Moon Sounds Records

Moon Sounds Records is an independent record label based in the United States that issues music primarily in the shoegaze, dream pop, and noise-pop genres. The label operates an online storefront through which it sells vinyl records, cassettes, and digital downloads, and it maintains a catalog of releases identified by MSR catalog numbers (for example, MSR011 for Kindling's "Spike & Wave" EP and MSR039 for Ozean's self-titled release). The label's catalog is built around a recurring roster of artists, including Dead Leaf Echo, The Foreign Resort, My Gold Mask, Rosegarden Funeral Party, Kindling, Ozean, Lunar Twin, Baby Acid, Static Daydream, and Kempt. Releases span EPs, singles, full-length albums, and split records, and are offered in multiple physical and digital configurations — for instance, colored 180-gram vinyl, standard black vinyl, cassette, and digital download. Moon Sounds Records positions itself within the contemporary revival of shoegaze and dream pop, drawing on the sonic lineage of early 1990s British and American independent music. Its reissue of Ozean's 1992 recordings, remastered from an original cassette by Tim Green of Louder Studios, illustrates the label's curatorial interest in recovering overlooked material from the original shoegaze era alongside new releases from current acts. The label sells directly to consumers through its website, which is powered by the Limited Run e-commerce platform, and it distributes its releases internationally via online channels. As an independent imprint, it is privately held and does not trade on a public stock exchange.

Moon Sounds Records is an independent American record label whose catalog centers on shoegaze, dream pop, and noise-pop music. The label issues releases on vinyl, cassette, and digital formats and sells them through its own online storefront, which is powered by the Limited Run e-commerce platform. The label's catalog is organized under MSR catalog numbers. Among the earliest documented releases is Kindling's "Spike & Wave" EP, catalog number MSR011, released July 22, 2014. Kindling — the duo of Stephen Pierce and Gretchen Williams — was described by the label as a self-proclaimed "disposable pop" band making its debut on Moon Sounds Records, with the EP recorded by the band between April and May 2014 and mastered at Dead Air Studios by Will Killingsworth. Over the following decade the label built a roster of like-minded acts. Dead Leaf Echo became one of its most frequently released artists, with titles including "Lemonheart" (EP), "True.Deep.Sleeper" (EP), "Strawberry Skin" (Single), "Pale Fire", "Beyond.Desire", "Milk.Blue.Kisses.And.Whalebone.Wishes" (EP), and split releases with The Harrow and with Did You Die. The Foreign Resort released "The Foreign Resort" (EP), "The American Dream" (EP), "New Frontiers", and "Triple Play" through the label. My Gold Mask issued "Dangerous" (EP), "Anxious Utopia", and "Dangerous + Anxious Utopia". Rosegarden Funeral Party released "MARTYR" and "The Chopping Block". Other catalog entries include Lunar Twin's "Night Tides" (EP), Baby Acid's "Don't Blush When I Rip You Open", Static Daydream's "The Only One" (EP), and Kempt's "Blissing?" (MSR044), released August 23, 2024. A notable curatorial project for the label was the reissue of Ozean's self-titled recordings, catalog number MSR039. Ozean was formed in the early 1990s after guitarist Eric Shea, leaving a RIDE and Lush show in 1991, answered a flyer seeking a guitarist and singer influenced by Slowdive, Cocteau Twins, Xmal Deutschland, The Byrds, Lush, and Pale Saints. Shea teamed with guitarist Mike Prosenko and vocalist Lisa Baer, later adding drummer and bassist Mark Baldwin, and the group recorded demos with Michael Padilla on a Fostex Model 80 1/4-inch 8-track reel-to-reel recorder. The band disbanded soon afterward, but the 1992 recordings were rediscovered and, because the original DAT master could not be located, were remastered from one of the original cassettes by Tim Green of Louder Studios. The reissue was released September 1, 2017, and was made available as a 12-inch "Ozean Blue" colored 180-gram vinyl, a 12-inch black 180-gram vinyl, and a digital download. Moon Sounds Records continues to operate as a privately held independent imprint, selling its releases directly to consumers and distributing them internationally through online channels.

• Kindling's "Spike & Wave" EP (MSR011) released July 22, 2014.

• Ozean's self-titled reissue (MSR039) released September 1, 2017, remastered from an original cassette by Tim Green of Louder Studios.

• Kempt's "Blissing?" (MSR044) released August 23, 2024.

Independent shoegaze, dream pop, and noise-pop label selling vinyl, cassette, and digital releases directly to consumers.

• Ozean / Ozean (MSR039)

• Kindling / Spike & Wave (EP) (MSR011)

• Kempt / Blissing? (MSR044)

• Dead Leaf Echo / Milk.Blue.Kisses.And.Whalebone.Wishes (EP)

• Rosegarden Funeral Party / MARTYR

• Dead Leaf Echo / Pale Fire

• The Foreign Resort / Triple Play

• Rosegarden Funeral Party / The Chopping Block

• Dead Leaf Echo / Beyond.Desire

• My Gold Mask / Dangerous + Anxious Utopia

• My Gold Mask / Dangerous (EP)

• Dead Leaf Echo / Strawberry Skin (Single)

• Lunar Twin / Night Tides (EP)

• Baby Acid / Don't Blush When I Rip You Open

• Dead Leaf Echo - Did You Die / Split

• The Foreign Resort / The Foreign Resort (EP)

• Dead Leaf Echo - The Harrow / Split

• The Foreign Resort / New Frontiers

• My Gold Mask / Anxious Utopia

• Static Daydream / The Only One (EP)

• The Foreign Resort / The American Dream (EP)

• Dead Leaf Echo / Lemonheart (EP)

• Dead Leaf Echo / True.Deep.Sleeper (EP)

1. 1Moon Sounds Recordsmoonsoundsrecords.com
2. 2Moon Sounds Records - Ozean / Ozeanmoonsoundsrecords.com
3. 3Moon Sounds Records - Kempt / Blissing?moonsoundsrecords.com
4. 4Moon Sounds Records - Kindling / Spike & Wave (EP)moonsoundsrecords.com
5. 5Moon Sounds Recordswikidata.org