Sunset Alliance Records

Independent record label

Sunset Alliance Records

Founded| 1999 (1999)
Founder| Steve Lefever
David Jensen
Genre| Rock
Country of origin| U.S.
Location| Mesa, Arizona
Official website| sunsetalliance.com

Sunset Alliance Records is an independent record label based in Mesa, Arizona. It is owned and operated by David Jensen.

## History[edit]

After the release of a couple LPs featuring local rock bands, original owner and founder Steve Lefever had plans to let the label die.[1] Then, in 2000, he approached the then-frontman of Before Braille, Dave Jensen,[2] who had been working for two years to create a compilation album for the benefit of a local Phoenix art house and music venue, Modified Arts, and invited him to join in the management of Sunset Alliance and release that compilation on the label.[3][1] While Dave Jensen's original plans had been to release that record on his own start-up label, Aireshire Drive, he jumped at the opportunity.[3][1] In 2001, Dave Jensen took full ownership of the label and has managed it since.[1][4]

After a decade of operations, Sunset Alliance remains a small enterprise that focuses on local artists.[5] However, this has not kept the little label from attaining some significant national (and even international) success. During those first ten years, Sunset Alliance put out 46 releases, had three bands appear in the popular Emo Diaries series on Deep Elm Records,[6][7][8] found its bands charting on the CMJ 200,[9] sent its bands across the U.S. on concert and music festival tours, watched as some of its artists received international praise[10] and released their records in foreign markets, and has even applauded as one of its groups moved on to a major label.[11]

In January 2010, Sunset Alliance celebrated its ten-year anniversary with a revue show featuring some of its most successful bands, including: Before Braille, Fivespeed, The Player Piano, Novi Split, The Letterpress, and special guests Pinewood Derby.[12][13]

## Bands[edit]

This list is compiled from information found on the Sunset Alliance website,[14] as well as through the label's discography.

* Andherson
* Art for Starters
* Awake & Alert
* Before Braille
* The Bled
* Beninem
* Captain Baby
* Corrupt Citizen
* Felix
* 52nd Street Jazz Band
* Fivespeed
* Half Visconte
* Jeff Johnrey
* Last Day Parade
* The Letterpress
* Loyal Wife
* The Manhattan Project
* Mr. Fantastical
* The Necronauts
* Novi Split
* The Player Piano
* Rajiv Patel
* Redfield
* Roger Over & Out
* The Retaliation for What They Have Done to Us
* Signedso
* Shotstar
* Stereotyperider
* Tickertape Parade

