Royal Mountain Records

Record label

Royal Mountain Records

Founded| 2009
Genre|

* Indie rock
* power pop
* alternative rock
* punk rock

Country of origin| Canada
Location| Toronto, Canada
Official website| royalmountainrecords.com

Royal Mountain Records is a Canadian independent record label and artist-management company, based in Toronto, Canada.[1] The Royal Mountain roster currently consists of more than 30 active artists including Alvvays, Mac DeMarco, and U.S. Girls.[2] Their alumni include PUP, Orville Peck and White Reaper.

## History

[edit]

Founded in 2009 by Hollerado front man Menno Versteeg and Adam “Bix” Berger, the label was originally intended as a means to self release Hollerado's debut Record in a Bag (RMR-001). It soon became a platform to launch the careers of other local Toronto artists such as PUP and Alvvays.[3] Upon the success of these releases, the label signed international acts such as Mac DeMarco, Metz and U.S. Girls, while continuing to support local artists such as Calpurnia[4] and Dizzy. Recent additions to the Royal Mountain roster include Shady Nasty, Bad Waitress, Ellis, KOKOKO!, Nap Eyes, and Wolf Parade. In 2018, it was hailed by Now Magazine as one of the strongest rock record labels in Toronto.[5]

### Mental health initiative

[edit]

In 2019, Royal Mountain Records implemented a mental health fund for the artists signed to the label in order to provide $1,500 (non-recoupable) to put towards their mental health.[6][7] Royal Mountain is the first label to start a program like this.[2][8]

## Current roster

[edit]

* Alvvays
* Anemone
* Anyway Gang
* Bad Waitress
* Boniface
* Calpurnia
* Cartel Madras
* Common Holly
* Customer Service
* Dizzy
* Doomsquad
* Ducks Ltd.
* Dusted
* Ellis
* Everett Bird
* Gulfer
* Gustaf
* Hollerado
* Homeshake

* Islands
* Jo Passed
* KOKOKO!
* Kylie V.
* Bells Larsen
* Le Ren
* Little Junior
* Wyatt C. Louis
* Mac DeMarco
* Mav Karlo
* METZ
* Nap Eyes
* Ought
* Pillow Queens
* Pottery
* Shady Nasty
* Sister Ray
* TR/ST
* TUNS
* U.S. Girls
* Wild Pink
* Wolf Parade

|

## Awards and accolades

[edit]

### Juno Awards

[edit]

Year[9] | Nominee/Work  | Award  | Result

|
|
|

2011 | Hollerado | Best New Group | Nominated
2012 | Hollerado - "Good Day At The Races" | Video of the Year | Nominated
2014 | Hollerado \- White Paint | Recording Package of the Year | Nominated
2015 | Alvvays \- Alvvays | Alternative Album of the Year | Nominated
Breakthrough Group of the Year  | Nominated
PUP \- Guilt Trip | Video of the Year  | Nominated
PUP - PUP | Recording Package of the Year  | Nominated
2016 | PUP - Dark Days | Video of the Year  | Nominated
2018 | METZ \- Strange Peace | Metal/Hard Music Album of the Year | Nominated
Alvvays  | Group of the Year | Nominated
Alvvays - Antisocialites | Alternative Album of the Year  | Win
2019  | Dizzy | Breakthrough Group Of The Year  | Nominated
2019  | Dizzy \- Baby Teeth  | Alternative Album Of The Year  | Win
2019  | U.S. Girls - In a Poem Unlimited | Alternative Album Of The Year  | Nominated

### Polaris Prize

[edit]

Year[10] | Nominee/Work  | Award  | Result

|
|
|

2014 | PUP - PUP | Polaris Music Prize  | Longlist
2015 | Alvvays - Alvvays | Polaris Music Prize  | Shortlist
2016 | PUP - The Dream Is Over | Polaris Music Prize  | Shortlist
2017 | Mac DeMarco \- This Old Dog | Polaris Music Prize  | Longlist
TUNS - TUNS | Polaris Music Prize  | Longlist
2018 | Alvvays - Antisocialites | Polaris Music Prize  | Shortlist
U.S. Girls \- In A Poem Unlimited | Polaris Music Prize  | Shortlist

### Much Music Video Awards

[edit]

Year  | Nominee/Work  | Award  | Result

|
|
|

2017  | PUP - Sleep in the Heat | Video of the Year  | Nominated

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "How this music boss is boosting his artists' mental health". Retrieved 2020-05-02.
2. ^ a b "Toronto indie music label Royal Mountain steps up with a first — a fund for artists' mental-health needs". thestar.com. 2019-02-05. Retrieved 2020-05-02.
3. ^ "How Hollerado Are Doing Their Part To Make the Indie Label Machine a Little Nicer". Noisey. 2017-04-17. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
4. ^ "Finn Wolfhard of 'Stranger Things' and His Band Calpurnia Sign to Royal Mountain". exclaim.ca. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
5. ^ Hudson, Alex (2017-08-30). "How Royal Mountain became one of the strongest rock labels in Toronto". NOW Magazine. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
6. ^ Ottenhof, Luke (17 May 2019). "How One Indie Label Is Combatting the Mental Health Crisis Among Musicians". Pitchfork.
7. ^ "Therapy, meditation and rock 'n' roll". CBC News.
8. ^ "Changing the tune on tortured artists and musicians' mental health". CBC News.
9. ^ "See the Full List of 2018 JUNO Awards Nominees | The JUNO Awards". The JUNO Awards. Retrieved 2018-10-22.
10. ^ "Nominees - Polaris Music Prize". Polaris Music Prize. Retrieved 2018-10-22.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz label

|