Mammoth Records

Mammoth Records was an independent record label founded in 1989 by Jay Faires in the Carrboro area of Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The majority of the acts on Mammoth were executive-produced by Faires and the label’s general manager, Steve Balcom. The label was the first independent to produce two platinum records. Mammoth featured an eclectic roster including: Blake Babies, Chainsaw Kittens, Machines of Loving Grace, Juliana Hatfield, Joe Henry, Seven Mary Three, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Victoria Williams, The Sidewinders, Jason & the Scorchers, Frente!, The Bats, The Backsliders, Antenna, Dash Rip Rock, Dillon Fence, Fun-Da-Mental, Fu Manchu, Kill Creek, The Melvins, Jocelyn Montgomery, The Hope Blister, My Friend Steve, and Vanilla Trainwreck among others.

History

Mammoth first signed Tucson band The Sidewinders; The Sidewinder’s debut album, Witchdoctor, sold to RCA within Mammoth’s first three months of business. Another early signing, Blake Babies, led by Berklee School of Music students Juliana Hatfield and John Strohm, released “Earwig” and “Sunburn” with Mammoth before breaking up. John Strohm went on to release two solo albums with Mammoth under the moniker Antenna while Juliana Hatfield released solo efforts Hey Babe and Only Everything with Mammoth.Louisiana Music Hall of Famer Dash Rip Rock signed to Mammoth with its 1989 release, Ace of Clubs, produced by Jim Dickinson. Chainsaw Kittens released four albums with Mammoth, including its second album, Flipped Out in Singapore, which was Butch Vig’s follow-up project after producing Nirvana’s Nevermind.