* Before Braille

* Rajiv Patel

* The Bled

* Art for Starters

## Discography[edit]

Release number  | Title  | Artist  | Notes

|
|
|

SA 001  | Fair Weather Fan | Stereotyperider |
SA 002  | Uninvited | Corrupt Citizen  |
SA 003  | Born to Rock | Redfield  |
SA 004  | Self-titled EP  | Fivespeed | Also known as the First of the Compact Cars EP
SA 005  | Triplesplit Series, Vol. 1[15] | Fivespeed, Before Braille, & Andherson  |
SA 006  | Not One Light Red: A Modified Document | Various Artists  | Released with This Argonaut Records for the benefit of Modified Arts.[16] Bands featured on the compilation: Seven Storey, Fivespeed, Sea of Cortez, Harcuvar, Go Big Casino (Jim Adkins/Jimmy Eat World), Pinewood Derby, Redfield, Before Braille, Sextet, Pollen, ...And Guppies Eat Their Young, Scott Tennent, Reubens Accomplice, Fightshy, Death of Marat, Chula, Half Visconte.
SA 007  | Driving at 90mph | Last Day Parade | Released with Kickstart Audio
SA 008  | The Night was Sultry | The Manhattan Project  |
ALLY009  | Trade in Your Halo | Fivespeed |
ALLY010  | Two Years of Silence Split EP  | Felix & The Manhattan Project  |
ALLY011  | Not One Light Red: A Desert Extended | by Various Artists  | Bands featured on this release include: The Go Reflex, Cursive, Seven Storey, The Real Diego, Recover, Kristofer Astrom & Hidden Truck, Mock Orange, Bluetip, Fine China, The Format, Grey AM, Fivespeed, The Good Life, Fireside, Before Braille, J.Rawls, Bluebird, The Revolution Smile, Chris Mills, and Reubens Accomplice.
ALLY012  | Lost Sight | Redfield  |
ALLY013  | His First Crush | The Bled | Released by Ride the Rocket Records. Sunset Alliance served as a distributive partner.
ALLY014  | Melodic Array of Change | The Necronauts | Released with High School Football Records.
ALLY015  | Self-titled  | Signedso  |
ALLY016  | Self-titled | The Player Piano | The original LP had a limited release of 1000, hand-numbered copies.
ALLY017  | What the Hell is Rock'n Roll | Shotstar | Released with Downfall Records  |
ALLY018  | Self-titled EP  | Half Visconte | Released by This Argonaut Records. Sunset Alliance served as a distributive partner.
ALLY019  | Was it Fear | Half Visconte |
ALLY020  | You're Causing a Scene | Tickertape Parade | Originally, this release was listed as number ALLY020 in the Sunset Alliance catalog.[17][18][19] However, for reasons that are not entirely clear, Tickertape Parade was "excommunicated" from the Sunset Alliance line-up and its catalog number was replaced by two other releases. The official Sunset Alliance website lacks any information concerning this recording or the band.
ALLY020A  | Self-titled  | The Retaliation for What They Have Done to Us  | The Retaliation for What They Have Done to Us was a "secret" project started by members of Before Braille while they were still under contract with Aezra Records.[20] They released this recording during that time, and it was later incorporated into the Sunset Alliance catalog.
ALLY020B  | The Rumor | Before Braille | The Rumor was originally released on Aezra Records.[21] Years later, Sunset Alliance purchased the rights to the album and thereafter has included it among its catalog of releases.
ALLY021  | Keep Moving | Novi Split |
ALLY022  | Obey the Cattle | Rajiv Patel |
ALLY023  | Cattle Punching on a Jack Rabbit EP | Before Braille | This EP had a limited release, and preceded the full-length album, Tired of Not Being Away From Here.
ALLY024  | Input/Output | The Letterpress |
ALLY025  | Americopa Mantle, Vol. 1 | Various Artists  | This release was made for the benefit of local artists.[22][23] It features: Before Braille, The Ruby Lee, The Go Reflex, Black Feet, Awake & Alert, Rajiv Patel, Sweet Bleeders, Not Quite Bernadette, and Wonderful Wednesday.
ALLY026  | Of Black Water | Rajiv Patel |
ALLY027  | Balance and Timing EP  | Before Braille | Released with Bad News Bears Records. This was originally released as a "Holiday" EP.[24]
ALLY028  | Tired of Not Being Away From Here | Before Braille | UK Import release with You and Whose Army? Records. Distributed in the U.S. by Sunset Alliance and Common Wall Media.
ALLY029  | Satellite | The Player Piano | The Japanese re-release of original Self-titled LP with Friend of Mine Records. This release carries two extra tracks: Jazz Odyssey and Cotton Carolinae.[25]
ALLY030  | Drugs Made My Favorite Bands, Drugs Ruined My Favorite People | Art for Starters | Two-disc LP, one disc being purely rock, while the other contains only acoustic songs.
ALLY031  | Ham Hocks & Guitar Strings | Mr. Fantastical |
ALLY032  | Kill the Messenger, Keep the Message | Before Braille |
ALLY033  | Spring Cleaning | Before Braille | This album's full name is: Spring Cleaning...Cut, Clean, Scab, Scar, Rewind, Remind, Repeat. This record is essentially a compilation of B-sides and rareties, but it also contains some original Before Braille songs.
ALLY034  | Get Phased EP  | Rajiv Patel | Released first as a tour EP.
ALLY035  | Step Up or Step Back (Single)  | Beninem  | Digital release only
ALLY036  | Santa's Sleigh is Thumpin'  (Single)  | Beninem  | Digital release only
ALLY037  | One Liners (Single)  | Beninem  | Digital release only
ALLY038  | Seconds Accumulate Dust | Roger Over & Out  | Digital release only
ALLY039  | Mark So Made | Art for Starters | Digital release only. This record features B-sides from the Drugs Made My Favorite Bands, Drugs Ruined My Favorite People Double-LP.
ALLY040  | Sunset Alliance Discography 1999-2001 | Various Artists  | Digital release only
ALLY041  | Sunset Alliance Discography 2002-2004 | Various Artists  | Digital release only
ALLY042  | Sunset Alliance Discography 2005-2011 | Various Artists  | Digital release only
ALLY043  | Without Voice | Art for Starters | Digital release only
ALLY044  | Without Instrument | Art for Starters | Digital release only
ALLY045  | Instrumentals | Before Braille | Digital release only
ALLY046  | Vocals Only | Before Braille | Digital release only
ALLY047  | Faux Light | Loyal Wife |
ALLY048  | Extended Stay | Jeff Johnrey  | Digital release only
ALLY049  | In Lieu of the Flu Sunset Alliance Mixtape, Vol. 1  | Various Artists  | Digital release only available on Bandcamp
ALLY050  | 52nd Street Revisited | 52nd Street Jazz Band  |
ALLY051  | Keep Moving Disk 2 | Novi Split | B-Sides, rare tracks, and live recordings from Keep Moving-era; digital only release
ALLY052  | Sugar Ox | Captain Baby  |
ALLY053  | Born to Boogie, Born to Die | Mr. Fantastical |
ALLY054  | Sugar Ox Redux | Various Artists  | A Bandcamp exclusive album released as a free download that contained remixed tracks from Captain Baby's debut, Sugar Ox. The artists contributing tracks were: D. Konopka (of OK Go), La Guerre, Grassfight, Octajohn, Hot Wheels, Reptoid, and Shunno). Released
ALLY055  | Faux Light Instrumentals | Loyal Wife | Digital only release of Loyal Wife's debut album without any vocals.
ALLY056  | Sugar Ox Instrumentals  | Captain Baby  | Digital only release of Captain Baby's debut album without any vocals.

