TS: the early years of Sire Records vs. the early years of I.R.S. Records

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Sire had the Ramones and Talking Heads among others, while I.R.S. had The Cramps and The Go-Go's and so on. Which brand name is stamped on more of your records?

― paul cox (paul cox), Thursday, 10 April 2003 04:55 (twenty-two years ago)

IRS. REM and Let's Active and Concrete Blonde.

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Thursday, 10 April 2003 05:01 (twenty-two years ago)

Sire. Talking Heads, Pretenders, Ramones +then:Echo & The Bunnymen, Smiths, Cure, Replacements

― dave225 (Dave225), Thursday, 10 April 2003 11:27 (twenty-two years ago)

Sire: Madonna!

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Thursday, 10 April 2003 12:25 (twenty-two years ago)

Seymour Stein and Sire

― SplendidMullet (iamamonkey), Thursday, 10 April 2003 12:41 (twenty-two years ago)

Sire had arguably better artists on their roster, but there was something much cooler about IRS. I can't define it.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 10 April 2003 13:59 (twenty-two years ago)

Really? I always thought there was something a little lame about I.R.S. -- I can't define it either.

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Thursday, 10 April 2003 14:04 (twenty-two years ago)

IRS: the Fall
Sire: one of the best Flamin' Groovies records, the Deviants, all those 2xLP comps of 60s greats (Pretty Things, Troggs, Impressions)

― mosurock (mosurock), Thursday, 10 April 2003 14:32 (twenty-two years ago)

I was going to give it to Sire because something in me thinks IRS is a bit lame, but on reflection (and after consulting an IRS discography, it's obvious that there was an awful lot of good stuff released by IRS at the beginning. I mean, BUZZCOCKS! The Fall! The Damned! Magazine! Tom Robinson!) Sire's still excellent, but early IRS is, on second though, amazing.

Alternate question: What was the turning point for each label? (For IRS, looking at the discog, it could well be The Alarm)

― Sean Carruthers (SeanC), Thursday, 10 April 2003 15:01 (twenty-two years ago)

There's no denying the many good artists on IRS, but I always felt there was something lame about them too. What was it?

― Sean (Sean), Thursday, 10 April 2003 15:13 (twenty-two years ago)

Their logo?

― Rockist Scientist, Thursday, 10 April 2003 15:17 (twenty-two years ago)

Was They Might Be Giants on IRS or Bar/None records?

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Thursday, 10 April 2003 15:17 (twenty-two years ago)

Looking at that IRS discography, I realize I haven't thought about Lords of the New Church or Skafish in a long, long time. I didn't know that the (English) Beat's records came out in the US on Sire first.

Love them or hate them, the Dead Boys was another early Sire artist. Radio Birdman was also signed to Sire in the US. Both got dumped, when it was appearant that they couldn't sell their music.

― earlnash, Thursday, 10 April 2003 15:31 (twenty-two years ago)

about the 'lameness' of IRS: maybe it was the CIA association?

www.irscorner.com/irsstory.html

Not very punk.

― die9o (dhadis), Thursday, 10 April 2003 15:35 (twenty-two years ago)

I think it was the logo that made IRS seem kind of lame, there was something very clunky and awkward about it. Most of the bands on the label were fantastic.

However, in my heart I would always pick Sire because they had the Smiths and Madonna. Even if every other artist on the label were craptastic and horrible (and that was not the case) Sire would forever be the best in my eyes.

― Nicole (Nicole), Thursday, 10 April 2003 15:41 (twenty-two years ago)

In, I dont' know, 1985, I went to see the Lords of the New Church at the Ritz in NYC, and when I got there they were cancelled. I ended up hanging out in the Villiage all night playing pinball, eating pizza, etc., with these two guys my age from 2 different places, I forget where, in Europe who also wanted to see the show. I was amazed how they were so willing to hang out, like completely non-judgemental (although what they'd be judging me on I have no idea; maybe I have self-esteem issues, although you'd never guess). I never got to see the Lords of the New Church, but I never forgot that night. Sheesh, I'm making it sound like we lezzed it up or something. Also, my first tattoo is based on the dagger image from their first album cover.

― Sean (Sean), Thursday, 10 April 2003 16:36 (twenty-two years ago)

I used to have the first Lords of the New Church album on tape and listened to it a bunch, but haven't thought about them in well over ten years. I remember the song "New Church" and that every song had sheets and sheets of reverb on everything, not unlike Bauhaus or something in that vein. I might have to go scavinging in some boxes of vinyl to find that one, it couldn't be that hard to find or expensive.

I never had any Skafish, but a guy that used to do a radio show after me used it has his intro theme music and I rememeber the song "Wild Night Tonight".

