SACREMENTO (CelebrityAccess MediaWire) — Lumberjack Mordam Music Group is shutting down, according to an email sent to affiliated labels by CEO Dirk Hemsath and obtained by Punknews.org.
"At this point LMMG will not be able to continue to provide distribution services for labels. We had hopes for the last several months that we'd be able to find a way to move forward but the triple hits of an expensive merger, a dying business and a bad economy have made it impossible. We are hoping to be able to get some money to labels, but I'm not sure how much or when as we have to try and collect money from customers. If you have not yet moved your distribution to another company, please make arrangements to do so as soon as possible." Hemsath wrote in the email obtained by Punknews.org.
Originally founded in 1983 by Ruth Schwartz, Mordam records was a key label in this history of the American punk & indie scenes, releasing discs by artists including Faith No More and Negativland. They also provided distribution for more than 100 indie labels over the years including Lookout! Records, Frank Kozik's Man's Ruin, Kill Rock Stars, and Jade Tree, as well as Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records and Long Gone John's Sympathy for the Record Industry which released material by the Dead Kennedys and the White Stripes.
After Schwartz sold Mordam to Lumberjack in 2005, the company appeared to fall on hard times and many affiliated labels are reportedly owed significant sums of money. – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers
