Negative Progression Records
Negative Progression Records began like many other record labels in 1996, as a passion project of a punk rock kid. Founder Seth Hyman saw Green Day on the "Kerplunk" tour in Orlando, FL, Jan. 24, 1993 at the appropriately named Club Nowhere. His mind reformed after being melted into a grey-goo and he began exploring punk rock through the pages of California fanzines Maximum RockNRoll and Flipside. A deep dive into the house show scene in Atlanta and then the thriving DIY scene in Boston, led Seth to put out one of the earliest cover compilations, OLDIES BUT GOODIES. With the distribution help of another new label, Vagrant Records, punk rock bands including Face to Face, MxPx, Good Riddance, Bracket, and Gob playing their unreleased versions of 1950s rock 'n' roll classics was a hit around the world.
Like many other young labels, Negative Progression Records advertised in fanzines and on nascent punk webzines, which led to demo tapes and CDs arriving in the P.O. Box. Early releases by Over It (VA), Lipmonger (CT), Bounder (MI) and 5-Driver (PA) and participation in the 2nd Punk Rock Bowling Tournament in Las Vegas inspired Seth to move out west to California in the summer of 2000 and join the ranks of more established punk labels like Fat Wreck, Hopeless, Fearless, Epitaph and Lookout!.
The first few years of the new millennium was a big growth period for Negative Progression Records, releasing some of the most iconic emo-inspired pop punk that the label is known for. Counterfit (CA), The June Spirit (NJ), Contender (CO) and The Goodwill (NY) all toured the United States, building a following that culminated in the label running the "Radioactive Stage" in 2003 on the Vans Warped Tour. Seth Hyman developed the line-up, created thousands of promotional flyers and CDs, and led a crew that drove the stage between California and Florida. Every day, the bands all took part in setting up the stage and sound, they walked around promoting their set times, as well as each other. It was a truly incredible and collective experience.
Another compilation series was created by Seth, and his good friend Virgil Dickerson, to help smaller up-and-coming punk labels by working together to spread their names, bands and music. The PLAYING 4 SQUARE compilation had 3 installments with a variety of like-minded labels: Negative Progression, Suburban Home, Drive Thru, Polyvinyl, Fueled By Ramen, Lookout!, Initial, My Records, and Better Looking Records. Into the mid-2000s, Negative Progression Records began expanding its horizons in all directions, whether it be the screamy A Burning Water (CA), Little Yellow Box (CT) or The Subtle Way (CA), the indie emo of Aberdien (VA), The Progress (NJ), Little Compass (TX), or others that were exploring ways pop punk, post-hardcore, and indie rock could be melded together like One Way Letter (GA), Amity (CA), Down For The Count (CA), and John Connor (NJ).
As the 2010s began, Seth Hyman felt that more and more traditionally punk or hardcore labels were blurring those lines and breaking down the walls. He was always a fan of hardcore, metal and metalcore and the time was now right to continue the label's expansion to finally encompass heavy music as well. Negative Progression Records has always been a family of bands and not every member of every family expresses themselves in the same way. In fact, many siblings don't get each other at all. In 2007, the label relocated to Brooklyn and maybe it was the cold winters, the hard lifestyle, or the intense people, but this new era led to a number of incredible heavy releases by The Subtle Way (CA), Dennis is Dead (CA), La Circa (CA), Maya Over Eyes (CA), Set Your Anchor (CA). Perhaps Seth missed the Golden State after the label's move to New York, but the truth is that California has always had the best heavy bands. Never fear, there were still awesome releases by pop punk bands Ministry of Love (NV), Lariats (AZ), The Offseason (MA), and Smalls (CA).
Negative Progression Records took a hiatus between 2015-2021. The music industry had changed with the advent of paid downloads and then streaming services, and Seth Hyman decided to focus on his career as an attorney. But during the pandemic, podcasts about the 90's underground scene started popping up, long defunct labels began to reissue vinyl, and a bunch of old men with grey hair started reforming their bands to write new music. A Negative Progression Records Instagram was created in 2022 to chronicle some cherished memories and new bands started sending messages with new songs. Always known as a label that will bend over backwards to help it's bands, a new roster has formed organically with no pressure to tour or get big or even make money. Seth Hyman reformed this label to have fun and help awesome bands build in a way that works for them. A truly incredible series of vinyl releases by Gone Stereo (NY), Fire Sale (CA), Time Spent Driving (CA), The Last Second Save (MD), Greyed Out (CA), Glazed (FL), Sleep In. (PA) and Yunger (CA) is continuing to blaze the trail begun decades earlier for the label.
Music is art, expression, and energy. NPR is a family of bands and fans, join us.