Weekly Volcano's email inbox fills with all kinds of notifications - ad inquiries, press releases, overdue library notices, etc. Every so often an email arrives that immediately receives lunchroom refrigerator placement. A recent email from Isaac Olsen hit the frig - even landing above the heavily marked vacation calendar. Seems this Tacoma creative is teaming up with friends to start a new label: Strapping Young Productions.

Here's the scoop from Olsen:

"In a broad overview: My friends and I started a new organization called Strapping Young Productions in order to distribute work by local artists (in any discipline). Its primary purpose is not to be yet another branding exercise, but to promote work that we are involved in under one banner and use the capital to fund further projects, thus reducing out-of-pocket spending of the individual artist. I see this as a self-perpetuating venture and a vehicle to simply make a lot of things happen in a timely manner.

Our first priority is distributing and showcasing work that already exists in our immediate circle, such as my two feature films, Quiet Shoes and Ich Hunger, two singles from Red Hex, an EP by Trees and Timber, the music of Dick Rossetti and his current band Jilly Rizzo, and some electronic music by Sam Olsen. I also plan to use this new platform to promote the Girl Trouble documentary (which I hope to premiere at SIFF this coming May) with a gallery show featuring 30 years of Girl Trouble art, fanzines and photographs. The film is currently on schedule!

We also plan to put on live shows; the first of which will be a company launch of sorts hosted by The New Frontier on Saturday, Sept 21. This show will feature Trees and Timber, Red Hex, The Jilly Rizzo, Girl Trouble, and a showing of my German art film, Ich Hunger.

Strapping Young Productions has recently been approved for a spot in the next round of Spaceworks, and we hope to use this location to host art shows, small musical performances, and film screenings."

Wow. It's DIY spirit like this that make us love Tacoma.