What does the term ‘Independent’ mean to Iron Man Records?

“In a nation run by swine, all pigs are upward-mobile and the rest of us are fucked until we can put our acts together: Not necessarily to Win, but mainly to keep from Losing Completely.” Hunter S Thompson — Gonzo Papers, Vol. 1: The Great Shark Hunt: Strange Tales from a Strange Time (1979) Hunter S. Thompson had many wise words that can be useful to anyone wanting to work in the music business. But I’ve always puzzled over a simple question “How did he know?” Independent can mean many different things. For Iron Man Records, an independent record label, it often means working hard and trying to turn available time and resources into…

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What was the last record you bought on Vinyl, and when was that?

Would you enjoy becoming an Iron Man Records Patron? Do you like listening to music on Vinyl? Would you feel happy supporting the cause and contributing to the next release on Vinyl? Do you want to Immanentize the Eschaton? Are you a risk taker? To be honest, I have NO idea what questions to ask or how much to ask for. What would you be able to give? It's probably none of my business. Iron Man Records needs more Patrons and you're exactly the sort of person. You're even reading this stuff. We all spend money on nonsense. This is not nonsense. I would like to invite you to become a…

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John Sinclair – Beatnik Youth (Double CD) 2018

John Sinclair - “Beatnik Youth" on Double CD Released 2018 by Iron Man Records. All Press enquiries to Sean Newsham Catalogue Number: IMB6032 Release date: 2018 Label: Iron Man Records Distribution: Cargo Disc 1 Testify (9.10) Good Stuff (4.32) Everybody Needs Somebody (7.09) Change My Life (5.14) Ain't Nobody's Business (3.36) My Buddy (5.13) That Old Man (3.53) Disc 2 Brilliant Corners (11.29) Culture Cide (11.38) Red Dress (Ruby My Dear) (6.25) Sitarrtha (6.16) Do It (6.16) War On Drugs (6.18) Read a brilliant review of Beatnik Youth by Gus Ironside for Louder Than War here Saby Reyes-Kulkarni interviewed John Sinclair and Youth and wrote a fantastic piece for Bandcamp here…

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The Imagine Nation

“Under the present system of mass education by classes too much stress is laid on teaching and too little on active learning. The child is not encouraged to discover things on his own account. He learns to rely on outside help, not on his own powers, thus losing intellectual independence and all capacity to judge for himself. The over-taught child is the father of the newspaper - reading, advertisement - believing, propaganda - swallowing, demagogue - led man – the man who makes modern democracy the farce it is.” – Aldous Huxley, Proper Studies (1927) Culture Industry is a term coined by Theodor Adorno (1903–69) and Max Horkheimer (1895–1973), who argued…

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John Sinclair – Beatnik Youth – Double CD – review by Steve Fly Amsterdam, 2017

The story of the Beatnik Youth album begins in London. John Sinclair was visiting to perform with guitarist Al Clayton and his band The Dirty Strangers, Gigs organised in part by Ian Grant, including a double bill with Zodiac / Youth. Martin ‘Youth’ Glover came into John’s orbit and found a kindred spirit in John, proposing they work on a jazz project together. 

Sure enough plans were laid out for John to travel to Kingston College Of Music in London, to a recording session set up by Youth. The list of musicians in the large room was staggering: George Butler, Hugo Wilkinson and Steven Pratt on drums, Al Clayton and Brian…

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John Sinclair – Beatnik Youth (Double CD) 2017

John Sinclair - “Beatnik Youth" on Double CD Released 2017 by Iron Man Records. All Press enquiries to Sean Newsham : sean@mutante.co.uk Catalogue Number: IMB6032 Release date: 2017 Label: Iron Man Records Distribution: Cargo Disc 1 Testify (9.10) Good Stuff (4.32) Everybody Needs Somebody (7.09) Change My Life (5.14) Ain't Nobody's Business (3.36) My Buddy (5.13) That Old Man (3.53) Disc 2 Brilliant Corners (11.29) Culture Cide (11.38) Red Dress (Ruby My Dear) (6.25) Sitarrtha (6.16) Do It (6.16) War On Drugs (6.18) Read the brilliant review of Beatnik Youth by Gus Ironside for Louder Than War here John Sinclair, the renegade poet, scholar and cultural revolutionary releases "Beatnik Youth" on…

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Become an Iron Man Records Patron and support victims of injustice

Reprieve works worldwide to help victims of human rights abuses like the death penalty, torture and extrajudicial detention. I donate to Reprieve on a personal level whenever I have funds to do so. I have a lot of respect for the work of Clive Stafford Smith, Founder of Reprieve and his team. Reprieve fund the litigation, expert witnesses and investigations which help to deliver justice and save lives across the globe. I have added a new tier reward for Iron Man Records Patrons. Iron Man Records will donate £10 to Reprieve each month for every Patron who signs up to the Reprieve tier/reward. Patrons at this level will also ensure that…

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John Sinclair – Beatnik Youth Ambient – Press update

