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Lookout Records
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===Establishment=== Both Lawrence Livermore (nΓ©e Larry Hayes) and David Hayes (not related) were deeply inspired by the energetic East Bay punk rock scene and sought to further document its leading bands. David Hayes initially wanted to start a new label of his own for the purpose, to be known as Sprocket Records, with a view to a first release for the band [[Corrupted Morals]].<ref name=Prested10>Prested, ''Punk USA,'' pg. 10.</ref> Livermore, a columnist for ''Maximum Rocknroll'' ''(MRR)'' who knew Hayes as a so-called "shitworker" for the publication, convinced the latter that a partnership was in order to advance their common goal.<ref name=Prested10 /> As Livermore's release had an independently controlled label name, Lookout Records, while Hayes's debut release borrowed the well-known ''MRR'' moniker, the former name was decided upon as the label name for the releases of the duo moving forward.<ref name=Prested10 /> According to Livermore, the name "Lookout" was chosen for his magazine and band and thus the label from whence it sprung was selected in reference to the [[United States Forest Service]] fire watch tower on Iron Peak, the highest point in Livermore's rural Mendocino County neighborhood.<ref>Livermore, ''How I Became a Capitalist: The Lookout Records Story, Part One,'' pg. 10.</ref> The company's iconic "beady eyes" logo was the early creation of David Hayes, who also handled much of the artwork for the label's early sleeves and LP jackets.<ref name=LL11>Livermore, ''How I Became a Capitalist: The Lookout Records Story, Part One,'' pg. 11.</ref> With Hayes's Corrupted Morals project moving forward as LK-02, a 7-inch EP entitled ''Chet,'' Livermore and Hayes jointly worked to bring about a third release later in 1987.<ref>Prested, ''Punk USA,'' pp. 10-11.</ref> This would be yet another 7-inch EP, a record by raw-edged [[ska-punk]]ers Operation Ivy called ''Hectic.''<ref>Prested, ''Punk USA,'' pg. 11.</ref> This third release proved to be an aural document of the right band at the right moment, with the release by the high energy local favorites selling through its first pressing of 1,000 copies within a month.<ref>Prested, ''Punk USA,'' pg. 12.</ref> In an effort to make a splash, four 7-inch vinyl records were released simultaneously, including also releases by popular 924 Gilman bands Crimpshrine (LK-04) and Isocracy (LK-05).<ref name=LL11 /> This initial barrage of new releases went far in cementing Lookout's place as a cutting edge local label for the Berkeley punk scene. The "Gilman bands" began to form friendships amongst themselves and to play out together at other venues on the road. One important contact was made in the person of 14-year-old [[Chris Appelgren|Christopher "Chris" Appelgren]], a resident of the small town of [[Garberville, California]] who worked as a volunteer at community radio station [[KMUD]] and who had learned of The Lookouts and the burgeoning East Bay punk rock scene through the pages of ''Lookout'' magazine, which was distributed in the area.<ref name=Prested15>Prested, ''Punk USA,'' pg. 15.</ref> Appelgren attended a show held at [[Humboldt State University]] in [[Arcata, California]] played by Lookout Records bands Operation Ivy, Crimpshrine, Isocracy, and The Lookouts and was wowed by what he saw, meeting Livermore for the first time and making the acquaintance of [[Tim Armstrong|Tim "Lint" Armstrong]] of Op Ivy β later a leading member of [[Rancid (band)|Rancid]].<ref name=Prested15 /> Before long Appelgren would be traveling to Livermore's Laytonville home to help with the stuffing of 7-inch vinyl into sleeves and packaging records for mailorder, becoming the label's first paid employee.<ref>Prested, ''Punk USA,'' pp. 15-16.</ref>
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