Now then, this has been a heck of a year for YBR. We saw exponential growth last year, and we knew from the start that a repeat wouldn’t be sustainable this year. That said, we still went and did a lot. In our first year we released 7 albums total; our second had 12. This year we released 18 (19 including System Lincs); 10 in the first few months.

I’m super happy with the releases we put out, and I think every record has been brilliant. My favourite part of working in this label has been collaborating with artists to bring their music out in a lovingly crafted package, from beginning to end. Similarly, it has been an amazing change of pace working with artists that already have their artwork complete. These albums are still very much complete and crafted, but it has been nice not having to be involved in every single step of development; more on this later. We’ve also taken on some new challenges; some that worked, and some that didn’t. We’ve certainly found our limits in some areas, but continue to innovate in others.

We’re certainly in the position now where we have a lot of albums both in the works, and we’re working with artists that would like to work with us in the near future. That’s not to sound braggy, it’s just a big difference to early on where we were approaching loads of artists to try and get some releases in the works. However, we’ve certainly had to slow down and stop the ‘yes man’ attitude to every opportunity. This sucks, but that kind of work has led to burnout across the board for us; we’re still mainly a 2-man team after all! 

This is why the latter half of the year has been quieter for us, behind the scenes at least. The latter half of this year has featured a lot of ‘complete’ releases, which is how we describe albums that people bring to us that are already mixed, mastered and have the artwork all complete. We’ll add some touches, like copyright notes, minor design fixes and mastering for CD, but they didn’t require nearly as much work as others. This isn’t to say they are superior in any way; I absolutely adore our Yellowbelly Recorded series, where we are involved in every step from recording right up to launching them. But with the burnout we got into by the summer, it has certainly been a necessary break for us.

This leads us to the future. Next year, we already have a handful of albums ready for release, and a handful more that are planned to release later in the year. We have a number of firsts too; the first Yellowbelly Recorded album mixed by someone that isn’t me, our first triple album, and the first release in another series of releases I’m really looking forward to.

We’re also looking at expanding our video output as our tests this year have gone down very well; let us know what you’d like to see on our socials or our email! Similarly, if you have experience in mixing, mastering, show booking, graphics or video, get in touch and we’ll chat about how we could work together!

For now, I’d like to thank all of the amazing artists we’ve worked with this year, in previous years, and in the year to come. You’ve all been exceptionally friendly, patient and collaborative, and I have enjoyed every single one of the releases we’ve put out together. I’d like to thank all the people who have helped make Yellowbelly Records what it is today; Mary, Josh, Tommy and Joe for your help on and off stage, Mick and Carol at Magnumpix Photography for always being a solid presence, Dale and Ed at Not That Kind Of CIC for their tireless events and business support, Tony and Jan at the Crafty Cove for being absolute printing legends, all the venues that have been extraordinary, my family for their amazing patience and support, and all you guys for helping us to support all these amazing local artists!