High Roller Records is a German label that has been releasing traditional heavy metal music since 2003. Their webstore is true mine of amazing NWOBHM, heavy metal, doom metal, thrash metal, speed metal, punk & rock music.
Please tell us about your label. What was the idea behind starting it?
HIGH ROLLER RECORDS was founded by Steffen Boehm in 2003 as a “vinyl-only” label. The initial idea behind this project was to make classic metal recordings and lost sessions accessible to the world again in a time when nobody really believed in the vinyl format anymore. A matter of pure passion.
Time went on and the label evolved, so the HRR catalog got available in all physical and digital formats.
Nowadays, HIGH ROLLER RECORDS is a passionate crew that stands for high-end re-issues of mandatory rock and metal classics and is the home of many scene-leading acts, such as WARLORD, MESSIAH, CLOVEN HOOF, PROTECTOR (to name a few), but also many talented young bands.
Great music and high-quality products for fair money – that’s the main target.
What do you see as the biggest challenges in the beginning?
All times offer different challenges. As mentioned, the vinyl format was pretty much gone in the early days of the company, so the whole project was risky.
Probably, these days are even more challenging though as the market grew and bureaucracy increases constantly. Also, the major labels re-discovered the potential of vinyl and even music cassettes. Who would’ve ever expected this? So, they’re taking quite a big spot on the market now, which caused challenges for small companies like us production-wise, especially throughout the pandemic years.
What is the main factor deciding if a band/an artist is being released on your label? Is there a specific key to it?
In most of the cases, we pick the artists ourselves, meaning we ask them if they’d like to join us. Generally, we need to be convinced of a band’s sound, since we’re all fans of the music in the first place. Sometimes, new bands applying to the label achieve to impress us too of course!
The aim of the label has always been to preserve our favorite classics and to discover and push the most talented emerging new traditional rock / metal bands. Personal conviction is the key before all business-related decisions at HRR.
Any advice for those who would like to start their music labels?
Always remember that music is art in the first place and not a physical “product” to make easy money. Always trust in your personal taste before starting to do business with music and remember that all this would not be possible without the artists and the fans. Also make sure to have equally minded people in your crew.
But always be aware that it’s a hard business. Many labels came and went.
Please recommend a few tracks from the albums you’ve released.
Tough one with a back catalog of nearly 1000 releases featuring many classics. Also considering the stylistic variety…
A few classics from re-issues: Manilla Road – “Necropolis”, Destruction – “Invincible Force”, Cloven Hoof – “Reach for the Sky”, Protector – “Protector of Death”, Tank – “Shellshock”, Ashbury – “Endless Skies”, Warlord – “Deliver Us”, Messiah – “Extreme Cold Weather” …
Some of our original releases: High Spirits – “Another Night in the City”, Stallion – “Canadian Steele”, Condor – “Chained Victims”, Kerrigan – “Mesmerizer”, Hellbringer – “Coven of Darkness” …
The list could be endless.