Tuned town

Why the founder of Horton Records cares so damn much

In the 11 years since its first project, Horton Records has pressed upwards of 20 Oklahoma music releases (including some from my own band, Lizard Police) and has helped to bring Tulsa artists to Guthrie Green, SXSW, and any other stage, local or elsewhere, that would have them.

Recently I met label boss and founder Brian Horton at Starship Records. Earlier that week, he sent a mass message to local music fans, letting them know a family member of his was parting with a record collection. Horton was selling the classics at bottom dollar to local music fans instead of strangers online. Handing wax over to several of the store’s excited clerks, Horton talked with me over his shoulder about “keeping the records in the community.” 

Navigating our conversation—a mix of projects looked forward to, upcoming shows, and his utopian vision for “our fine city”—it dawned on me that many Tulsans, myself included, have no clue how one of Tulsa’s most prolific labels operates. I shared a phone call and battery of follow-up emails with Horton to find out how and why Tulsa’s self-styled music booster does it.

You’re pretty much consumed by music. When did music grab you by the throat?
I remember my mom letting me and my brother and uncle (who is my age) stay up late one weekend to watch the Midnight Special on TV. That night was the Rock n’ Roll Extravagonzo. There were lots of cool bands that night; Thin Lizzy, Cheap Trick, etc. But, when this band called AC/DC came on and did “Sin City,” we were blown away. We had this little crappy cassette player/recorder with a microphone and we held it up to the TV speaker and recorded AC/DC. That was my Beatles/Ed Sullivan moment. That was rock n’ roll.

When did your love affair with Tulsa music begin?
My dad worked for the Katy Railroad. He had a run from Parsons, Kan., to Muskogee. He would stay over in Muskogee until he brought a train back to Parsons, and he would always listen to KMOD and drive to Tulsa. He would bring home music or he and my mom would go to Tulsa for concerts. That’s where I would hear about Elvin Bishop and JJ Cale. Then I got into bands like N.O.T.A, Pit Bulls On Crack…I think the love affair really blossomed about 8-10 years ago when I became good friends with a number of younger Tulsa musicians.

Who were those younger musicians?
I befriended a whole new bunch of folks that were all doing a Thursday night jam at McNellie’s called Higher Education. That’s when I really became friends with a number of people, including Dustin Pittsley, Jesse Aycock, Paul Benjaman, Wink Burcham, Beau Roberson, Andrew Bones, Dylan Aycock, Dave White, Rocky Frisco, Jay Lesikar, Sharla Pember, Jocelyn Rowland, Sage Flower, Brad James, Dylan Layton, Bo Hallford, Nigel Frye, Reed Mathis, Mike Staub, Steve Liddell, Chris Combs, and on and on and on. 

What was the hangout situation like when you first met those younger guys?
Well I had this camera where the audio wouldn’t distort when you recorded music. So I started posting all these videos of Tulsa concerts on Facebook and Youtube and just became known for it. McNellies had this Thursday-night jam, and you’d have Rocky Frisco hanging with these younger guys. It felt like there was a real passing of the torch going on, and I was there able to document some of it and meet these guys.

And when did you start pressing records?
The first recording that was officially pressed was Blue Eyed Boy Death Machine. That was my oldest son’s band. I think that was 2005. After that, with those younger McNellie’s jam guys, I became known as the guy to go to and people started approaching me to put out their records.

How hard was it to learn all the legalities surrounding artists release forms, art templates, mastering for releases, etc.? All the behind the scenes bummers that get records made.
The release forms and legalities and such really weren’t too difficult. I have a business background in the energy industry, so it was kind of second nature. So, the forms and releases and stuff were another area where we could really help out the artists. It can be intimidating at times. I come from business and can utilize my strengths, but it’s cool to see the creative artistic eye at work. I just let people do their thing, and it’s all worked out fine.

Horton is a non-profit. How does that non-profit status work, and what did you have to do to acquire it?
It’s a lot of paperwork and a long, arduous process that took 18 months to complete. Many organizations “affiliate” with a larger umbrella non-profit, like Arts & Humanities Council of Tulsa. We tried that route, but couldn’t seem to get anyone’s attention over there, so we just did it on our own. All contributions, donations, or proceeds from the sales of merchandise go back into the general fund for new music projects.

