- Bad Taste (record label)
infobox record label
name = Bad Taste Ltd.
image_bg = white
founded = 1986
founder =Einar Örn Benediktsson Ásmundur Jónsson Dóra Einarsdóttir
genre = Various
country =Iceland
location =Reykjavík
url = https://www.smekkleysa.net/Bad Taste (known as Smekkleysa in Icelandic, which literally means very bad or tasteless) is one of
Iceland ’s most important record labels; located inReykjavík and known worldwide for being home toThe Sugarcubes , it also publishes poetry books, short films, greeting cards and Icelandic gifts. Bad Taste should not be confused withBad Taste Records , a distinct record label based inSweden .After the bankruptcy of Gramm Records, and the demise of KUKL, one of Iceland’s most important groups during the eighties,
Einar Örn Benediktsson , one of the vocalists of KUKL andÁsmundur Jónsson andDóra Einarsdóttir from Gramm, with other former musicians from KUKL and a surrealistic group calledMedúsa , convened to create a record company called Smekkleysa in 1986. Later, it was renamed to its English translation, "Bad Taste", afterPablo Picasso ’smanifesto : “Good taste and frugality are the enemies of creativity”.Smekkleysa’s first work was a postcard drawn by
Friðrik Erlingsson , who at that time was the guitar player of Sykurmolarnir (Icelandic forThe Sugarcubes ), a band led by Einar Örn andBjörk . This piece of art contained the faces ofMikhail Gorbachev andRonald Reagan , a map of Iceland and the flags of the USSR and theUnited States as background, due to theReykjavík Peace Summit that was to take place by October,1986 . Around 5,000 copies of this image were sold and the funds were used by the group to release their first record, a 7” vinyl single by Sykurmolarnir titled "Einn Mol'á Mann " (“One Cube per Person”) which contained the Icelandic versions of "Birthday" and "Cat", two songs that would appear later on their first album, "Life's Too Good " in 1987 throughElektra Records ; an album that served to boost the international acclaim of The Sugarcubes.
However, "Einn Mol'á Mann" did not sell as expected, because alternative music had always had difficulty reaching the public and most of the bands from the underground scene used to sell their works at cafés. Until 2000, this single was still available from the Ordering Department created in1992 .When The Sugarcubes achieved an agreement with
One Little Indian Records , a new record company created by Derek Birkett, their incomes increased with the release of "Birthday", the first single published inEngland , which was chosen as single of the week by "Melody Maker ".All the money earned by The Sugarcubes was primarily used for more projects and to support new bands to escort The Sugarcubes when touring. But by the end of the eighties, it was clear that the end of The Sugarcubes was coming, and Björk released a
jazz record in 1990 titled "Gling-Gló " in a short-lived group calledBjörk Guðmundsdóttir & Tríó Guðmundar Ingólfssonar .The growth of Bad Taste slowed after The Sugarcubes broke up in 1992 and even though it had a subsequent contract with
Sigur Rós , the band moved to an English label (although Bad Taste still handles their Icelandic market). This was because Bad Taste’s contracts allowed artists’ freedom to choose to record their next work in another label. Today, things are different and Bad Taste has first rights to the next album of any artist they produce, although they give full artistic freedom.Other Bad Taste projects include a radio station called
Skratti (“Devil”), a restaurant called "Drullupytturinn" (“The Mud Pit”), but neither of these became reality. A record store named after the company exists in midtown Reykjavík, and the Smekkleysa mail order service has been running for over 15 years. The mail order handles all available Smekkleysa titles, plus every worthwhile Icelandic music released by other labels.See also
*
List of record labels
*List of Bad Taste artists Related bibliography
* "Lobster or Fame", by Ólafur Jóhann Engilbertsson. Bad Taste (2000).
External links
* [http://www.smekkleysa.net Official site]
* [http://imdb.com/company/co0207015/ IMDb profile]
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