Core Tex Records is a punk and hardcore record label based in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin, Germany. It was established in 1988 . Core Tex has become a centre for live music, playing host to a string of in-store live events as well as participating in an annual music festival called Myfest.
Contents
- History
- Live Music Events
- In Store Gigs
- 20th Birthday Show
- Mayday Festival Stage
- List Of Artists To Play Myfest
- The Record Labels
- Mad Mob Records
- Artists with Releases on Mad Mob Records
- Bad Dog Records
- Artists with Releases on Bad Dog Records
- Grapes Of Wrath
- Artists with Releases on Grapes Of Wrath Records
- Other Releases
- References
History
Core Tex Records came into being in 1988, starting off as a small record shop run by punks in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin. With its particular status, West Berlin had long been a refuge for punks, anarchists, pacifists and alternative thinkers. It was a means of escaping military service and offered the ability to pursue alternative lifestyles with more tolerance than in other cities of West Germany. Kreuzberg had a long tradition of squatting, with many of the original squats being in Oranienstrasse. The building in which Core Tex Records is now based is also a former squat.
At the same time there was a large number of active members of the punk community forming bands and putting on shows. Many people were also involved in documenting the scene - photographers, fanzine writers and film makers were present, and labels such as Bonzen Records, Heartfirst Records and were creating a musical legacy and history of the Berlin punk and hardcore scene. The formative years of Punk in Berlin have been documented in depth on the "Berlin Punk Rock" double-album released on Weird System records.
In the early 1990s David Strempel - who had played in the punk band Fehlgeburt and hardcore band Charley's War - created the Mad Mob Records label. Tour booking agency M.A.D. organised a show at the SO36 Club in Kreuzberg showcasing the talents of the new generation of Berlin hardcore bands. The show was recorded and released on CD as the first Mad Mob Records release entitled "We'll Never Be Tamed". Soon afterwards David joined forces with Udo Flutter and Andy Gindullis from Fun Records and they moved into the Core Tex premises on Oranienstrasse. Fusioning these businesses meant that they were a stones throw away from the important spots for the punk scene - the SO36, the Franken bar, Trinkteufel, the Trash Club, Wild At Heart and the Kopi squat.
Live Music Events
With the location established the next logical step was for Core Tex to integrate further with the punk scene. A number of punk booking agencies such as M.A.D., Destiny and Mutti's have their offices in Kreuzberg. As a result, touring bands would frequently have days off in Berlin. Core Tex provided music and beer under one roof and this attracted bands such as Agnostic Front, Sick Of It All and Ignite making frequent visits to the shop whilst on tour.
In-Store Gigs
Having started off with in-store record signings, the store started putting on free concerts during opening hours. These would be either a short warm-up gig by a band playing a show later on in town, for example Kill Your Idols, Chuck Ragan or Jeff Caudill. Other bands would play later on and it may be for a special occasion, such as with Born From Pain, who played the record release show for their album "War" on Metal Blade records.
Other events that took place include Anti-Flag playing a benefit set, encouraging fans to bring food donations which would be given to Berlin homeless via the Berliner Tafel e.V.
20th Birthday Show
In 2008 Core Tex celebrated its 21st birthday by holding a three-day event. This featured live shows from Crushing Caspars, Radio Dead Ones, Anticops, Mad Mags and Make It Count. On the final day Core Tex held an exclusive screening for the then unreleased Troopers DVD.
Mayday Festival Stage
The district of Kreuzberg has long been the centre of protests on the first of May. The traditional Mayday would see a series of demonstrations pass through the districts of Kreuzberg, Prenzlauer Berg and Neukolln. The "18 Uhr Demo" would normally end in Kreuzberg, with frequent rioting taking place around Kotbusser Tor and Oranienstrasse. Eventually a group of local residents and community business owners came together with the idea of encouraging a more peaceful atmosphere by creating a street festival with stages set up along and around Oranienstrasse providing live music, entertainment, information, as well as food and drink.
The Myfest was born out of a desire from a cross-section of the Kreuzberg community - punks, Turkish residents, students, artists, small business owners and young families - to not see their neighbourhood and property destroyed year after year in the cat and mouse games between rioters and police. Core Tex became an active participant, setting up a stage for bands to play as well as providing drinks and selling bowls of chili. The Core Tex stage has since become an integral part of the festival, as well as becoming an event in itself on the Berlin punk music live calendar with bands from all over the world asking to play. The line-up generally features several local bands followed by internationally famous bands before ending the live music with a ska band. After the live music, a DJ would provide further music which would keep several thousand people dancing. The 2007 event was filmed by a camera crew and released as a DVD. In 2009 US streetpunk band The Unseen played under the name of Internal Salvation, as they were playing a show in Berlin that evening and could not be advertised under their real name.
List Of Artists To Play Myfest
The Record Labels
The record labels came into existence with the release of the live compilation CD. As time went by there came a need to find different platforms to suit the cds and records being released according to genre. Core Tex Records comprises the following labels.
Mad Mob Records
Following the release of the live CD, Mad Mob pursued with the concept of providing a platform for European hardcore bands. These would often benefit from support from M.A.D. booking, for example putting the bands Surface and Disrespect on a prominent Christmas Hardcore Tour. Mad Mob soon started releasing bands from outside Germany. The first international bands to appear on the label were Dead Stoolpigeon (ex-Manlifting Banner) and Feeding The Fire from the Netherlands. Both bands were prominent in the European straight edge scene and promoted communist politics in their lyrics. Mad Mob has since released recordings by bands from France, Portugal, Italy and Poland.
Artists with Releases on Mad Mob Records
Bad Dog Records
Bad Dog records was created as a platform to release records by Berlin oi! punk band Troopers. The label soon started working with other bands and came to international prominence with the release of "Molotov" by The Bruisers - featuring Al Barr of Dropkick Murphys on vocals. Releases then came with increasing frequency from both German artists and international acts from across the globe. The label has primarily punk out oi! punk bands but has also released cds from Irish folk-punk inspired acts, ska bands and Deutschpunk bands.
Artists with Releases on Bad Dog Records
Grapes Of Wrath
Grapes Of Wrath records releases international hardcore artists. Often these will be licensed releases for the European market from labels such as Stillborn Records, Blackout! Records or Dead City Records. Other releases have included limited edition and now collectible 7" records such as the "Por Vida" 7" from Agnostic Front which was sung entirely in Spanish.
Artists with Releases on Grapes Of Wrath Records
Other Releases
Core Tex has also released albums by Irish folk-punk band Blood or Whiskey, LA horror-punk band Damnation and Berlin punk'n'roll band Church Of Confidence. These releases were not on any of the above labels. For a while Core Tex also collaborated with New York label Blackout! records, releasing Blackout! titles in Europe. These included records by Sheer Terror, Violent Society, Kill Your Idols and a number of compilations.