THIS IS WHAT WE'RE ABOUT

MISSION

This is not a record 'company', and it's not exactly a 'label'. It is more of a record 'co-operative'. Each of our artists act collectively as each other's managers, agents, production managers, recording engineers, and backup bands. Even this text was written by one of our anonymous artists in the guise of some omniscient narrator.

Not only does this joint ownership create a great community and atmosphere for creation, it's also a good deal financially for everyone. Even most indie labels take about half of the profits from sales. Open Face takes only 10%, which is then recycled into a pool and used for further releases. Since so much of our product is volunteer-based (the musicians who perform, the audio engineers, the producers, the graphic designers, the printers, the booking agents), we can charge a relatively low cost for listeners.

We take pride in our products. Each physical object carries with it the weight of our backs, our sweat, and our souls. These days, there is little incentive to purchase an album that has been machine-processed and is accompanied by little more than a cool image. This isn't enough for us. Every physical product should be a piece of art- we will use hand printmaking processes whenever possible.

TIME

Open Face records started out in 2005 as Eugene Bennington Records, a combination of a music scene at Bennington College and in Eugene, Oregon. It has grown over the years, and we have seen our lineup change - but throughout, it has been the same general family of musicians. We have released about 25 different albums over the years!

In the Spring of 2008, we organized ourselves more efficiently and started this website. This marked the second wave of the company's existence. As many of us have since graduated, we have spread across the country. Advrb and Pegasissy are currently commanding the west coast, Mountain Man and Dana and Faith are in Bennington VT, Stingray Migration is poised in NYC, and Jackson and Trevor are enjoying the fall in Brattleboro, VT.

In the next few years we hope to have more releases on vinyl and phase out of compact disc production. We also hope to have bigger and more extensive tours, carrying the message to more and more people. Chiefly, we want to take the vibrant musical scene that we created in Bennington and expand it beyond the scope of our imagination.

CONTACT

It would be great to hear artists’ demos, sketches, etc. but only for our own personal enjoyment. We have limited means and are not in a position to support new artists. That being said, feel free to contact us about virtually anything. The quickest sources for information are -

andrew barton - andrewdevriesbarton at gmail.com
trevor wilson - trevor.yes at gmail.com