Crossbill Records is a Davis-based independent record label founded and run by Michael Leahy, a longtime KDVS radio host, releasing folk, Americana and other indie music largely from the Greater Sacramento and Davis music community.[1][2][3]
At a glance
- Based in Davis, California; described repeatedly as a "Davis-based" indie label.[1][2]
- Founded and operated by Michael (Mike) Leahy, a KDVS radio host/DJ.[2][4]
- Celebrated a 10-year anniversary at the 2015 Davis Music Festival, placing its founding around 2005.[3]
- Roster has included Silver Darling, Sea of Bees, Appetite, Garrett Pierce, Sunmonks, Jake Mann + the Upper Hand, Two Sheds, Tom Brosseau, Be Calm Honcho and West Nile Ramblers.[5][6][1][7][2][3]
- Secured national distribution for Sea of Bees' Songs for the Ravens via Burnside Distribution (Portland).[6]
Overview and founder
Crossbill Records is run by Michael Leahy (also referred to as Mike Leahy), who is described as a KDVS host and the label's founder.[2][4] Leahy's roots in the music community trace to his time as a radio DJ at KDVS in Davis; artist Teddy Briggs (Appetite) recalled that he and Leahy first met working together as KDVS radio DJs.[1] The label is consistently identified as Davis-based.[1][2][3] At the 2015 Davis Music Festival, the festival featured a "10-year anniversary celebration of Davis-based Crossbill Records," which implies the label was established around 2005.[3]
The label was founded in the summer of 2005, born out of meetings at the Delta of Venus cafe in Davis.[8][9] The label is portrayed as artist-friendly and personally run rather than corporate. Silver Darling's Kevin Lee described Crossbill as "a beautiful working relationship," noting that Leahy was a friend they could call anytime — a relationship that began after the band asked Leahy for a slot on his Davis radio show, played the show, and put on shows together before Leahy offered to release their first album.[5] Briggs similarly called Leahy "a good friend" who "really loves music" and "is in it for all the best reasons."[1]
The connection between Leahy and Tom Brosseau illustrates the label's radio-to-roster pipeline: Brosseau sent his Late Night at Largo record to Leahy at KDVS around 2004, appeared on Leahy's Cool As Folk show, and the two became fast friends. When a subsequent deal with FatCat Records fell through, Brosseau brought his Grass Punks LP to Leahy, who released it on Crossbill.[9][8]
Roster and releases
Across the source articles, the label's roster and catalog include:
- Silver Darling — Crossbill released the band's full-length Your Ghost Fits My Skin (September 2008) and an EP, Wrap Around My Heart.[5][2]
- Sea of Bees (Julie Ann Bee) — Songs for the Ravens was released via Crossbill; Leahy was among the first to respond to the record and ultimately signed it after a label search elsewhere came up empty.[6]
- Appetite (Teddy Briggs) — Scattered Smothered Covered (officially released mid-August 2011, produced/recorded by Raleigh Moncrief).[1][7]
- Garrett Pierce — Crossbill put out his first two albums, Like a Moth and All Masks.[4] Like a Moth was his debut album and the label's very first release, issued in late 2005.[8][9]
- Sunmonks — debut EP In a Desert of Plenty (released Oct. 28, 2014).[10]
- Jake Mann + the Upper Hand — named as a Crossbill artist.[1]
- Two Sheds, Tom Brosseau, Be Calm Honcho, West Nile Ramblers — listed among the roster bands featured at the label's 2015 anniversary showcase.[3]
- Mad Cow String Band — released Live at the Delta of Venus (2006); a January 2006 show at the Palms Playhouse in support of the record sold out.[8][11]
- Matt Bauer — released the Wasps and White Roses EP (2006) and the full-length The Jessamine County Book of the Living on Crossbill; according to the UC Davis Aggie, the latter was his most recent album at the time of their 2011 profile.[11]
- The Loom — a Brooklyn-based six-member indie rock band, representing an out-of-region signing; their album Teeth appears in the Crossbill discography.[11][8]
Distribution and partners
Through the strength of Sea of Bees' Songs for the Ravens, Leahy secured a distribution deal with Burnside Distribution in Portland, Oregon; The Hangar's John Baccigaluppi, who produced the record, said Burnside was "really working it."[6] Leahy also connected Sea of Bees to the Portland boutique publicity firm Riot Act Media (Joan Hiller and Nathan Walker).[6]
Scene relationships
Crossbill sits at the center of a tight Davis/Sacramento folk and indie network. Several of its releases were recorded by John Baccigaluppi — owner of the Sacramento studio The Hangar and publisher of Tape Op — including Sea of Bees' Songs for the Ravens (at The Hangar) and Sunmonks' In a Desert of Plenty (mixed at Panoramic House in Stinson Beach).[6][10] Silver Darling's Your Ghost Fits My Skin was recorded at The Hangar with Christian Kiefer.[5]
The label's artists overlap heavily in personnel: Jesse Phillips played in Silver Darling and later in Appetite's live band; Sam Coe of Sea of Bees drummed in Appetite's lineup; and Garrett Pierce was connected to the Davis scene around Sholi and Ellie Fortune.[5][1][4] After Silver Darling disbanded, frontman Kevin Lee Florence moved to Portland and released his solo debut Given on a different label, Fluff and Gravy Records, while Submerge noted his earlier Crossbill releases with Silver Darling.[2]
Recognition
Appetite's Crossbill release Scattered Smothered Covered placed No. 6 on Submerge's Top 20 of 2011 list.[7]