
Joyful Noise Recordings

Joyful Noise Recordings is an independent record label from Indianapolis, Indiana. The label was founded in 2003 in Bloomington, Indiana by Karl Hofstetter, who also played drums on many of the label's first releases. Joyful Noise currently has a roster of 20+ bands of various musical styles, though according to the label, each artist "in one way or another bridges this gap between pop and noise."
History.
In 2010 Joyful Noise began focusing largely on limited edition specialty releases which are generally released on analog formats packaged with music downloads. In addition to releases on vinyl records, the label has gained notoriety for being at the forefront of the resurgence of cassette tapes and flexi-discs, as reported by The Washington Post, Pitchfork Media, Under The Radar, and others.
Joyful Noise has released single-album cassettes from Akron/Family, Dinosaur Jr., Deerhoof, of Montreal, Here We Go Magic, and others, and has released multi-album Cassette Box Sets from Dinosaur Jr., of Montreal, and Joan Of Arc.
In 2012 Joyful Noise released their first album to chart on Billboard: Kishi Bashi "151a" (debuting at #6 on the "Heatseekers" chart). Since that time, new music on Joyful Noise from artists such as Sebadoh, Dumb Numbers, David Yow, Son Lux, Swamp Dogg, Tropical Fuck Storm, Deerhoof, Why? and others have all charted.
From 2012 to 2016, in the spirit of continuing to explore musical community-building through the release of cult artists in obsolete audio-reproduction formats, Joyful Noise offered its monthly Flexi-Disc singles series. Each disc in the series is of peculiar and notable value as a rarity but some particularly memorable entries include Son Lux's cover of Jean Ritchie's "Black Waters", several Melvins & Joan of Arc-related tracks, a duet by Sufjan Stevens & Stranger Cat, Tortoise, Don Caballero and Daniel Johnston.
The Flexi-Disc's brief renaissance was the second wave of obsolete-format-driven record sales originally conceived of and innovated by Joyful Noise (after cassette-tapes), later to be duplicated by other labels in the independent music world. JNR is also known for producing lathe-cut records, twelve-sided records, records-that-are-also-musical-instruments and a number of other more bizarre and bespoke musical artifacts.
In 2013, JNR released the first 7" in their Cause & Effect series—an ongoing project pairing JNR artists (appearing on the A-Side) with artists who have influenced them (appearing on the b-side).
In 2014, Joyful Noise started their annual Artist-In-Residence program: working with seasoned cult artists to release the "pure-gold material they've got in the cans that's never found a venue for release" and to continue to support their ongoing work. JNR Artists-In-Residence have included: Tim Kinsella (Joan of Arc, Cap'n Jazz et al.), Rob Crow (Pinback, Goblin Cock, Optiganally Yours, et al.), Jad Fair (Half-Japanese), Thor Harris (Swans), and Kramer (Shimmy-Disc).
In 2017, Joyful Noise began releasing their White Label series: undiscovered records selected by renowned musicians either represented or friendly with the label. Yoni Wolf of Why? selected "Creature Native" by The Ophelias as the first-entry in the White Label Series and the band was ultimately drafted to become part of the label's roster. Other curators of the White Label series include Devendra Barnhart, Janet Weiss (Sleater Kinney), Kelley Deal (The Breeders), Mirah, Aesop Rock, Alex Somers, Blanck Mass, Kid Millions, Meredith Graves, Make Watt, Serengeti, tUNE-yARDs, Astronautilus, Cate Le Bon, Circuit des Yeux, Julianna Barwick, Sondre Lerche, St. Vincent, Thurston Moore and others.
The label is known for candid identification with and support of radical and revolutionary politics. They released collaborations between Bernie Sanders & Thurston Moore, done fundraising to oppose the Trump regime through the release of Anal Trump records and stood in solidarity with Black Lives Matter during the George Floyd protests.
In 2020, JNR founded the Church of Noise to build and perpetuate musically empowered community during the coronavirus pandemic and through the longtail of its fallout.
Subscriptions and series.
Artist in Residence.
Starting in 2014, Joyful Noise began hosting artists for year-long residencies in which they release new music exclusively on the label. 
Flexi Disc Series.
In late 2011 Joyful Noise announced their 2012 Flexi Disc Series, which featured singles from Deerhoof, Jad Fair, Lou Barlow, of Montreal, and others. Each artist contributed a single song which is not available anywhere else. Each Flexi Disc was limited to 500 copies, and were sold as a monthly subscription. Now in its fourth year, the Flexi Disc series has upped their distribution to 1000 copies of each single and grown to include acts such as Cloud Nothings, Sonny & the Sunsets, Lee Ranaldo, Thurston Moore and Sufjan Stevens.