Blonde Vinyl

Blonde Vinyl was an independent record label founded in 1990 by Michael Knott. The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music describes the label as "one of Christian music's first true indie labels."

Background

Prior to Blonde Vinyl, several Christian record companies attempted and often succeeded in releasing artists who were edgy, creative, and original; these included Narrowpath Records, Broken Records, Exit Records, Alarma Records and Solid Rock Records. However, the Christian industry had started to stagnate artistically when Michael Knott released long awaited albums from his two main bands, LSU and Lifesavers. Blonde Vinyl signed bands with styles that were viable in the underground of the general market but rarely found their way into the Christian market—old school punk, garage rock, grunge, gothic, EBM/industrial, synthpop/house, spoken word, acoustic pop. These were styles which were not nearly as popular at the time as they are now. Blonde Vinyl opened the way for the more profitable Tooth and Nail Records.