HSAL #57 IS LIVE!

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Given how difficult it’s becoming to readily acknowledge which day of the week it is any more, we went ahead and pushed HSAL #57 out this morning. Truth be told, we know what day it is (March eleventeenth, right?) – we just couldn’t wait to deliver this collection to you all. Birthed out of the myraid feelings isolation has caused / is causing, this set presents over an hour of introspective, contemplative pieces loveingly crafted by some incredible Commonwealth-based artists. Each act has not only provided music, they have written out what this season and this project has done in and around them. Take some time to read through the content with each track. Oh, the download comes with bonus material as well (extra track, videos).

Above all, we hope HSAL #57 will provide head / heart space to work through feelings and land at a posture of peace. There’s no need to fear. LOVE DEFEATS FEAR!

STREAM / DOWNLOAD “ISOLATION”

HSAL > COVID-19 (part two)

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Spring is happening all around us! Regretfully, so is that pesky coronavirus. Your friendly neighborhood record label REFUSES to hand life over to an unseen force that threatens our very well-being. That said, we are also 100% on board with measures (be they responsibly insituted or culturally mandated) to stop the spread of said unseen force. Here’s the next installment in a series of posts to reinforce what the HSAL family is doing amidst the COVID-19 scare.

HSAL #57: Various Artists, “Isolation”

RELEASE DATE: April 17, 2020

Perhaps the most unnerving element tangled up in this historical moment is fear. Fear of the future. Fear of contraction. Fear of engagement. These things ought not be. As a community, we reach across technology to share art, which in most every case is an expression of love (directly or indirectly). In a season where multiple pressures were driving people away from each other, your friendly neighborhood record label worked with friends and family to collect recordings made during the COVID-19 scare (03/13/20 – ???). The result is this compilation of sounds primed for times of solitude and contemplation. Of the many emotions that reside in these sounds, may one thing ring true – LOVE DEFEATS FEAR!

AVAILABILITY: DIG (download comes with extra goodies)
ARTWORK: courtesy of HSAL
STREAM/DOWNLOAD: HSAL bandcamp

FFO: PAN‘s “Mono No Aware“,  Unseen‘s “Disquiet” Series, Past Inside The Present‘s “Healing Sounds“

HSAL > COVID-19 (part one)

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Your friendly neighborhood record label REFUSES to hand life over to an unseen force that threatens our very well-being. That said, we are also 100% on board with measures (be they responsibly insituted or culturally mandated) to stop the spread of said unseen force. As such, we are beginning this series of posts to reinforce what the HSAL family is doing amidst the COVID-19 scare. Last week, we ran a “social distance” sale – thanks to everyone who jumped in on it. Orders were shipped on Monday, so keep a close eye on your mailbox.

Elliott’s streaming a live set this Saturday night!

As parts of the HSAL family get creative with their isolation output, we will share the ways to stay connected here. This weekend, Elliott from You’re Jovian will be streaming a live acoustic set from his tidewater confines. #1 – you should check out the set. #2 – if possible, throw him the coin you’d hand the door guy if Jovian were playing your favorite haunt (NOTE: Elliott’s a venmo guy).

OAHU BOGO Action!

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To celebrate Todd Webb‘s participation in the “On Scale” exhibit here in Lynchburg, we are running a special connected with his most recent musical affair, “Slow Waves & Simple Sounds“. From now until the exhibit closes on April 16th, purchase HSAL #53/54 (it’s a double CD set) at the regular price – $15 – and get any one of the following releases pictured below for free. Simply add a note with the catalog number of the release you want for free and we’ll include it in your order (we’ll cover the additional postage as well):

HSAL #52 – Graven Image, “Wayfaring Stranger” (CASS)
HSAL #41 – Ben Mauch & Oahu, “Phases” (CASS)
HSAL #38 – Steve Scott, “Cross My Heat” (CD)
HSAL #32 – Ben Mauch, “Golden Bay Garden” (CASS)
HSAL #31 – Jeremiah Lloyd Harmon, “Jeremiah Lloyd Harmon” (CD)
HSAL #25 – Ben Mauch, “For My Friends” (CASS)

Nigel Headed To Austin!

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Nigel playing Speakertree, 02.28.2020

A year after dropping HSAL #48 (a cosmically stellar 12″ EP co-released with Charlottesville’s Infinite Repeats), Parker and the Good Dog Nigel gang are still going strong. After being accepted into the offical roster for this year’s South By Southwest festival, the band began erecting a tour itinerary to get them from Virginia to Texas. Here are the confirmed dates as of now:

Well wishes and positive vibes as you represent the Ol’ Dominion, boys!