The money side of the business seems to be where so many relationships and things get messed up when it comes to music. We wanted to take the profit aspect out of it and focus on the music and the musicians and the resources they needed.

Why do you do it? Why’d you jump through all the legal hoops to get that tag?
This was a grassroots thing that grew to the point of needing to be formalized. We were behaving in a non-profit manner, so it made sense to formalize what was already happening in practice. We also felt like it was important in the spirit of community. The music industry has changed dramatically over the last 10-20 years. We felt it was important to do something for independent artists in our backyard, something grounded and real.

Do you think people realize Horton Records isn’t a profit machine?
Man, I really think there are a lot of people that don’t know. It started out as such a small, little thing, and over time there are now international promoters and artists that contact us about how to visit Tulsa or get in touch with our community. It grew and grew, and I think people think it’s this traditional record-label model, like warner or even sub pop, but it’s not that at all. No paid positions. And we’re trying to raise awareness on how to get that point across. May take a name change. Whatever it is will have to reflect whether we stay Tulsa-based, or Oklahoma, or, man, people in Europe want to be associated with Tulsa. There is a ton of people who find out about Tulsa music all the time in different ways. It may be a show we promote, or it may be someone wearing a fucking band T-shirt. If someone wants to be involved with Tulsa music, often times we’re the entry point.

Who came up with the New Tulsa Sound label? How would you describe “the New Tulsa Sound?”
The New Tulsa Sound was the name of a compilation CD. That’s it. We were trying to create a snapshot of some of the artists that were happening in Tulsa at a point in time and that was the title that stuck. I don’t really remember who came up with the name. We had a group of people sitting around a table at The Colony throwing out ideas and that was the one that seemed to stick.

We did a second compilation and called it Vol. 2 – The Church Studio Sessions. Once again, it was the name of a compilation. Both compilations have a lot of different kinds of music on them. I know some people have their own “definition” for what it means to them and that’s all cool. In my mind, I always thought of it like NWOBHM. That was the New Wave of British Heavy Metal that occurred in the late ‘70s, early ‘80s. It was a bunch of young, new talent coming out of that scene. I always thought of the New Tulsa Sound in a similar way. It was a bunch of young, new talent coming out of this scene. That’s it.

You love metal, correct? What leads such a devout metalhead to put out Okie folk releases?
I heart metal. Yes. I’ve always listened to all kinds of music, though. I think good music is good music. And, to me, many times what makes it good is the passion, the energy, and that intangible combination of notes and lyrics that gives you chicken skin. It’s not always a barrage of notes. Many times, it’s the space between notes and the phrasing and the words and stuff that lets the music breathe and then explode like a powder keg of emotion.

So, I guess it’s the music that matters in the end to me. We’ve done a lot of “roots-based” releases, but we’ve also done some heavier and indie-rock releases. We’re hoping to put out an underground/heavy Tulsa compilation by the end of the year. The Creative Room [at 6th and Peoria, operated by Amanda Chea] just put one together as a fundraiser, so we held off and didn’t want to steal any of their thunder and take away from what they’re trying to do right now.

What about the Tulsa music scene jumps out at you as “Tulsan?”
We may not always recognize it as much when we live here, but many others outside of Tulsa and around the world recognize it. There is a creative and entrepreneurial spirit here that allows people to experiment and try new things. We’re in the middle of the U.S., so we’re not always influenced by the big markets and big cities on the east coast and west coast.

It’s also cheap to live here, which allows musicians to have time to focus on their craft. In bigger cities and markets, musicians might have to work 2-3 jobs to pay the rent, which takes away from their creative time and energy.

So, yeah, I think there is something unique about Tulsa. It’s not all roots-based stuff, either. The punk/hardcore scene in the early ‘80s was significant around here. There’s a diverse range of music coming out of Tulsa today.

One thing that I think is a common thread is the honesty and integrity of it all. Many of our musicians are doing it because they love music. They’re trying to be a better player or write a better song or create something different, all for the sake of making music. That integrity and honesty may be the most important thing that sets it apart. It’s not being done to sign the big record deal. It’s being done to make good music.

