by Taylor Ruckle (@TaylorRuckle)
For the May 6th edition of Bandcamp Friday, Washington, D.C.'s Gardenhead Records is announcing a double-cassette release for their massive 47-track compilation May Day Music: A Benefit Compilation For Strike Funds & Artists. Featuring the likes of Radiator Hospital, Dan Deacon, Deerhoof, Pile, and Palberta, it’s the not-for-profit label’s fourth such release in the past two years, with previous collections supporting COVID relief for artists and the Sunrise Movement to end climate change.
“Americans have very little power over the future of the country or even their own lives, so if I was going to spend my time raising money for a cause, I wanted it to have as much impact as possible,” says Gardenhead founder Etai Fuchs. “In the past year we've seen strikes at Kellogg's and John Deere and unionization efforts at Amazon and Starbucks push back in a real way on seemingly unlimited corporate power. Organized labor is an effective way for workers to take back power and advocate for themselves, and I wanted the label to help with that in whatever small way possible.”
To that end, the May Day Music’s proceeds will be split 50-50 between the artists who contributed their music and a lineup of strike funds and unionization artists, starting with The Amazon Labor Union Solidarity Fund, but including others still to be determined as the movement for labor organization continues to unfold in the coming weeks.
In exchange for their donation or a tape purchase, listeners get access to a vast and engrossing collection of tunes. There are need-to-know up and comers like String Machine, who contribute a live acoustic take of “Eyes Set 4 Good” from their recently-released third album, Hallelujah Hell Yeah; there are D.C. indie gems like wonky post-punkers BRNDA and R&B singer/songwriter/producer Synae; and it’s full of genre left-turns, from ambient soundscaping by David V Britton and yoyolin to Florry’s country ballad “Cowgirl Giving” and Water From Your Eyes’ faithful cover of the classic Chumbawamba ripper “The Good Ship Lifestyle.”
“Previous compilations included many friends and Twitter mutuals, but as this label has garnered more attention, I've gotten the opportunity to feature more and more artists who I have been a fan of for years,” says Fuchs, who also contributed a solo instrumental to the compilation alongside a new single from their band, dreamy indie rock quartet Moon by Moon. “When [May Day Music] ultimately came together, I was struck by how absolutely packed the lineup was with uniquely talented and creative people.”
You can visit Gardenhead Records’ Bandcamp to download the compilation or pre-order cassettes.