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Wednesday, August 20th

Mae Leaves Capitol Records

It was March 18, 2006, when we posted that Mae signed to Capitol Records. And now they’ve left the major label after just one album. Writes drummer Jacob Marshall:

“This time last year we were in Time Square celebrating the release of our first (and only) major label record. As all things converged into a single black hole, and EMI was bought up by Terra Firma, we were smashed against a large brick wall and we broke. We lost two long time members. We parted ways with our manager.”

Written by Seth Werkheiser
> Music | 11:12 pm |
More on: Capitol Records, Mae

38 Responses to “Mae Leaves Capitol Records”

On 08/21/08 7:01 AM, Brian said:

yea, sad story. I REALLY dig Mae… hopefully they can pull it together resign to a Tooth&Nail or Militia and put out some more great music
On 08/21/08 8:26 AM, tAlex said:

They’ve said that they don’t plan on signing to any labels. I imagine they’ll probably do a licensing agreement with T&N again.
On 08/21/08 10:20 AM, Jason said:

I hope the 2 lost members will come back.
On 08/21/08 10:39 AM, tAlex said:

Their old bass player is going to be the one who’s recording their new album, so a return may be possible.
On 08/21/08 11:09 AM, Jay DiNitto said:

CAPITAL RECORDS
On 08/21/08 11:28 AM, The 1/3 said:

Wouldn’t it be more like Capital RECORDS?
On 08/21/08 11:31 AM, Dan said:

Mae has been one of my favorite bands for a long time…It hurts to see them go through these ups and downs. I am really glad that they seem to be goign strong in spite of it all though!
On 08/21/08 11:54 AM, Jay DiNitto said:

True, 1/3.

Or maybe just RECORDS?
On 08/21/08 1:44 PM, michael said:

Sadly, other Tooth & Nail bands’ major label deals didn’t seem to go very well either (Project 86, Squad 5-0, Mxpx, Juliana Theory, etc). I hope that things go well for Anberlin.
On 08/21/08 2:08 PM, jordan said:

I hope their next CD is more like The Everglow and Destination Beautiful and nothing like Singularity.
On 08/21/08 5:48 PM, Eric said:

Their new stuff is supposed to be similar to Destination: Beautiful. I can’t wait to hear it!
On 08/21/08 7:20 PM, Chris Berseth said:

What? A major label was bought out and it caused problems for a band? This kinda stuff never happens.
On 08/21/08 7:33 PM, Seth Werkheiser said:

Judging from the track record of a lot of bands I’ve seen get burned by major labels, I’m SURE that MY band won’t! Where do I sign?? haha
On 08/21/08 9:31 PM, Bill Power said:

Does anybody really find this even in the slightest bit surprising? Hasn’t anyone been paying attention. Capital has the EXACT SAME DISTRIBUTION as T&N. That’s just dumb.
On 08/21/08 9:54 PM, The 1/3 said:

I would assume that there’s some difference in the advance and marketing budget that a band would get when signing to a major, even if the distro is the same.
On 08/22/08 6:37 AM, orrin said:

this just in, mae joins copeland by signing at t&n.
On 08/22/08 8:50 AM, tAlex said:

“Sadly, other Tooth & Nail bands’ major label deals didn’t seem to go very well either”

Brandon Ebil is actually very proud of that fact. I read an article where he seemed to be gloating about it.

The smartest band has been Underoath. I’m sure they used their Major Label offers as leverage to get a better re-signing deal with T&N. T&N has a very dedicated following and as Bill pointed out, the exact same distribution so UO was very smart to re-sign.
On 08/22/08 9:55 AM, Seth Werkheiser said:

Big fish, small pond (Juliana Theory, etc.) How do bands not see this? Or labels?
On 08/22/08 11:18 AM, Sean Cannon said:

the labels don’t get it because they’re hoping for the next switchfoot. the band’s don’t care, because they’re blinded by all of the benjamins…that they eventually have to pay back.
On 08/22/08 11:55 AM, Branden Meade said:

@ Sean;

…that they CAN’T pay back!
On 08/22/08 12:06 PM, The 1/3 said:

If they’re smart enough, though, bands can limit the means by which the label is able to recoup their advances.
On 08/22/08 12:27 PM, Bill Power said:

Bands are dumb. I’m not defending T&N (like I could anyway). I’m simply stating that it’s NEVER a good idea to sign to a major label. Ever. Just an opinion.