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d Garcia, Gilbert. Speed Kills, The Phoenix New Times, Jan. 17, 2002[permanent dead link] retrieved 01-09-12
2. ^ Yahoo! Music Before Braille Bio retrieved 02-17-12
3. ^ a b Sunset Alliance Official Site: Story retrieved 02-17-12
4. ^ Dominic, Serene. Before Braille's David Jensen Returns with New Band Loyal Wife, The Phoenix New Times, May, 10, 2012 Archived 2012-06-28 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 2012-05-12
5. ^ See Manta.com Sunset Alliance Records Profile retrieved 02-17-12
6. ^ The Emo Diaries Chapter 6, featuring Andherson retrieved 12-08-11
7. ^ The Emo Diaries Chapter 4, featuring Fivespeed retrieved 12-08-11
8. ^ The Emo Diaries Chapter 7, featuring Before Braille retrieved 12-08-11
9. ^ See, e.g.,CMJ New Music Monthly, Issue 135, 2004 retrieved 01-12-12
10. ^ See, e.g., Indiepoprock.com French Review of The Player Piano, May 2004 retrieved 02-17-12
11. ^ Ide, Chelsea. Fivespeed Rejoins the Field, The Phoenix New Times, Dec. 23, 2004 Archived 2012-01-10 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 02-01-12
12. ^ Music Snobs Anonymous Blog Post, Dec. 14, 2009 retrieved 02-17-12
13. ^ Before Braille Official MySpace Blog, Dec.14, 2009 retrieved 02-20-12
14. ^ Sunset Alliance Official Site: Allies retrieved 01-21-12
15. ^ Mehr, Bob. The Short and the Long, The Phoenix New Times, July 26, 2001 retrieved 02-17-12
16. ^ Mehr, Bob.Flashing Red, The Phoenix New Times, Feb. 1, 2001 retrieved 03-02-12
17. ^ Discogs.com Sales Site reference, retrieved 02-17-12
18. ^ Tower Records Sales Site reference retrieved 02-17-12
19. ^ Wurst, Erika. {Pomp}ous on Parade, State Press, Jan. 30, 2003 retrieved 03-15-12
20. ^ CDBaby.com sales page for Retaliation retrieved 02-14-12
21. ^ Before Braille's Debut Album"The Rumor" Set for Release on September 10th, Allbusiness.com, July 30, 2002 retrieved 02-01-12
22. ^ Americopa Mantle Website retrieved 02-17-12
23. ^ O'Connor, Christopher. Nutcracker Sweet, The Phoenix New Times, June 5, 2003 retrieved 03-02-12
24. ^ Ching, Albert. Musical Advent Calendar: Before Braille Merry Christmas I'm Cheating, OC Weekly, Dec. 9, 2008 retrieved 02-01-12
25. ^ Punknews.org Review of Satellite, May 9, 2008

## External links[edit]

* Official website