INVENTORY ALERT! We are nearly out of Nigel’s vinyl debut (less than 10 copies in stock). If you haven’t scored a copy yet, better jump on it now. Never know how a killer band can absolutely blow up after spending a week at SXSW…

HSAL #52 IS HERE!

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HSAL #52 in a glossy black shell with a B&W J-Card.

The new EP from Blacksburg’s Graven Image is here! We’re shipping out all pre-orders on Tuesday. You can stream the entire thing at the bandcamp site or pretty much anywhere else (google, apple, spotify).

Physical copies can be purchased directly from the band or from the HSAL bandcamp. We are already down to only a handful of copies left in our inventory so don’t wait on this one. Swell ethereal drones a la Julianna Barwick or Richard Skelton.

UPDATE: February 2020

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So, we’re already a month into the new year and your friendly neighborhood record label has a few things stirring:

HONEYBRANDY

This week, Joey and Nathan will sonically whitewash the gallery spaces down at the Academy Center for the Arts for February’s installment of “First Fridays.” Among the exhibits will be a collection from five faculty members of the James Madison University School of Art, Design and Art History. The duet will continue to work out ideas in the live setting that (hopefully) will translate to a new album in 2020. They’ll be back at the Art Rat in Roanoke next month with Hypnagogue. Here’s a track honeybrandy posted to soundcloud several moons ago…

GRAVEN IMAGE

Thanks to a quick turnaround from the factory, HSAL #52 should be shipping before the February 21st street date! If you on a first name basis with these two, feel free to hit them up for a copy. The uninitated may purchase a cassette copy from us through bandcamp (we have less than 10 unaccounted for – don’t sleep on this one). The sample below displays an EP that fits in nicely with the long line of minimal, textured ambience for which HSAL has become known the world over.

Starting 2020 Off Proper!

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Hope you and yours made the holidays special in unique ways. We took the downtime to exhale in preparation for all that the new year will swing our way. Here’s what we know right now:

L.A. DIES ON WNRN!

PC: V. Coleman

The Commonwealth’s widest reaching independent radio station, WNRN, has just picked up “Feels Really Small” from the four-piece’s HSAL debut for regular rotation. We supremely proud of this record, so it’s swell to learn of it capturing the ears of others.

HSAL #52 IS ABOUT TO DROP!

Cover image for HSAL #52 created by James Wood.

Our next release comes courtesy of Blacksburg’s Graven Image. This EP, the first proper recording for the cello/synth + voice duet, was tracked at the Old City Cemetery Chapel right here in Lynchburg back in November. Joey from honeybrandy sat in on the session as well. The result is a really dark ethereal pair of long-form compositions that feel akin to the work of Julianna Barwick or Richard Skelton. The band is going to end up with most of cassette run, but we will have a handful to sell once the release drops in February. Stream a sample from the EP here.

OUR BANDS OUT & ABOUT!

Most of our acts are hitting stages in the coming weeks. Here are the dates we know about (follow the bands directly for the most up-to-date information):

  • L.A. DIES / TLVS: 01/10 @ Taphouse (Norfolk)
  • YOU’RE JOVIAN: 01/24 @ Fuzzy Cactus (Richmond)
  • L.A. DIES: 01/25 @ Nicky’s House (Richmond)
  • TLVS: 01/25 @ Speakertree (Lynchburg)
  • YOU’RE JOVIAN: 01/31 @ Meridian (Williamsburg)
  • YOU’RE JOVIAN: 02/01 @ Tea Bazaar (Charlottesville)
  • HONEYBRANDY: 02/07 @ The Academy Center (Lynchburg)

Do the bands a solid – dance, sing along and buy some merch!

Thanks, Folks!

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We’re only days away from the end of the decade! It’s been a complete BLAST working with so many talented folks thus far. We are especially thankful for what 2019 brought our way:

  • EP’s from Good Dog Nigel and You’re Jovian
  • Full lengths from Andres Momentomori and L.A. Dies
  • A double CD from Oahu
  • A completely killer ten-year anniversary party at the Academy Center featuring friends old and new

We threw together this Spotify playlist as a “debrief” for all that action that we were a part of this year. Also included are some choice sounds that the Commonwealth birthed over the past twelve months. Some of these are as-of-yet unsigned acts (Emily Brophy) while others are between labels (Big Baby, KEEP, Opin). Then there is the latest single from our good buds DEMONS for good measure…

Here’s to a new year, a new decade, and a new chapter in the HSAL story!