Labeled: The Stories, Rumors & Legends of Tooth & Nail Records

Ivoryline is one of those bands that accomplished a lot in a short time but due to the circumstances of reality did not have a career that was able to reach its full maturity. Their fairly short run gives us all that feeling of slight tragedy but also leaves us with a nostalgic feeling of what might have been or still could be. Ivoryline did 2 amazing records with Aaron Sprinkle, had rock radio hi...

The Labeled Universe is expanding!  In addition to this Stories, Rumors, and Legends feed, we’re introducing A new labeled podcast called Deep Dives! This introductory episode looks at coming off of “Erase Me”, the band was filled with conflict over sonic direction and personal issues. Underoath found themselves at a crossroads and were forced to dig deep and reflect on their history within t...

Garrett and Thomas from Silent Planet join us for a discussion from the studio to talk about their new record Iridescent and beyond. In this episode, we discuss being a third or even fourth wave Solid State band along with their philosophy and process. Follow Silent Planet on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3nHveO5 Grab some Silent Planet merch here: https://silentplanetmerch.com/collections/all-1 Becom...

Doug Van Pelt has been focused on our music scene well before it ever existed. He was drawn to heavy music and then Christian music since he was a kid in the 70's. It’s safe to say that he has witnessed the entire phenomenon. What’s more, he literally made it his business to pay attention and share it with others. Doug is very entrepreneurial and began his own publication, HM, in the 80's. Doug is...

For this final Labeled episode of 2021, we are partnering with Aaron’s Sprinkle’s brand new podcast, Moontraveling. This episode takes a deep dive into Aaron’s many years at The Compound studio in Seattle working on many iconic Tooth & Nail albums along with some other amazing projects. Be sure to subscribe to the Moontraveling podcast and definitely check out Aaron’s brand new EP, Certainty....

It used to be that you could tell the reaction to an album by things like first week sales or reviews in major publications, but in 2021 it's a lot different. You can still feel the energy around an important release like this one, but the buzz comes from places like “reaction videos” from prominent YouTubers and other new media. It's a little bit of a different landscape, but there is still just...

Josh Kemble is someone who instantly strikes me as having two of my favorite qualities, mindfulness and authenticity. Combined, they give the experience of being present in a conversation while able to tie in multiple layers of meaning. It's almost as if Josh is aware of the experience he is creating in others, and that's key in crafting music or art that is going to connect with people. From the...

Furnace Fest was over a week ago but we’re still coming down from the FF high.  Brandon stops by my basement to talk about his top three Furnace Fest moments. Learn more about the upcoming Beloved hometown show that Knuckle Breakers Productions will be capturing and how you can be a part of it. https://fb.watch/8rr9wz8o4H/ https://labeledpodcast.com/ MORE FROM TOOTH & NAIL: Labeled: Music...

In 1995, The Get Up Kids began exploring their surroundings and expanding their horizons in much the way that early Tooth & Nail and Solid State artists did. In the midwest emo scene, they were sharing the stages with bands of seemingly all genres, while making friends in many other states. They didn’t ask permission for what they did, and no one stopped them from blazing new pathways that wou...

Mark Salomon is a legend and forefather of the Tooth & Nail scene. He was pioneering new artistic and cultural territory while being iconic, professional and a showman  all at the same time.  He has been massively influential from The Crucified and Stavesacre to Neon Horse and his podcast, Never Was, and his reputation for having solid personal relationships acros...

Welcome back to labeled, the stories rumors and legends of tooth and nail records, I’m your host Matt carter and today’s episode features the not only legendary but iconic drummer Steve Kleisath from Strong arm, Shai Halud, further seeems forever, and the darling fire.   He is a legend because he had tremendous  influence on records that were tremendously influential and his style inspir...

Terminal can be described in many ways. One and Done, One Hit Wonder, Casualty of the industry, a career that seemed over before it began. Similar to Beloved in many ways, with a single album destined for an explosive followup the bands had seemingly failed before their future fanbase could materialize. The bands were able to achieve great things quickly, but weren’t equipped to handle being a tou...

