Following on from February’s heartening news that Melbourne folk rock act Husky would be the first ever Australian signing to influential Seattle label, Sub Pop. Another emerging Australian act has found success with another taste-making international record label.
This time it’s Perth’s loveable indie pop outfit, San Cisco, who according to The Music Network have scored an international record deal in a collaboration between RCA Records and Mississippi independent label Fat Possum, who will be releasing the band’s forthcoming debut album – due November 23 in Australia and 2013 internationally – as well as the band’s Awkward EP.
Fat Possum co-founder Matthew Johnson was said that the label’s first-ever Australian signing was inked at the band’s office in Fremantle last Friday and the contract covers all territories except Australia and New Zealand where San Cisco already have their own established Island City Records, distributed through MGM.
The Perth quartet will be joining an enviable roster that is home to the likes of forthcoming Meredith act Spiritualized, blues legend R.L. Burnside and the soul gentleman Al Green. San Cisco are likely to fit along snugly alongside Fat Possum’s list of newer acts as well, including Unknown Mortal Orchestra, The Walkmen, Yuck, Tennis, Friends and previously, The Black Keys.
The band’s manager Philip Stevens says that it was the indie label’s “fascinating roster” that drew them to the deal, saying of the RCA Records/Fat Possum partnership “[they] obviously have the ability and clout to make this hopefully work on a broader level, especially at radio.”
Meanwhile the band themselves wrote in a joint statement: “We are pumped to sign to Fat Possum and RCA. When we spoke on the phone to [Fat Possum founder] Matt Johnson and he asked us to take some fucked up press photos we knew we were making the right choice!”
The international deal comes as San Cisco are already making inroads into international markets, currently on a European tour as their music is getting major radio airplay on 3FM, before they invade America at New York’s Aussie-dominated CMJ music festival which features the likes of The Presets (who have just released LP#3 Pacifica), Festival of the Sun headliner Kimbra and the widescreen sounds of The Jezabels.
The news also arrives just as San Cisco earned two nominations for AIR’s 2012 Independent Music Awards, including ‘Breakthrough Independent Artist of the Year’ and ‘Best Independent EP’ for Awkward, the title track of which stormed into #7 of this year’s Triple J Hottest 100 earlier this year.
