BIG STIR RECORDS - REX BROOME & CHRISTINA BULBENKO : Nobody tells us what to do or how to do it ! (2/2)
Here, for your and our pleasure, is the second part of the interview with Rex and Christina.
In terms of record sleeves, who takes care of them and how do things work?
R&C: We're super serious about letting the artists choose their own direction, unless they want our advice and help (which does happen). We have people on speed-dial who are terrific at graphic design, and they're often also musicians in the bands – Michael Simmons of sparkle*jets u.k., John Lathrop of The Stan Laurels, Rex's daughter Ridley, Spygenius collaborator Champniss, and to some extent Rex himself – but mostly the artists and their own talented friends craft their own visual presentation. We're humbly honored that BSR is known for good design work, but that's mostly because we choose to work with artists who are already known for good artwork, an entire aesthetic package... which we notice, and it does guide our choices when considering a new signing!
In terms of reissues, how do you obtain the rights? Is it more difficult to re-release a record than a new one?
R&C: We very rarely do reissues, partly because it's complex, but mostly because other labels are very, very good at it, and we don't want to compete with the likes of Omnivore or Cherry Red, who are brilliant. It's also a very different audience and different type of promotion, and mostly we're happy leaving it to the folks who have that dialed in, rather than having to reinvent our own wheel. New releases are what we're all about, and the rare exceptions are usually something unique, like Sorrows' compete re-imagining of their second album, or a carefully considered “Greatest Hits” including new material, as with the new Nelson Bragg album.
 |
| in L.A. |
Do you have good contacts with other labels?
R&C: We do! We're official partner labels with SpyderPop Records out of Texas, we hang out with the Bomp Records crew in Burbank, we trade artists with Futureman in Detroit, we collaborated with Dennis Chuning at Code 213 before his sudden passing this year, and to be honest, we're afraid we'll forget someone. We share distribution with Wicked Cool and sometimes work with them when our artists appear on Little Steven's Underground Garage, and Kool Kat Records has a retail arm that carries BSR titles. And there are so many other brilliant labels out there whose artists appear alongside ours all the time – Rum Bar, Jem, Think Like A Key, – those are folks we don't know as well personally, but we admire what they do and certainly don't feel like we're “competing” with them. Sometimes artists move between that small community of labels, not because one is “better” but because they're a better fit. If you look into it, some artists have moved from a few of these labels over to BSR, and a couple of former BSR artists are now with one of the others. We don't know what any of the other labels would say about us if you asked them, hahaha, but we know how hard this job is, and that there's no way anyone would do it unless they loved the music, so it's all respect and admiration on our end!
What does an independent label mean to you?
R&C: Pretty much that nobody tells us what to do or how to do it, hahaha! We are free to carve out our own identity. And we work to do exactly that every day.
R&C: It meant more when we were younger, because although underground music (and movies, books, comics, all of that) stood apart from the mainstream, there was still a big audience for all of it together. We miss college radio, where the same people would be into “underground” music that ranged from punk to folk to synthpop and hip hop, and of course guitar pop. The internet slowly eroded that into pockets of people following just their own scene and genre. There are good aspects of that, because it's easier for fans to find things, but it can seem a little insular and there's less crossover than there once was. We work with the way things are now, and we're not big on nostalgia as a thing, but we miss those less stratified days.
What difficulties does the label face?
R&C: Declining physical sales on a worldwide level, more than anything else. And the fact that there's just too much new music for anyone to keep up with it all. We do think that in a way that makes a “label” more important, and that having a team on each release is an advantage over just the artist having to do it all for themselves. But it's challenging to reach the wider audience our artists deserve without spending a lot of money that we don't have. The industry is not friendly to independent releases these days, unless they have a magical viral hit via TikTok or something... and while those things do happen, they happen to a smaller percentage of the zillions of artists trying to make it happen. So, again, hard work, heart and soul, and a community focus are how we're trying to move up, despite the challenges.
R&C: It's gotten bigger, and honestly too big for the two of us to handle! But we try to learn from everything that happens. We feel like if we go on “automatic”, that's the kiss of death. So we try to be aware of how things are changing, and respond thoughtfully in how we change to meet those challenges.
What's your take on streaming and downloading?