Hopesfall is a very influential post hardcore/spirit filled hardcore band. They emerged in the North Carolina scene and the greater Southeast with bands like Beloved, Stretch Armstrong, he is legend, Underoath and Luti-Kriss around 2000. they were a Furnacefest band and a Cornerstone band.   They were signed to Takehold Records who was acquired by Tooth and Nail in 2003 but due to some changes in...

Joe Musten is the heartbeat of Beloved. He is known for doing all the lead screaming while being an absolutely brutal drummer. I think of Joe as an uncompromising and incorruptible purist and someone who sees the whole picture. He is driven to authentically express his passion in every situation, from live performance, to the studio recordings, to fan interaction, to band member, friend or podcast...

Chad Johnson is a significant figure in this movement who was identifying next level talent that was yet to reach its potential and creating opportunities for them. He was quite successful in aggregating and attracting further talent primarily in the southeast region. Further Seems Forever, Underoath, twothirtyeight, hopesfall, and more. He created Furnace Fest which became in addition to Cornerst...

One the first releases ever on Solid State, Stretch Armstrong were pioneers of the scene that was emerging in the southeast in the late 90’s. Known for being straight edge and positive, Chris McLaine was one of the most engaging front men of the era. His message was always to include and to encourage and to make a positive impact. From the beginning Chris truly understood the what a scene was and...

Scott Mellinger joined the legendary band Zao to replace Brett Detar as a musician between the albums, When Blood and Fire Bring Rest and Liberate Te Ex Inferis . He immediately brought a new sonic element helping them arrive at their signature sound, but his influence didn't stop there. Despite being in a band with big personalities, Scott emerged as a leader and became the band's stabilizing poi...

The Showdown is a very special band who was able to break a lot of new ground and turn a lot of heads by taking what was going on in heavy music and amplifying it to extreme levels by adding new layers of performance that mixed art and crowd interaction with humor to create a symphony of chaos that played the audience like an instrument. Their front man David Bunton is a legend in the scene when i...

Lead singers tend to get and often deserve the most attention in most bands. They carry a large burden and the spotlight is not at all easy to manage, but some of the most talented and valuable people are not the ones in the limelight. Randy Torres has done it all in the Tooth & Nail world, and he has done it well.  Guitarist for Project 86, engineer for Aaron Sprinkle, A&R for the label, touring...

Hangnail is an old school classic Tooth & Nail punk band and is back with new holiday music! It's their first new music in 17 years.  This seemed like a good occasion to hang out with the whole band and look all the way back to the mid 90's as this group of best friends in high school, who never had a lineup change and were first generation Tooth & Nail kids just trying to play cover songs until t...

Acceptance is a T ooth & N ail artist a couple of decades in the making.   T hey just made and released their first album on T ooth & N ail called Wild, Free this year . But it was right here in the S eattle T acoma area where A cceptance was founded in 2003, right at the time that

Frodus was a pioneer post hardcore band whose influence is larger than their footprint ever was. This impor t ant group was recognized early by Brandon and Tooth & N ail, who acquired  Frodus, a non -C hristian from the 90’s DC punk scene that transitioned into the T ooth

Chapter 29   We have reached the final chapter of our series! We’ve seen both Tooth & Nail and the scene grow from being independent, in basements and obscurity, and grow until they were partnered with a giant corporation and had artists all over MTV and mainstream radio. Today we see how Tooth & Nail came full circle from all the mayhem and tied hands that came along with that, to once again beco...

Chapter 27   Former Tooth & Nail employee, Derek Tenbus c h , in many ways is a similar t o B randon E bel.   Both got their start as low level employee s of a record label in southern California, because of their love for music , and thought it would be satisfying to help good art thrive. E ventually both became di

Chapter 23.2 Not only was Josh Moore focused on his goal of becoming a musician from a very early age, but he was also recognizably good as an early teenager who eventually was noticed by older kids at his school who picked him up and made him their lead singer. Finishing high school by an alternative program, Josh is touring as Beloved's frontman at 18 years old, and by 21 that journey would be o...