John Sinclair - Beatnik Youth Ambient Iron Man Records IMB6033 Distributed by Cargo All Press enquiries to Sean Newsham : sean@mutante.co.uk "Incendiary bebop beauty from the renegade poet John Sinclair with hand drawn cover artwork by YOUTH. If we ever needed a passionate beat soul speaking words of wisdom, it’s now, and John Sinclair - Revolutionary, Jazzman - lays it down. Bohemian ex-manager of the MC5, Sinclair was central to 1960’s counterculture. A year or two back he met producer YOUTH (Primal Scream, U2), and got dragged into the 21st Century. The result is a hypnotic celebration of personal freedom; laid-back thoughts spoken in John Sinclair’s gruff, grainy drawl, draped against blues, bebop and…

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Iron Man Records releases to be included in British Library Sound Archive

Something happens while you are orbiting the Nation's capital on the M25 for 25 hours in a van with a dangerous madman jumping around and shouting instructions from the back seat. James at British Library Sound Archive has been in touch, he wants to catalogue and archive all the releases on Iron Man Records. The music will become part of the nation's audio & cultural heritage and it will be available (on a restricted access server) to anyone holding a British Library readers pass (writers, researchers, fans etc.). You have to go in person either to London or to the other site in Boston Spa, Yorkshire. The Library do not allow…

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John Sinclair – Beatnik Youth (Double CD) 8th September 2017

John Sinclair - “Beatnik Youth" on Double CD Released 8th September 2017 by Iron Man Records. All Press enquiries to Sean Newsham : sean@mutante.co.uk Catalogue Number: IMB6032 Release date: 8th September 2017 Label: Iron Man Records Distribution: Cargo Disc 1 Testify (9.10) Good Stuff (4.32) Everybody Needs Somebody (7.09) Change My Life (5.14) Ain't Nobody's Business (3.36) My Buddy (5.13) That Old Man (3.53) Disc 2 Brilliant Corners (11.29) Culture Cide (11.38) Red Dress (Ruby My Dear) (6.25) Sitarrtha (6.16) Do It (6.16) War On Drugs (6.18) John Sinclair, the renegade poet, scholar and cultural revolutionary releases "Beatnik Youth" on 8th September 2017 on Iron Man Records. The double CD contains…

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John Sinclair – Beatnik Youth Ambient (500 copies on Vinyl) 28th July 2017

John Sinclair - “Beatnik Youth Ambient" on Vinyl. by Iron Man Records. All Press enquiries to Sean Newsham : sean@mutante.co.uk Catalogue Number: IMB6033 Barcode: 5060132273319 Label: Iron Man Records Release Date: 28th July 2017 Distribution: Cargo Side A Do It (6:16) Recitation - John Sinclair, Music - Youth, Mix - Youth and Michael Rendall Brilliant Corners (11.29) Recitation - John Sinclair, Produced by Youth Side B War On Drugs (6:18) Recitation - Howard Marks, Music - Youth, Mix - Youth and Michael Rendall Sitarrrtha (9:19) Recitation - John Sinclair, Produced by Youth John Sinclair, the renegade poet, scholar and cultural revolutionary will release "Beatnik Youth Ambient" on Iron Man Records. The…

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Iron Man Records would like you to become a Patron.

The general history of art and literature shows that the highest achievements of the human mind are, as a rule, not favourably received at first. Iron Man Records would like to invite you to consider becoming a Patron. Iron Man Records has dedicated over 20 years to supporting, promoting, and working with, some of the most interesting artists you may never have heard of, sometimes with a budget you can stick under a glass. February will see the release of Police Bastard - "Confined" on Vinyl. One of CVLT Nation’s Top Crust Albums: “Thought-provoking monologues and confrontational lyrics bring you on a cold, doom-laden journey of perpetual war, psychological mind control…

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The only way to support a revolution…..

Looking back on this year, Iron Man Records has had an interesting one. Three recurring themes emerged. “The only way to support a revolution is to make your own” — Abbie Hoffman, Woodstock Nation. “Reality is not enough; we need nonsense too. Drifting into a world of fantasy is not an escape from reality but a significant education about the nature of life.” Edmund Miller, Lewis Carroll Observed “It’s dangerous to understand new things too quickly” — Josiah Warren, True Civilization Make of that what you will. Some of the significant things that happened this year included: Seth Faergolzia of Dufus brought his new band Multibird to Europe on Tour. John Sinclair published a book…

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TC Lethbridge – 2000TC – Standing On The Verge Of Getting It On


Long, long ago in in the deep forgotten past, three musicians came together in an ancient landscape and made music that drifted away, seemingly lost for all time. This was in Wiltshire around 1992, to be more precise. The band was TC Lethbridge. It contained Doggen and Kev Bales from Spiritualized/Brain Donor and the artist Flinton Chalk. The band did not last long - they imploded before they had even played their first gig. But something happened to these musicians as they practiced, wrote and recorded in the Neolithic village of Avebury in the early nineties. They were marked by the experience. The album they were recording as they fell apart…

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Burn Money – Become A Patron of Iron Man Records

Iron Man Records wants to make all new record releases available on Vinyl. 23 Patrons currently support the record label. You are invited to become a Patron to ensure the insanity continues. The journey from 1996, when Iron Man Records began, has been back-breaking. The record label has generated a mountain of debt and a serious Class "A" drug habit would have probably worked out a lot cheaper. Everything I earn, working as a Tour Manager, goes into keeping Iron Man Records moving and your support would be much appreciated at a critical time. Iron Man Records continues to release records by some of the most interesting and talented artists, writers,…

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