Ante Up Audio/Reversed Image Unlimited’s Jim Quinn stopped by the office today to drop off copies of This Is a Shakedown’s forthcoming album, Love Kills. Due out May 5, the local band’s debut is a heady mix of NIN-like industrial rock that never settles for a completely synthetic sound.
Formerly of Cleveland garage-rock icons the Damnation of Adam Blessing, Quinn’s been involved with the start-up label since last year when he met Ante Up’s Michael Seifert and Eric Wilson at a party. “They started talking to me about how they wanted to have a label, but keep everything in town and not outsource anything,” says Quinn. “I liked the idea. It’s been really exciting.”
The label doesn’t have deep pockets, but Quinn says it won’t need them. The video for Shakedown’s “Circles,” for example, was recorded on a Mac laptop and “didn’t cost a dime.” (You can check it out above.) Next up, the label will issue a solo album by former Faith No More frontman Chuck Mosley. That disc will feature cameos by Korn’s Jonathan Davis and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s Michael Cartellone and is due out June 23.
“We want to put out about four releases a year,” says Quinn. “We want to concentrate on breaking
new bands nationally. Our model is completely different. We’re not looking to become Warner Bros.” —Jeff Niesel
