THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In the punk explosion of the 1990s, affordably priced multi-band compilations were a godsend to punk fans. Epitaph’s Punk-O-Rama and Fat Wreck Chords’ Fat Music series, along with earlier one-offs like Lookout! Records’ The Thing That Ate Floyd and Alternative Tentacles’ Let Them Eat Jellybeans, offered fans opportunities to take chances on new artists without having to buy multiple LPs.
Marc Kravitz, founder of Mild Chaos Records, is bringing back these treasure troves of discovery. The Orange County, Calif. indie label’s inaugural release will be the comp Touch of Chaos Vol. 1. The 12-track collection is a well-rounded survey of fresh, independent artists from all sub-genres of punk. Touch of Chaos Vol. 1 will only be available physically on vinyl and CD.
“I fell in love with punk after my dad brought home The Clash’s Sandinista! when I was 8,” Kravitz recalls. “I don’t have a background in music. I’m just a huge fan of the punk scene, and this is me giving back to the music I have loved since I was a kid.”
Mild Chaos is a small operation founded in 2023. Kravitz describes his job description at the label as fluid, as being “everything from the janitor to the CEO.” Within that expanse, Kravitz is also the label’s A&R person, and he curated the comp from submissions culled from “punk bands wanted” social media solicitations.
“This venture is an extension of the DIY ethic of the bands on the comp. These are all bands that have released their own music, and are hustling to make their way in the industry just like I’m doing with Mild Chaos,” Kravitz notes.
Kravitz came of age in the 1990s when punk was infiltrating the mainstream, and splintering off into a wide array of sub-genres such as ska-punk, skate-punk, hardcore, pop-punk, street-punk, post-punk, etc. This eclectic palette is represented by the handpicked artists on Touch of Chaos Vol. 1. Each artist embodies the Mild Chaos aesthetic, a name which is a playful nod to the 1970s punk invasion. “We offer a little bit of chaos — a few steps below total anarchy,” Kravitz says.
The genesis of the label came during the pandemic when Kravitz, like many others, found himself spending time and money enlarging his vinyl collection. In the flood of available records, Kravitz noticed there weren’t any new compilations like the ones he loved in the 1990s. Bringing back those Epitaph Punk-O-Rama-style compilations was the inspiration behind Mild Chaos.
The label follows in the celebrated punk lineage of Kravitz’s home of Orange County, which brought to the world bands such as The Vandals, Sublime, Social Distortion, The Offspring, Agent Orange, Adolescents, and TSOL, among others. Eventually, Kravitz hopes to grow Mild Chaos through putting out a second volume of the comp series, and releasing split 7” EPs.”
Check out some of the bands on the compilation below, and get more information on Mild Chaos Records at their website and Instagram.
