Indie Doesn't Mean Noble. Neither does Victory

Of course we know the major labels are evil, right? They screw musicians out of their money. They’re the evil corporate Goliaths. Yea yea, we’ve heard that before. Common knowledge, right? That’s why the cool kids always side with the indie labels. Because they fight the good fight. They’ll stick their neck out for the little bands. We can trust them. Well actually… maybe not.

I’m not writing this to put down all indie labels. I’ve always been a fan of supporting the little guy. It’s when a corrupt label poses as the indie label, pretending to fight for the little guy, that I get upset. That’s the case with Victory Records.
The reason I’m saying something now is that VP Ramsey Dean wrote an article delving into the depths of Victory Records dark history, and founder Tony Brummel’s continuing offense against bands and employees. The article has been taken down a few times, so I’ve found it in plain text, so you have the opportunity to read it.

Some of what the article reveals is news. Some of it isn’t though. Bands like Taking Back Sunday, Thursday, and Hawthorne Heights have made attempts to reveal the evils of the label.
Even in my own life, I’ve run across the Victory Records tactic. A very good friend of mine plays bass for the band The Acacia Strain. They’ve been gaining in popularity in the last few years, so of course Tony Brummel of Victory tried to woo them away from their current label. After Tony realized he wasn’t going to sway them though, he decided to do what he considered the next best thing: sign a band that sounds exactly like them, and market them the same way. And so Emmure got themselves a record contract. That’s pretty slimy, but not the worst by any means. The worst is when Victory Records employers and street teamers were asked to go out to record stores and reorganize cd shelves, putting Emmure cds in front of Acacia Strain cds, in an attempt to keep kids from buying anything but Victory releases. So not only will Tony Brummel use dishonest methods to fight the “rock vs. rap” war. He’ll turn around on bands he can’t bully and try to screw them too.
Anyway, I hope you get a chance to read the article, and spread the word about what Victory Records is doing to their bands and employees. Seeing this happen in the indie music world is extremely upsetting, so anything you can do to stop it is a good thing.