Brooklyn-based record label Ship to Shore PhonoCo. grew from a place of passion. Having met on the set of cult horror film Return to Nuke ‘Em High Volumes 1 & 2, Ship to Shore founders Justin Martell and Aaron Hamel discovered a shared interest in rare records, blood-splattered movies, and collectables. Seeking to fill a void in the ever-growing world of re-issue labels, the duo pooled their money together to create Ship to Shore PhonoCo: a boutique record company shining a light on under appreciated classics and undiscovered gems. 

Their first release was an actual Edison cylinder record (made from filing down original cylinders that had become too moldy to play) featuring Tiny Tim’s previously unreleased track, “(Nobody Else Can Love Me Like) My Old Tomato Can.” After the record’s success proved that there was, in fact, an audience for rare cultural touchstones, Martell and Hamel released a soundtrack for the prequel to the film they met each other on: Troma Entertainment’s Class Of Nuke ‘Em High, the 1986 horror/comedy b-movie. 

With its early releases, Ship To Shore PhonoCo. found a fanbase eager and excited to embrace the duo’s curatorial spirit. After releasing another string of horror LPs that included George A. Romero’s Martin, Manos: The Hands of Fate, the label bosses took to Kickstarter to seek funding for the soundtrack to Nintendo’s MOTHER, a video game score that had previously only been released in Japan. After hitting their $42,000 mark in less than 24 hours, Ship to Shore eventually received $77,000 for the project, once again affirming the label's belief that their tastes reflected a larger, underserved audience of collectors, listeners, and mega fans alike. As the label has found more success, Martell and Hamel have grown more comfortable expanding their vision and scope.

Alongside continuing their mission of resurrecting rare horror scores, the label has continued pursuing hard to find video game soundtracks (including MOTHER 2 and SNATCHER), rare albums from artists like Paul Williams (1968’s The Holy Mackerel), art-punks MX-80 SOUND, and a brand new release from Tiny Tim, titled Tiny Tim’s America. As Ship to Shore PhonoCo. continues to grow its audience, the variety of music they release will follow suit. It’s an exciting time to be a fan of all things weird, as Ship to Shore is making sure no corner of the horrifying, the occult, the avant-garde, and the hard to find gets neglected.