established by Dare Jennings Phantom Records was an Australian independent record label established by Dare Jennings Phantom Records was an Australian independent record label established by Dare Jennings (founder of Mambo (Clothing) and...
. The first release for Waterfront was the Careless Talk Costs Lives EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
by JFK & The Cuban Crisis that was originally submitted to, but rejected by, the Phantom label. Stavrakis heard the recordings and when Phantom passed on it he decided to release it himself. Stavrakis was later joined by Chris Dunn
Chris Dunn
Christopher Michael Dunn is an English football goalkeeper, who plays for Championship club Coventry City.-Career:...
who was instrumental in discovering a number of the acts that appeared on the Waterfront label.
Over the next 15 years Waterfront put out over 170 releases. Acts like Tumbleweed
Tumbleweed (band)
Tumbleweed are a Wollongong-based rock group in Australia, popular during the grunge years of the 1990s. As an opening band for Nirvana on their 1992 tour of Australia, Tumbleweed reached out into the mainstream with their crunchy-psychedelica...
and Ratcat
Ratcat
Ratcat were an Australian indie rock band of the late 1980s and early 1990s fronted by vocalist Simon Day. Their combination of indie pop songwriting and energetic punk-style guitar won them fans from both the indie and skate-punk communities.-Waterfront:...
who would later have success on the mainstream charts released their first records on Waterfront. Waterfront also licensed some recordings from the Sub Pop
Sub Pop
Sub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman in Seattle, Washington. Sub Pop achieved fame in the late 1980s for first signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney and many other bands from the Seattle music scene...
label that saw them handling the Australian releases for artist like Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins
Henry Rollins is an American singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, writer, comedian, publisher, actor, and radio DJ....
, L7
L7 (band)
L7 was an American rock band from Los Angeles, that was active from 1985 to 2000. Due to their sound and image, they are often associated with the grunge movement of the late 1980s and early 1990s.-History:...
and Tad
Tad (band)
Tad was an American grunge band from Seattle, Washington led by Tad Doyle. Among the first of the many bands which came out of Seattle in the grunge era, Tad was notable for the fact that its music had a noticeable 1970s metal influence, rather than the punk which influenced most other grunge bands...
.
The label later spawned a retail shop also called Waterfront that occupied various locations in the Sydney CBD. Stocking local and imported records by cult artists the shop also and occasionally held live performances. After the store closed down in March 2000, Waterfront was reincarnated in February 2003, in the form of online retail store.
Artists released on Waterfront
- The Lonely Hearts
- The Eastern DarkThe Eastern DarkThe Eastern Dark is an Australian rock band who formed in the 1980s as an offshoot from another Australian band, The Celibate Rifles.-History:...
- The Happy Hate Me Nots
- The Hard Ons
- John Kennedy's Love Gone WrongJohn Kennedy's Love Gone WrongJohn Kennedy is an Australian musician, a singer-songwriter with a penchant for strong melodies and "heart on your sleeve" pop songs often with country and western influences.-Early life:...
- Kat Frankie
- RatcatRatcatRatcat were an Australian indie rock band of the late 1980s and early 1990s fronted by vocalist Simon Day. Their combination of indie pop songwriting and energetic punk-style guitar won them fans from both the indie and skate-punk communities.-Waterfront:...
- TumbleweedTumbleweed (band)Tumbleweed are a Wollongong-based rock group in Australia, popular during the grunge years of the 1990s. As an opening band for Nirvana on their 1992 tour of Australia, Tumbleweed reached out into the mainstream with their crunchy-psychedelica...
- The Pigs
- The Tripps
- The TrilobitesThe TrilobitesThe Trilobites were an Australian power pop/rock band formed in Sydney in June, 1984. Original Trilobites were: Mike Dalton on vocals, Scott Leighton on bass guitar, Martin Martini & Paul Skates on guitars and Paul Styman on drums. Their first two singles, "Venus in Leather"' and "American TV"...