Coming off the heels of the release of TMR-1, Fort Vine's "Stay Magical", I want to keep the record label's wheels moving. Without question, thanks to the excellent music of the band, wonderful mastering via Qrates' audio engineer, and high quality control when it came to the vinyl pressing, TMR-1 blew everyone's, including my own, expectations out of the water! Those who may have been skeptical about the quality are now kicking themselves as everyone has been piling on top of each other on social media sharing their gorgeous records, and it is a beautiful sight to behold. I could not be prouder of Too Many Records' maiden voyage as a new found record label.



Let's shift gears now. This album is extremely important to me. I wanted this record to be TMR-2 because not only is this album a seminal one from my life, it also integrates into the Too Many Records YouTube channel, seeing as the short theme song for every video is a portion of the album's single, "Odd". I chose this album not just because I love it, but because I know that all of you will love it too. Read for more on its background.



Dylan Campbell is my best friend. We lived together in college for 3 years, and shortly after I moved to California while he stayed in upstate NY working on his doctorate. Despite the distance, we remain close and I consider him one of the most important people in my life. Dylan is responsible for opening up my mind to so much music in college. Radiohead, Andrew Bird, The National, and so many more artists that I cherish to this day.



Beyond being an intelligent, good hearted dude -- Dylan happens to be a brilliant musician. One of the most talented guitarists I know, he also is an arrangement and composition wunderkind. Poppy melodies ooze out of him almost effortlessly, despite his love for folk and the genres surrounding it. This fusion gave birth to his first full album, under the moniker Vermilion Club. This album, Home, was recorded in his room at my college apartment, where he enlisted the assistance of another way-too-talented-for-their-own-good musician from our school, Zeno Pittarelli, to provide vocals, harmonies, cello, and other instrumentation periodically throughout the album.



Home is an album that I can safely say floored me when I first heard it. It was difficult for me to separate the fact that someone I was so close to made it, but I really feel strongly that anyone who listens to it can and will be captivated by it. Dylan's not the strongest vocalist in a traditional sense, and he'll be the first to admit that, but his welcoming, calming, smooth, Sufjan-esque vocals lay a pipeline through the rest of the album, where the composition swirls and dances uniquely above them, track by track. From the Vampire Weekend-esque pluckiness of Odd to the anthemic chaotic harmony of Hummingbirds to overwhelming reflective beauty of Id Kid to the Sleigh Bells style explosion of melody of Frau Troffea, the album keeps you on your toes the entire way.



This album deserves a vinyl pressing. It's an indie pop/folktronica masterpiece that has an absurd amount of soul and character. With a mixture of lyrical riddles and relatable thought patterns, this is an album for everyone. Therefore, TMR-2 is going to be Vermilion Club - Home, and I sincerely hope you'll pledge to give it life. This is going to be the 10th Anniversary Edition of the album, so there will be a few changes.



1) The final track from the digital release, Galileo Galilei, was removed for this vinyl release for a few reasons. It's not a bad track by any means, but Dylan always felt it went on a little too long, and that feeling now translates to the physical restrictions of the vinyl medium. Rather than have 4 sides that are way too short, we felt it was best to keep it on one disk. By cutting the long closer it allowed for maximum fidelity for the other 10 tracks. And honestly, having re-listened to the album with Suns as the closer, I genuinely think I like it even more. That song was always the sleeper hit of the album, for me. Simply gorgeous.



2) The art is being redesigned for the 10th Anniversary Edition, and since it was previously digital only, a back cover with a track listing will be added as well. The new art adds so much character to the album, where as the previous art was quite literally a throwaway image that Dylan and I found when we googled "Vermilion." The disk will match the art, as you all know I appreciate that. And we're upgrading to black polylined sleeves to help protect those records even more, this time. Gotta keep it deluxe, that's the TMR way.



3) It will be one disk, 33RPM, specifically mastered for vinyl by the genius that mastered the beautiful Fort Vine - Stay Magical record, so you know it's going to sound good. We were able to keep costs down for this because it was 1LP, so the pledge amount is only $19.99, which is truly affordable for a single LP in this day and age.



Let's make another record!



Thank you all for your support,



Matt and Dylan





ALBUM ART BY: Tanea Estridge

http://www.instagram.com/tanea_bree

Commissions: tanea.estridge@aol.com