Let's make a deal!

There comes a time in some bands' lives when they desire the assistance of businesses with a little bit of capital, an underpaid but dedicated staff, and the means to make more people aware about the band's music than the band can make aware themselves.

Enter the Record Label.

I'm a DIY girl through and through. I was raised and instilled with an obnoxious Montanan work ethic that often hinders my ability to accept help or a leg up from "knowing the right people." As a result, with much assistance from Ben, David, and Marie, I've spent the last couple years working my ass off to get H Is for Hellgate in the "neural networks" of people of Seattle and it seems to slowly be working. Hanging posters. Updating the internets. Annoying the press to just effing write something about us already. Trying to make alliances with the no-bullshit segment of the local music community. Supporting my friends' bands by going to their Tuesday night shows enjoying every minute of it.

I'm fully invested in my art - crafting songs that I hope people can not only connect with, but also be caugth off-guard with twists and turns. I'm also invested in the local music community. There are bands I love and can't believe aren't playing sold-out shows that I champion (sometimes more than I even champion my own band) and there are popular bands that I think are not offering anything new or inspiring artistically. And I will voice that opinion - not because I think those bands are bad people, but because I want us collectively to come up with something more interesting and substantial.

Now that the recording, mixing and mastering of our second album, Come For the Peaks, Stay For the Valleys is done, I'm now starting the process of shopping it around to various indie labels to see if they can help a sister and her bandmates out with some exposure. Especially considering the obstacles we've had to endure to get to where we are...me losing my dad last year while we were on tour and the very recent passing of our engineer, Mark...I feel strongly that this album is very important for us and a lot of other people. I don't want our three consigned copies collecting dust at the beginning of the "H" section at Sonic Boom this time next year. I hope people will dig the album just as much as we enjoyed making it.

So, I have my dining room set up as the temporary Hellgate Mailing Center and soon these envelops will be sitting in piles at select record labels around the country with hundreds of other bands' demos. But, select labels (sub pop), do yourself a favor and take a chance (sub pop) and open that sweet, sweet yellow envelope (sub pop). I'm SO PSYCHED about this album (sub pop) and I want the good word of the Hellgate spread far (sub pop) and wide (sub pop)!