Mushroom announces Liberation rebrand and new label Bloodlines

Mushroom Group, one of Australia’s premiere independent labels, has announced an imminent rebrand of flagship record label Liberation Music.

The Melbourne-based label will be renamed Liberation Records with Damian Slevison appointed to the helm as Managing Director.

The new Liberation Records will reportedly focus on local emerging acts, handling artists coming out of Australia’s flourishing indie scene nurtured by the likes of triple j and community radio.   

"Over time the label had accumulated a great mix of artists across all demographics but we felt this rebrand could create a better focus for us to develop, market and ultimately maximise success for every artist," Slevison tells TMN. 

"The initial Liberation Records roster gives some strong insight into the label’s approach with a skew mostly towards contemporary artists that are very active in alternative radio and major festival circles," he added.

"We had five artists - Vance Joy, Mansionair, DD Dumbo, Julia Jacklin and Dan Sultan all playing at Splendour in the Grass recently. But we equally do have the ambition and resources to also break thru into commercial radio for the right artists at the right time."

Alonside this announcement, Mushroom will also introduce Bloodlines, an offshoot brand presumably dedicated to the established artists currently mixing with the up-and-comers on Liberation’s previous incarnation. Bloodlines will launch in late 2017. 

Considering the major upheaval, it’s safe to assume that Mushroom is splitting the current Liberation catalogue to reflect the changes, which Slevison told The Music is designed to allow a more "focused" approach to suit the different career stages and audiences represented in the Liberation roster.

Mushroom has not yet confirmed which Liberation Music artists will move to Bloodlines, but acts such as Jimmy Barnes, Hunters & Collectors, Archie Roach, Diesel, The Angels and Mark Seymour will likely be shifted over to the new label.