Are you hip to the sweet sounds of Toledo, Ohio’s Doghouse Records? You should be, as they’ve been quietly releasing some of the underground’s best rock records for
the past 15 years, and many of their artists have gone on to find major indie success. The Get Up Kids started on the label, as did Hot Water Music. All-American Rejects were the first band of theirs to sign to the majors, a feat recently duplicated by Say Anything, who have just had their Doghouse debut re-issued by J Records, a division of Sony that is home to Pearl Jam, Alicia Keys and Maroon 5.

The one common thread among all the Doghouse acts is tunefulness. The sound of their bands varies from alt-country to hardcore, but all of the records they release are melodic and well-produced. To boot, the label doesn’t skimp on design. Their album artwork and packaging is top-notch, as are their website, ads and promotional assets. It’s nice to see a label take pride in their overall aesthetic, not just the aesthetic of the bands they sign.

The label was started in 1988 by Dirk Hemsath as a means of releasing records from his band Majority of One. The first band on the label to strike major indie success, however, was emo forefathers Get Up Kids, who released their first few long-players on Doghouse. The success of GUK increased the label’s profile dramatically, and today, the label is known as one of the premier independent labels in the country — a label with a taste for excellent bands. Though many of their bands have left for bigger labels, they still have a great roster that includes The Honorary Title, Cruiserweight, Limbeck, and Koufax. Please poke around their website or sample some of their bands below:

Cruiserweight – “Goodbye Daily Sadness”
Limbeck – “Julia”
Say Anything – “Alive with the Glory of Love”
Chamberlain – “Manhattan’s Iron Horses (Last Train Out)”

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