R&C: It's important to separate them, because downloads were, in many ways, the best thing to ever happen to independent artists, and streaming is unquestionably the worst! Streaming has killed downloads almost completely now, so it's a bit of a moot point, but it was possible to sell an album as a download and literally keep every cent, since there was no manufacturing cost. Streaming is the opposite: not only do you get next to nothing per stream, you also somehow have to actively remind people to stream it again and again, since they don't have a physical copy! There's no getting around streaming, though. Once people realize they can get almost every record ever released for free, you can't make them go back to paying for the records individually. And the only people who can make any money off of it are the major labels who already have massive back catalogs, no need to pay artists for anything new. It's the ultimate victory of corporate greed in the music industry, but... it's a done deal, and we can't judge people for getting and loving new music that way. We just wish they understood, or cared a little more, that it's bad for the artists who need support to continue developing, because streaming “money” won't cut it.
 |
| Rex and Nelson Bragg |
Do you get involved if bands want to make videos or go on tour?
R&C: Videos, yes! That's all part of the whole promo campaign, and although the bands usually create their own videos, we're a big part of finding premiere outlets and lining it all up with the releases. Touring is a lot more challenging these days, and we usually leave that to the professional booking agents, although of course we promote the tour dates. It's funny that we started as live concert promoters, but barely have time to even think about that side of things now!
What are the label's projects?
R&C: So many. Almost all of them aligned with album releases. But we do have a couple of unusual ones coming up this fall, both “Various Artist” compilations of different kinds, and they've been really complex (but rewarding) to put together. One is a tribute album to The Flashcubes, which has been wonderfully curated by the great Carl Cafarelli (of This Is Rock 'N' Roll Radio), and the other is an incredibly fun and elaborate Halloween celebration on vinyl. Sounds like something Monstres Sacrés would be into, and we hope you will be!
R&C: There are all kinds of behind-the-scenes near misses, for sure. Probably for every two artists we do sign, there's one with whom we talked about doing a record only for it not to work out. We've taken meetings with some of our heroes and “almost” got to release their albums, for sure! In the early days, we had a lot of ideas that we didn't know how to realize, but we've learned our strengths along the way, and we almost never commit to anything any more unless we're very, very certain it will come to fruition.
If you were contacted by a major label tomorrow, what would your reaction be?
R&C: In a sense we have been already – we work with Sony on the distribution end, and we've had to coordinate releases with some pretty big indies. We'd be overjoyed to have someone willing to fund bigger projects, but as we said in answer to the “indedpendent label” question, we wouldn't want anyone else making decisions for us and our artists.
What do you think of the current scene? Could you give us your Top 10 of the current year?
R&C: There's SO much great music out there. One of the reasons we don't feel competitive with other indie labels is that we're glad they're out there, because we can't take care of all the great artists ourselves! It would be hard to do a Top 10, though, because we would get ourselves in trouble, hahaha – of course we'd have to cite all our own releases, but even then we'd be leaving a few out, with 12 albums a year on BSR! That said, we do listen, and sometimes we go nuts for strong new releases from longtime heroes – hearing Redd Kross and The Cure in peak form last year was exciting – and sometimes new voices emerge and we think, well, maybe we'll get to work with them down the line.
R&C: We plan to keep following our hearts, while trying to get smarter about the business side of things, like we've always done. We do know our release schedule for almost a year in advance at all times, but we can't give away too many surprises! There are definitely some new releases from our established artists that we're excited about, though, and there will start to be teaser singles before this year is out. Most of 2025 was pure power pop, and we only like to present that when it's the absolute best of the form, and the stars aligned with The Spongetones, Splitsville, The Flashcubes, 20/20, Sorrows, The Bablers and the bands on the collections... it's hard to follow that, so 2026 is going to be a little more indie, a little more songwriter-y, a little more experimental, but still with that hooks and harmonies direction. Years seem to alternate like that, and it keeps things fresh. We're excited that The Corner Laughers and The Jack Rubies will be back, and that we'll be following up the Splitsville record with a new Greenberry Woods album... and of course there are things we can't divulge just yet. Just wait and see!
Is there anything you'd like to add?
R&C: Just our sincere thanks for all the support, and all the thoughtful questions! We really appreciate it, and everything that you guys do!
Commentaires