barsukrecords

2013 was a landmark year for the Barsuk Records family. The year marked the fifteenth anniversary of the founding of the Seattle, WA independent record label, and the tenth anniversaries of the label's Death Cab for Cutie masterpiece 'Transatlanticism', indie rock cornerstone 'When I Pretend to Fall' by The Long Winters, Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter's acclaimed debut 'Reckless Burning', and Nada Surf's classic 'Let Go'. After beginning its anniversary celebration at this year's Bumbershoot Festival with a day of programming on Sunday, September 1 (culminating with Death Cab's headline performance of Transatlanticism at KeyArena), Barsuk put on four once-in-a-lifetime concerts, Thursday through Sunday, November 7-10 in Seattle, WA, cramming as many artists from Barsuk's roster -- past and present -- as they could fit into each night.

This YouTube playlist showcases the label's diverse and talented musical acts as well as some brilliant video work by some wonderful directors.

Formed in the late '90s by friends and bandmates Josh Rosenfeld and Christopher Possanza as a way to put out music by their own band (This Busy Monster) and by their friends (Death Cab for Cutie, John Vanderslice, et al), Barsuk Records has grown and flourished over the years, releasing records from artists such as Phantogram, Ra Ra Riot, Menomena, Nada Surf, The Long Winters, David Bazan, Yellow Ostrich, Maps & Atlases, Rocky Votolato, The Dismemberment Plan, Jesse Sykes, Say Hi, Rilo Kiley, They Might Be Giants and more. Fifteen years on, Barsuk is still operated full-time by its owners and a small group of dedicated, music-loving staffers, many of whom have been with the label for up to a decade. Focused not on any specific genre, but simply on supporting unique creativity, Barsuk has developed an outstanding reputation for quality and integrity, and the label promises to be a bastion of quality music for years to come.