Save Flameshovel Records

THE ODDS ARE STACKED Jesse Woghin (left) and James Kenler stand behind their Flameshovel releases.

Keep this photographer working: Jeremy Bolen jeremybolenphotography.com

When Jesse Woghin relocated to Chicago in 2000, he was struck by the volume of unsupported local talent: “I felt like there were a bunch of great labels here, but none of them gave a shit about the bands that live here and work here.” The 31-year-old Oberlin graduate conceived of a haven for artists flying under the radar. Longtime friend James Kenler joined him, and soon Flameshovel Records was born.

Despite losing an early bid for Yeah Yeah Yeahs (whose drummer, Brian Chase, grew up with Kenler and Woghin), the label had a solid run in the beginning, starting with a self-titled EP from Detroit’s Judah Johnson in 2001. The roster grew to include local favorites like Make Believe and the recently defunct Chin Up Chin Up. And in 2008, when indie giant Touch and Go offered Flameshovel a dream deal (whereby it would front capital for Flameshovel projects and then distribute them), the two jumped at the chance. “It was an opportunity to learn from our idols and be plugged into a network that really valued the artist-friendly mentality,” Kenler explains.

But a mere six months after making the full transition to Corey Rusk’s revered indie, Kenler felt the shot heard around the music world: T&G’s distro arm was shutting down. “To realize that [Rusk] was having to rethink in such a grand scale really undercut what we had hoped to accomplish. It was very abrupt,” Kenler says.

Kenler sees Flameshovel’s struggle in part as a by-product of the flagging economy. But Woghin also sees a misunderstanding. “There’s an incredible stigma against the recording industry,” he explains. “I hear some critics talking about why you don’t need a record label, but…when you’re playing a show or recording a record, the last thing you want to think about is, ‘Oh, shit, did we send out stock to Amazon?’”

As the two reevaluate their business model, they also have a chance to tend to their personal lives and, as Kenler puts it, “transition back to a more conventional paycheck society.” (The duo has never taken a salary from Flameshovel, instead funneling any profits back into the label.) Woghin works as a Web producer for the Onion’s A/V Club, while Kenler maintains Flameshovel’s day-to-day operations. Still, Woghin is quick to emphasize they’re not out of the game. “We wanna do the same thing we strived to do all along, which is help people get their music heard,” he says. But “we need to catch our breath.”

Support Flameshovel by buying Mannequin Men’s latest, Lose Your Illusion, Too, out on June 9.

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