― earlnash, Thursday, 10 April 2003 17:13 (twenty-two years ago)

My friend Monique had the Skafish LP back then, and I remember being creeped out by the cover. I think I've seen the album maybe once since then; they couldn't have pressed that many.

― Sean (Sean), Thursday, 10 April 2003 17:22 (twenty-two years ago)

Ignoring the fact that they put out a great many of my favorite rekkids, I'm still side with Sire for being a fuckin brave label.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Thursday, 10 April 2003 17:31 (twenty-two years ago)

I was somewhat inexplicably fond of the Lords as well. I dunno -- they never really lived up to their pedigree (Dead Boys, Damned, Sham 69). The odd good single notwithstanding ("Open Your Eyes"), I never really bought into their "new church" mumbo-jumbo. It just seemd quite forced.

Their cover of "Like a Virgin" is magnificent, though.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Thursday, 10 April 2003 18:35 (twenty-two years ago)

TMBG were on Bar/None.

― matt riedl (veal), Thursday, 10 April 2003 20:10 (twenty-two years ago)

I was a huge Smiths/Bunnymen/Cure fan so maybe I'd say Sire, but the Go-Gos were truly earthshaking for me --being a 13 year old girl when Beauty and the Beat came out and seeing an all-girl band for the first time really mattered. I didn't care for Madonna's music when she first came out but I thought she looked great.

― Robin Eisgrau (Robin Eisgrau), Saturday, 12 April 2003 00:35 (twenty-two years ago)

I heard that the Hives demanded as part of their record deal with Warner in the states that Sire be revived just so they could put their album out on it because they loved all those old Sire records. (although I'm not sure how much it had to be revived; I remember an album or two coming out from Sire every year in the late 90s.)

― teeny (teeny), Saturday, 12 April 2003 00:53 (twenty-two years ago)

five years pass...

http://i38.tinypic.com/24ya04n.gif

― Johnny Fever, Wednesday, 22 October 2008 10:40 (seventeen years ago)

Heh, I'm trying to find an image of the rarely-seen ORIGINAL Sire logo, without success so far...

― Myonga Vön Bontee, Wednesday, 22 October 2008 21:16 (seventeen years ago)

If I were in America, Sire would win by a landslide because of the Mute catalogue.

― Geir Hongro, Wednesday, 22 October 2008 21:57 (seventeen years ago)

If you can't find a pic, Myonga, can you describe it? I have a vague recollection of there being another logo, but I'm not sure if I ever saw it.

― Bimble, Wednesday, 22 October 2008 22:40 (seventeen years ago)

Sire was so fucking bad-ass.

― Black Seinfeld (HI DERE), Wednesday, 22 October 2008 22:42 (seventeen years ago)

The original IRS rainbow label was so much better than what they used later. I don't know why they changed it.

http://www.irscorner.com/images/rainbowlabel.gif

IRS put out quite a few oddball records. I still remember Wazmo Nariz with some fondness.

― leavethecapital, Thursday, 23 October 2008 00:28 (seventeen years ago)

Geez... I thought we were talking EARLY years.

Sire: Ramones/Talking Heads/Dead Boys/Richard Hell/Patti Smith... then more of the same

IRS: Buzzcocks/John Cale/Cramps/Dead Kennedys/Fleshtones... then onto a stream of cheezy new wave ...

I think it's Sire, based on Seymour's casting couch...

― factcheckr, Thursday, 23 October 2008 00:33 (seventeen years ago)

IRS had one very underrated band in The Alarm. But still it is Sire.

― Geir Hongro, Thursday, 23 October 2008 00:36 (seventeen years ago)

IRS put out Live at the Witch Trials so I forgive them the new wave cheesiness,

― leavethecapital, Thursday, 23 October 2008 00:38 (seventeen years ago)

Still, the question is, do all the British indie records that were licenced to Sire in the US count?
Because, otherwise, there isn't much left other than Madonna and Ministry.

― Geir Hongro, Thursday, 23 October 2008 00:46 (seventeen years ago)

Found one! You can click on it for a bigger image.
http://static.rateyourmusic.com/album_images/s438780.jpg

― Myonga Vön Bontee, Thursday, 23 October 2008 03:26 (seventeen years ago)

Even that's kind of cool in a weird antique way. I like the lion/dragony thing.

― Johnny Fever, Thursday, 23 October 2008 03:30 (seventeen years ago)

Yeah, both of those Sire labels are more visually appealing than the IRS guy.

― Myonga Vön Bontee, Thursday, 23 October 2008 03:32 (seventeen years ago)

Aw, I always liked the IRS logo.

― Joe the C.R.E.E.P. Operative (Rock Hardy), Thursday, 23 October 2008 03:34 (seventeen years ago)

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