Legendary Seattle record label SubPop has announced a new deal with Inertia, which will now have exclusive Australian rights to distribute the label’s output. Following Stomp Entertainment – which had previously distributed the label – going to the wall owing creditors (including SubPop) $11.5 million, the new deal will see Inertia handle all new releases and the company’s impressive back catalogue. In a statement to the media, SubPop CEO and co-founder Jonathan Poneman said that Inertia had “earned a global reputation for solid business practices, competence and savvy.” SubPop effectively birthed the grunge movement in the late 90s and early 90s, signing and putting out releases by bands such as Mudhoney, Soundgarden and Nirvana. They’re still a force in indie music, in recent times signing CSS, Band of Horses, Fleet Foxes and The Shins.