It doesn’t help that these bands (for whatever reason) almost universally decide (when they sign to said major) to make a record that is a departure from older records (transation - horrible).

Why spend all that time building a fanbase, refining your songwriting skill, etc. to just squander it when you have a bigger platform.
On 08/22/08 12:28 PM, tAlex said:

They can, but that takes some serious negotiation skills and a lot of weight in your corner. Large bands won’t have a problem making those types of demands but new up and coming bands won’t have enough clout.

I read Moses Avalon’s Secrets of Negotiating a Record Contract. It was very inciting and interesting to see the ways that labels can double dip expenses.
On 08/23/08 12:57 AM, jordan said:

Relient K has done well since switching to a major. I hope Anberlin survives their new record deal.
On 08/23/08 2:11 AM, The 1/3 said:

Bill, you’re absolutely right, but I can imagine that it’s tough for a young band to stay true to themselves with a big time producer and label execs breathing down their necks for a hit single/album.

Perhaps the biggest key to negotiating a good contract is being willing to walk away with the contract unsigned. If your music is good enough, then you can find a way to get it to consumers yourself or some other label will come along willing to offer you a better deal.
On 08/23/08 4:14 AM, LenIVM said:

if anberlin survives (on a major), they will have succeeded to avoid the “tooth and nail curse”… which, has anyone ever survived that curse btw?
On 08/25/08 1:23 PM, Bill Power said:

Tooth & Nail Curse. LOL. Now that’s funny!!!!!!!!!!
On 08/25/08 2:40 PM, mae said:

bill, time to get blenderhead back together - i heard atlantic wants an “edgy” band to counterbalance the heavily-leaning wuss factor they currently have due to death cab for cutie.
On 08/25/08 10:37 PM, George said:

Wait, wait, wait, didn’t P.O.D. go from T&N to Atlantic and sell a ton?
On 08/25/08 10:51 PM, Sean Cannon said:

i think they just had a distro deal with tooth and nail for that one album.
On 08/26/08 3:54 PM, Bill Power said:

I don’t know how “edgy” I can really be at this age. Thanks for thinking of me, though.
On 08/30/08 12:36 AM, lucas said:

i believe p.o.d. had signed to atlantic before the t&n release. it was almost like a promo for their atlantic debut which seemed to work out for t&n, p.o.d. and atlantic.
On 09/5/08 10:45 AM, Chad said:

Bill - no matter how old you get, you are still edgy to me. Hold me.
On 09/6/08 1:35 AM, Alex said:

Jordan, Gotee has severed all ties with EMI, and Relient K is no longer on Capitol. So, it’s almost like they’re on a legitimate indie label.
On 09/6/08 3:58 AM, FUCK ME STICKY DICK said:

FUCK MAE! WELL I GUESS THEY CAN CRALL ON THERE FUCKING HANDS AND KNEES BACK TO TOOTH & NAIL. hELL IT WORK FOR THE WASHED UP PROJECT-86 & NOT VERY GOOD ALBUM SALES OF MxPx. 4 CHEERS F-U-C-K YES!
On 09/6/08 9:42 AM, Jay DiNitto said:

Yeah man, terrible musicians. Can’t play a note of the guitar, always out of tune, songs made no sense, terrible gear and recordings. An all around evil band with CDs sold at Hot Topic and Wal-Mart. Punching kittens in the neck. The absolute blackest spawn of an illicit encounter between Hitler and Pol Pot. Let’s all be glad they’ll be dead soon.
On 09/10/08 3:38 PM, Jacob (of the band mae) said:

jay denitto, I love you. I just wanted to clarify one thing. I only punch kittens because of my allergies.
On 09/11/08 10:50 AM, gary churches said:

man this band doesnt need to be on any type of label…. they suck hardcore style

Wednesday, August 20th

Mae Leaves Capitol Records

38 Responses to “Mae Leaves Capitol Records”

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