Susan Lawly

Susan Lawly is an independent record label and mail-order operation dedicated to extreme, experimental and noise music. According to its official website, it is the "exclusive label for Cut Hands, Whitehouse and Extreme Music series," describing its output as "exquisite and extraordinary works of music and art whose comprehension will violently challenge to the delicate core of a naked soul." The label's catalogue is built around the confrontational power-electronics and noise-rock of Whitehouse and the solo work of Cut Hands (the project of William Bennett), alongside an "Extreme Music" series that collects related experimental recordings. The label operates primarily as a direct-to-consumer mail-order business. Its website functions as a catalogue, news hub and online store, offering limited vinyl and CD editions, soundfiles, videofiles, picturefiles and textfiles, as well as a guestbook, forum and live chat. A notable recent release highlighted on the site is Cut Hands' "Sixteen Ways Out" in limited vinyl and CD, and Whitehouse's "New Live Actions" made available via Bandcamp. The site also notes that customers can email Susan Lawly to request a PayPal invoice, reflecting a small, hands-on operation rather than a large distribution company. Susan Lawly is generally identified as a US record label. Its web presence has historically been hosted on a freeuk.com domain, and the copyright notice on the site runs from 1997 to 2025, indicating a long-running independent operation. The label is closely associated with the British extreme-music scene through Whitehouse, even though the label itself is US-based. Its audience is niche and international, served through mail order, Bandcamp and direct email transactions. Because the label is small and independently run, detailed corporate information such as headquarters address, ownership structure and executive leadership is not publicly documented in the available evidence. What is clear is its role as a curated outlet for a specific, confrontational strand of experimental music, maintaining a catalogue and community infrastructure online for decades.

Susan Lawly is an independent record label and mail-order operation that has been active since at least the late 1990s. The copyright notice on its official website runs from 1997 to 2025, suggesting the label was established around 1997 and has maintained a continuous online presence since then. It is identified in public records as a US record label. The label's identity is closely tied to the British extreme-music group Whitehouse, a pioneering act in the power-electronics and noise genre, and to Cut Hands, the solo project of Whitehouse founder William Bennett. Susan Lawly describes itself as the "exclusive label for Cut Hands, Whitehouse and Extreme Music series," positioning itself as the primary outlet for these artists' recordings. This relationship places the label at the center of a small but dedicated international network of extreme-music listeners. Over the decades, Susan Lawly has operated primarily through direct mail order and its own website. The site has served as a catalogue, news source and community hub, offering soundfiles, videofiles, picturefiles and textfiles alongside physical releases. It has also provided a guestbook, forum and live chat, reflecting an early-internet, community-oriented approach to running a niche label. The label has adapted to changing music-retail channels, with recent releases such as Whitehouse's "New Live Actions" made available through Bandcamp, while still accepting direct email requests for PayPal invoices. The catalogue has included limited vinyl and CD editions, with Cut Hands' "Sixteen Ways Out" cited as a recent example. The label also maintains an "Extreme Music" series, which collects related experimental works. Despite its long history, Susan Lawly has remained a small, independently run operation without publicly documented corporate structure, headquarters or executive leadership. Its endurance reflects the loyalty of its niche audience and the label's role as a curated gateway to a confrontational strand of experimental music.

• 2025

  Copyright notice extends to 2025, showing continued operation.

• 1997

  Copyright notice on the official Susan Lawly website begins, indicating the label's establishment or first online presence.

Independent, direct-to-consumer extreme and experimental music label and mail-order catalogue.

• Cut Hands – Sixteen Ways Out

• Whitehouse – New Live Actions

• Extreme Music series

1. 1Susan Lawly Official Website: www.susanlawly.comsusanlawly.freeuk.com
2. 2Susan Lawlywikidata.org