Steven Williams (Init Records)
1. What are your top five albums that were released in 2014? (In order 1-5)
- Krieg - Transient
- Thou - Heathen
- Hexis - Abalam
- Survival Knife - Loose Power
- Generation of Vipers - Coffin Wisdom
2. What band did you discover in 2014 (can be a brand new band or an older band) that had an impact on your life? What made them significant?
Hexis for sure. The singer, Filip, reached out to me at the very end of 2013 looking to do a trade with his label. I traded some Init releases for the Hexis discography. All of the records were just great, and when they toured the states with Primitive Man this past summer they played here in Minneapolis and they were just intense and heavy and powerful on stage. Filip was a rad dude in person, which is always an added bonus, and I am hoping to work with them on something in 2015.
3. How will you remember 2014? (In terms of music)
Lots of vinyl reissues in 2014. Especially with a lot of albums I listened to a lot to me in my teens given the remaster/reissue treatment: Jawbreaker, Mineral, Jimmy Eat World, NOFX, Unwound, Sleater-Kinney, Unbroken, etc.
4. What can we look forward to from you in 2015?
Vinyl pressings of Krieg - Transient and Woman Is The Earth - Depths will be out in January, and following that will be releases from Blood Folke, Great Falls, and Rosetta. Hopefully a Hexis release too.
5. What records are you looking forward to most in 2015?
New material by KEN Mode, Rosetta, Great Falls, Sleater-Kinney. I'm sure there's more that I'm not remembering.
6. What trend will you forever associate with 2014 in music?
Expensive vinyl prices: both retail and pressing costs; slow vinyl turnaround times.
