Epitaph Records

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Image:Epitaph Records logo.jpg Epitaph Records is a Hollywood, California based record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. The label was originally "just a logo and a P.O. box" created in the 1980s for the purpose of selling Bad Religion records, but has evolved into a large independent record label. Most of the bands on Epitaph are punk rock groups, but several sub-labels exist, such as ANTI-, Fat Possum Records, Burning Heart Records and Hellcat Records that have signed other types of bands. A few of the first bands signed include Bad Religion, L7, The Offspring, Rancid, and NOFX.

In 1987, Epitaph released its first record as a proper label. It was the band L7's self-titled album, and it was distributed by Chameleon. The first album that was both released and distributed by Epitaph was Suffer by Bad Religion.

In 1994 Epitaph received widespread fame, both within and outside the punk community, when NOFX, Rancid and The Offspring all released hit records. This was the year that punk broke into the mainstream; Rancid appeared on Saturday Night Live that year, playing Ruby Soho and Roots Radicals. The Offspring would soon leave for Columbia Records in a contract dispute, but their Smash lived up to its namesake and would quickly become Epitaph's all time best selling album, with more than 11 million units sold worldwide to date.

Recently in 2003, Epitaph has sparked some controversy among its fans by signing noted alternative rap artists Atmosphere and Sage Francis and noise/grindcore band The Locust, leading to many heated debates about what constituted the true nature of "punk" music, but so far the new groups seem to feel at home on the label. Merle Haggard has also released material on the Epitaph label (If I Could Only Fly (2000) and Roots Vol. 1 (2001)).

Although Bad Religion was the founding "band" of Epitaph released their first records through Epitaph, they switched over to Atlantic in 1994, with Stranger Than Fiction being their first record outside the label. During the following two years, a lot of intra-band drama occurred, mainly between Greg Graffin, the band's main vocalist and co-songwriter and Brett Gurewitz, founder of Epitaph and the other songwriter for the band. This ended up with Brett Gurewitz leaving the band in 1996. However, in 2001, Brett returned to the band and Bad Religion once again signed under Epitaph Records, releasing The Process of Belief in 2002, and, most recently The Empire Strikes First (2004).

In January 2002 Brett Gurewitz was quoted saying that "I had multiple offers for $50- and $100 million for half of my business". He never took any of them.

In mid-2005 Epitaph was added to the official list of RIAA members[1] along with several other high-profile independent labels such as Fat Wreck Chords. The reason for the listing is not clear, but one source points to an agreement for internet P2P distribution [2] ("Independent Labels Sign Deal With Snocap"). Another source claims label management joined RIAA in order to get certified sales awards (ie, official "Gold" or "Platinum" record status) for releases. This sparked some controversy as some feel they should no longer be labeled independent if they are a member of the RIAA.[3]

However, the only source that has actually been used for these claims of memebership is the official RIAA membership list, which has been disputed. [4] As of this writing, not only are Epitaph and Fat Wreck Chords listed as official members, but Lookout! Records is once again listed, even though they were already falsely listed before.

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