JEFF the Brotherhood at The East Room in 2014
In his 2012 cover story, former Scene music editor Steve Haruch pinpointed the launch of beloved local indie label Infinity Cat Recordings. On July 20, 2002, Jake and Jamin Orrall’s pre-JEFF the Brotherhood trio The Sex recorded their performance at (now very-long-gone venue) Guido’s Pizzeria and sold preorders of their set as Tusky Mahloo. Bearing the catalog number ICR-001, the CD-R marked the debut of the label that the then-teenage brothers started with their dad, veteran songwriter and visual artist Robert Ellis Orrall.
After serving as a pillar of the local independent rock and punk community and building a dedicated international fan base over nearly two decades, Infinity Cat is preparing for its 125th official release. But, per a note to the Scene, ICR-125 — a 7-inch of JEFF the Brotherhood’s new single “Garbage Man” backed with “Mountains” — will be Infinity Cat’s final new title.
“We are not going away, but this is the last new release,” Robert Ellis Orrall writes. “We will continue on digitally of course, and keep the web store open until we run out of everything. We even have a couple reissues coming, but perhaps not in a format everyone has at home unless they are stuck in the ’70s!”
Scene photographer Eric England shooting JEFF the Brotherhood for Jim Ridley's 2002 story 'The Kids Are Alright'
It’s bittersweet to mark the end of an era in local music in which Infinity Cat was a driving force. But the label’s release schedule had slowed down considerably during the past couple of years, and other local labels have admirably stepped into that community role — see Cold Lunch Recordings and To-Go Records for prime examples. That’s a healthy and natural thing.
And while JEFF the Brotherhood, iCat’s flagship artist, hasn’t been releasing new music at the rate fans grew accustomed to in the 2000s and 2010s, it’s remained excellent. For instance, 2018’s Magick Songs is some of the Bogus Bros’ most inventive and exploratory work yet, with the lineup officially augmented by The Raconteurs' “Little Jack” Lawrence and Silver Synthetic's Kunal Prakash. “Garbage Man” and “Mountains” are a little closer to old-school JtB, but decidedly on the noisier end of the spectrum. The introductory text on Bandcamp describes the tracks as “two new destroyed rippers,” and that’s pretty spot-on.
And speaking of Bandcamp, you’ll notice that the digital version of the single is hosted on the profile of Earthbound Sound. The single is also marked "EBS-02," as it's a co-release between Infinity Cat and Earthbound, which was established by Prakash and Jake Orrall down in New Orleans and is just beginning to get cooking. Take a listen below, and preorder the physical version directly from Infinity Cat. Preorders are set to ship in May, exact date TBA.