You seem to be everywhere at once, judging from your Instagram and Facebook feeds. How many shows do you go to a week, and why do you do it?
I don’t go to as many shows as I used to, but I probably hit 3-4 shows per week, on average.  First of all, I do it because I love live music. Live music is very important to me. There’s something that happens live that is spontaneous and powerful that is impossible to feel in a recording. I also think that I have a responsibility to get out and experience what’s happening in the scene personally. Many times, we have people in influential music positions that get caught up in the office or have family commitments or whatever, and they don’t get out and experience live music and meet musicians and soak up the vibe. I think that’s important. I don’t get to always be everywhere I want to be and catch all of the shows, but I do my best with the time available.

Do you have a dream project for Horton Records?
Right now, I think a couple of projects that could be really cool and help the music community would be to get a stage at key festivals around the country and highlight Oklahoma artists on those stages, put a package of artists on the road and brand it Tulsa or Oklahoma in some way. The big dream project is to put together a package of artists and tour Europe.

Where do you want to see Tulsa music in the future?
I want to see Tulsa viewed as a music source and a music destination by artists and fans alike. I would like to see our festival scene continue to evolve and have an identity that is uniquely Tulsa. Most importantly, I want to see our musicians, engineers, producers, and music-related creatives be able to focus on their craft and make a living as a professional artist while living in this great city.

People are calling us “the new Austin.” What do you think they mean by that, do you agree, and as a man that’s oft braved the SXSW shit-storm, do you think that’s necessarily a good thing?
We have our own identity and thing going on here. I don’t want to lose that honesty, integrity and creative spirit. When people say “the new Austin,” I think some of them mean what Austin used to be 20-30 years ago, and before SXSW got huge. I still love Austin, but I don’t love 6th-Street Austin. I love south Congress, east of I-35, etc.

One thing that people forget is that Tulsa proper is less than 400,000 people and only approaches 1 million when you pull in all of the ‘burbs. Austin proper is about 1 million people without the burbs, and you have a state university that has a continual flood of new people coming to the city. We don’t have the same creative density or scale as Austin.

Tulsa is a cheap place to live. We have a lot of boomerang residents, people who leave and go to another city like Austin and then come back. They find the pace of life, the ease of life, the low cost of living, and the ability to be creative in Tulsa to be a differentiating factor. I hope we continue to market that to other artists and continue to do things in our fine city that will retain the great talent and spirit that already thrives here. I believe that the quality of musicians that we have in Tulsa rivals other bigger cities. We may not have the quantity, but we have the quality. 

What’s been the high point for Horton Records so far?
The Oklahoma Room at Folk Alliance International in February was a real milestone.  Through the support of George Kaiser Family Foundation and partnership with Woody Guthrie Center, Folk Salad Radio, and Larry White Management, we were able to showcase talent from across Oklahoma to an international audience. We hope to bring a Folk Alliance event to Tulsa in the near future.

Some of the most rewarding efforts have been related to bad situations, when our musicians come together for a great cause or just the spirit of community, like the Joplin Tornado Benefit, Moore Tornado Benefit, Tom Skinner Benefit, Mike Hosty Benefit, Dave White Benefit, JJ Cale Tribute Show. Those are probably the highest points for Horton Records and great demonstrations of community support and community spirit.

What’s next for Horton Records?
We're having our first-ever Horton Records Fundraiser at Cain's Ballroom on Saturday, Nov. 8th. It's going to be the Rock n Folk n Chili Fundraiser. We're going to have local musicians name and share their favorite batch of chili. We're going to have a full slate of live music. We're going to have other raffles and giveaways. It'll be fun.

With additional proceeds, we also want to sponsor a monthly music workshop series in 2015. Topics will vary and we want to reach kids, teens, and adults alike. One other goal that we have is to try to find a community rehearsal and recording space. We think a resource like this could be invaluable to the existing music community, as well as integral to new artists that are trying to develop their own skills.

Maiden or Priest?
Yes.

Editor’s note: This interview has been condensed and edited.