WestCom (full name: WestCom Neue Medien Tonträger- Produktions- und Vertriebs GmbH) was a German recording company that operated the labels Off Beat, Visage Records and other labels.
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Company History
Founded around 1993[1].
In addition to WestCom, its owner also operates NovaTekk and Euromedia. Headquartered in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.
In 1999 Stefan Herwig, A&R manager at Off Beat, left the company over differences in promotion, to join forces with Eskil Simonsson (Covenant), Johan Van Roy (Suicide Commando), Bryan Erickson (Velvet Acid Christ) and Ronan Harris (VNV Nation) to form a new label, Dependent (which opened January 1999[2]). When he left, most artists switched to the new label, effectively shutting down WestCom[3].
Labels
Off Beat
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Off Beat was a label/division specialized in electronic music with industrial and experimental rhythmic features.
Originally the catalog numbering followed the codes issued by its distributor SPV GmbH (like SPV 085-22292 for Front Line Assembly's 1995 album Hard Wired). Around 1996 the label started its own format, starting with a capital O followed by the release number. Previous releases were attributed numbers, that were added to the artwork in reprints[4].
Among the artists that were released through Off Beat are Front Line Assembly, Project Pitchfork, Mentallo & The Fixer, Download, Suicide Commando, and Haujobb among others.
Visage Records
Visage was a label/division specialized in synthpop.
Aside from several European synthpop bands as Elegant Machinery and The Northern Territories, it was responsible for the Vis-à-Vis series of compilation albums.
Poison Ivy
Poison Ivy was a label/division specialized in goth rock. It started 1998 with the release of the album One Day by the band Near Dark[5].
Nightshade
Nightshade Productions was a label/division specialized in dark wave music.
References
- ^ Off Beat discography at Discogs, sorted by date. Retrieved 11 August 2008.
- ^ About. Dependent Official Website. Retrieved 11 August 2008.
- ^ Bayross, Mark (2004). VNV Nation - Ronan Harris, interview. Retrieved 11 August 2008.
- ^ This is a conjecture taken from the Off Beat discography at Discogs.
- ^ Near Dark - One Day at Discogs
External links
- Nightshade Productions at Discogs
- Off Beat at Discogs
- Poison Ivy at Discogs
- Visage at Discogs
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