Clockwise from top left: Tape Deck Mountain, Sunnybrook, Emily Neveu, Alan Palomo of Neon Indian, A Grave with No Name


Lefse Records

The little label that will.

If you're a music junkie, like we are at groovemine.com, and you somehow haven't heard about Neon Indian over the summer 2009, then you must have been vacationing on a remote island or smoking way too much weed.

Groovemine.com contributor Sean Murphy was lucky to stumble upon an advance copy of NI's Psychic Chasms. He produced a review dubbing Alan Palomo (frontman of Neon Indian) "our first truly postmodern pop star," awarding the album 4 and a half stars [read the review here]. Beyond our appraisal and praise, the album has been similarly lauded throughout the music press and NI has been performing all over the place, venues large and small.

While preparing to post the review, we quickly learned of the label behind the album. Shortly thereafter, we came across the Lefse Records Compilation, the first for this young label, available as a free download from their home page. We were pleasantly surprised to find an album from Phasoeone, a name attached to a handful of great remixes we had come across recently—available as a free download, too. Good finds! We hadn't heard of Lefse prior to this, but we thought we'd look into them a bit more with idea of possibly creating this AudioFile. In doing so, we discovered that several music sites and blogs had, also, come across the compilation. Just as we did, these sites excitedly informed their users where to download these treasures.

This is a testament to the potential reach of "free" music that is so commonplace these days—and so detested by some including artist, label, and retailer alike. The tactic has realized it's potential, though, only because of the morsels of music found on these downloads, a wonderful introduction to Lefse Records.



lef•se    (lÄ›f'sÉ™)
n.  A round flatbread of Norwegian origin, traditionally made of a potato-based
dough and baked on a griddle. (dictionary.com)



We caught up with Matt Halverson, one of the principals behind the label, who informed us that Lefse Records has only been around since May 2009. They, actually, formed in order to sign Neon Indian. One might say that sounds like a peculiar raison d'etre, but they realized they were onto something new and fresh. Riding the success of NI, they started signing bands practically every other week. Together with Tyler Stover and a couple of other devoted staff members, Halvorsen also runs Banter Media & Management from Sacramento, primarily focused on band promotion and crossovers into the film industry.

We asked Matt if the label had a philosophy behind it. Perhaps, we expected a high-minded response, but Matt offered, "Only eat Lefse once a year." Which brings us back to the definition above. Halverson (or Halversjohnson) is of Norwegian descent. For Thanksgiving, his family places their turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, and stuffing in the Lefse and creating a Thanksgiving burrito of sorts. How American...no, we're not being facetious!

The ingredients for Lefse artists, so far, have been varying quantities of electronic, lo-fi, and indie rock elements that produce a sound with a definite twist on the traditional. In general, the music is accessible, atmospheric, and fresh...fuzzy dreamscapes—not, all, pretty—that provide a perfect soundtrack in these weird and uncertain times.

Expect a busy end of 2009 parlaying into a busy start of 2010. Lefse will soon release albums by Tape Deck Mountain, A Grave With No Name, (both will be reviewed here on groovemine.com soon), Emily Neveu, Sunnybrook—and, perhaps, some surprises!

  • Lefse Records website
  • Lefse Records on Myspace
  • Lefse on Twitter

"We Parted Ways at Mount Jade" by A Grave With No Name (right-click & save)


"Terminally Chill" by Neon Indian (right-click & save)


"Swallowing a Swallow" by Emily Neveu (right-click & save)


"Waving Hands" by Sunnybrook (right-click & save)


"In the Dirt" by Tape Deck Mountain (right-click & save)