Born from a child's mind.
As a kid, I was passionate about creating. I used to make fake businesses under the moniker "Lightning Strike". Whether it be films, books, or games, I always wanted to make something great.
Now a passionate musician.
Many years later, I pursued music in college at Full Sail University as a full-time career, and began to get my foot in the door of the live and recorded music industry, eventually landing a job in corporate A/V.
And I was given an opportunity.
While in middle school, I developed a deep passion for vinyl, and that continued throughout the entirety of my college career. As any musician would, I dreamed of being able to press my music onto wax, and thanks to a random email I sent to Wax Mage Records, my dream was able to come true: a full vinyl pressing of my own record where I didn't have to worry about the economics, and was given my own stock to sell. Now I want to pass that onto more musicians.
That was the birth of Lightning Strike Records.
A physical distribution label to platform underground musicians in New England, and plans to expand beyond. An attempt to change the narrative on independent vinyl pressing for small/medium musicians. A full circle moment to that kid who wanted to create.
Our core beliefs.
Full Rights To Artists
We don't want to trap artists into uncomfortable situations with greedy and dangerous agreements, we wish to stay 100% no bullshit. So we keep full rights to artists, and any future record represses will come at the approval of all artists involved. All extra funds from our initial sale of records will be reinvested back into the label, for whatever releases we decide to press next. We do this for the love of vinyl, not the money.
Economically Viable Vinyl
Vinyl is expensive to pursue, and can often be incredibly daunting to try and fund. Via a pre-sale, and an eventual pivot to in-hand vinyl, we can ensure that artists can make money off their records, and have resources to perfecting their vinyl release. We aim to pay for the entire run through exclusive variants sold via Lightning Strike, and leaving an artist-exclusive variant that can be sold at a 100% margin for the artist being pressed. No cuts taken.
An Emphasis on the New and Unknown
Our plan is to primarily focus on artists of the underground, those who are making stellar music, and may be making waves within their communities. We're starting with an emphasis on the music of New England, and will eventually expand geographically to the rest of the US. We're less worried about the amount of monthly listeners, and more focused on amazing music.
A Straight Forward Process
Attempting the process of designing packaging/artwork and getting music mastered specifically for vinyl can be an absolute headache, and extremely intimidating for those who are new to this industry. We aim to provide help among these steps, with guidance and support to the highest quality vinyl possible.
Consumer/Artist Transparency
Records take time to press, we understand that. Especially with a pre-sale based system, records will generally be shipping 6-8 months from when they first launch. That's why we aim to provide consistent updates and looks into the pressing process, not leaving the artist or customer in the dark, via posts to our website, email lists, and social media. We want people to know where their records are, and know that they haven't been forgotten.