Hippos in Tanks

Hippos in Tanks
Founded2010
FounderBarron Machat, Travis Woolsey, Don Andrews
StatusDefunct
Distributor(s)Sony Genepool Universal and Redeye
GenreElectronic, avant-garde, experimental pop
Country of originUnited States
LocationLos Angeles, Miami, NY and London, CA
New York, NY

Hippos in Tanks was a record label founded in 2010 by Barron Machat and Travis Woolsey. The label specialized in electronic music. It was named the best label of 2011 by FACT.[1] Following the death of Machat in 2015, The Fader praised the label for "laying the groundwork to an alternative template for the avant-garde."[2] The label is no longer active.

History

In 2009, Machat and Woolsey—who met while working at an online company in Los Angeles—were asked to host a radio show on KXLU called Hippos in Tanks.[3] It was named after the novel by Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks .[4] After leaving the company to work on their label full-time, HIT released their first EP from Von Haze in June 2010.[3] In 2011 Woolsey left the label with Machat staying on as CEO.

According to Dean Blunt in 2014, Hippos in Tanks sued him for $10,000 over contract disputes. The dispute was resolved when his label at the time, Rough Trade Records, paid Hippos in Tanks the $10,000.[5]

Hippos in Tanks closed following the death of Barron Machat on April 8, 2015. The label is now part of Machat Entertainment.

The label would become associated with Internet age experimental pop that drew on disparate sources such as new wave, avant-garde noise, R&B, and techno.[6] The label released projects by artists such as Grimes, James Ferraro, Autre Ne Veut, Laurel Halo, Hype Williams, and Arca.[6]

Hippos In Tanks founder Barron Machat died in a car crash in Miami, Florida, on April 8, 2015.[7]

The label has been inactive since late 2015.

Artists / Alumni

References

  1. ^ "10 best: labels of 2011". FACT. November 22, 2011. Retrieved December 20, 2011.
  2. ^ Friedlander, Emilie. "How Hippos In Tanks Ushered Avant-Garde Music Into The 21st Century". The Fader. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
  3. ^ a b Woosley, Travis (January 11, 2011). "Hippos in Tanks". Impose Magazine. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  4. ^ Cotto, Mario (November 25, 2011). "Hippos In Tanks: Local Labels We Love". KCRW. Retrieved January 3, 2012.
  5. ^ Bundy, Roy (2014). "Dean Blunt mix and interview". YouTube. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  6. ^ a b Pajot, S. (2 August 2014). "Barron Machat, Founder of Hippos in Tanks Label, Died in Miami Car Crash". New Miami Times. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  7. ^ "R.I.P. Hippos In Tanks founder Barron Machat". FACT. April 9, 2015. Retrieved April 9, 2015.


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