Last year, I embarked on a quest to discover more great Canadian metal bands. One useful tool that allowed me to tap right into the music was to search Bandcamp for specific subgenres of metal in Canada or bands from different regions of Canada. Some of the bands that I discovered and decided to order included Black Moor from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia and Death Valley Driver from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Both of these bands were on the Diminished Fifth Records label. Through my orders, I came to be in touch with Josh Hogan, who ran the label from 2005 to 2015 and who is also the vocalist for the Dartmouth band, Orchid’s Curse.
Diminished Fifth ceased operation in 2015, but there are still CDs available as well as downloads on Bandcamp for very low prices. I placed an order for a few more CDs, and Josh sent me some extras. This really piqued my interest in the label and what was going on in the East Coast metal scene both during the years of D5R’s operation and currently. I decided to make a video for the YouTube channel (not ready yet) and threw a bunch of questions Josh’s way. Here’s what Josh had to say in response to my questions and brief research into the label and its releases, including the compilations known as “The Music of Artisanship & War”.
Music Is A Journey: So, I left you with a bunch of questions but I checked out a bit of information on my own and I think I have the shell of the story.
You established D5R in 2006 as a label for Orchid’s Curse and other East Coast bands. In 2007, you released the first Music of Artisanship & War compilation which featured tracks by a lot of East Coast bands, including some who would release albums with D5R but also many others who never did (I saw you had two songs by Hellacaust who have four albums but none with D5R).
From 2006 to 2014 you released albums and EPs but in 2015 the label closed down with “last chance” orders shipped out on July 31, 2015.
Josh Hogan: Your details are correct with operating from 2006 – 2015. The compilations (of which we did 3) were always intended to feature all East Coast metal bands, regardless if they were on D5R or not. Bands like Broken Ohms, Hellacaust, etc… were never officially on D5R, but I was still a big fan and supporter and often worked with non D5R bands on marketing, grant writing, concert promo, etc…
MIAJ: Could you tell me about the background story of Diminished 5th? Who started the label?
JH: After joining a young band which eventually turned into Orchid’s Curse, I quickly realized there was almost no (official) support for the East Coast Metal scene and I decided to start the label to release OC’s first album. This was followed by our first Artisanship & War compilation which quickly led to me working on upcoming releases for Dischord, Gallactus and Iron Giant.
MIAJ: What experience in the music industry or in business did the founder(s) have?
JH: Almost none, haha! A lot of trial and error especially early on. For example, I thought naively the compilations would make money for the label, and they did not, haha. BUT they helped put the label and the metal scene in the region on much higher platform. Charting on Canadian campus radio and getting positive praise from publications like Exclaim, Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles, Unrestrained, etc… It also helped me discover so many incredible new bands in the region.
MIAJ: What was the impetus for starting the label?
JH: I really believed in “East Coast Metal” and wanted to put it on the map.
MIAJ: While checking out Canadian bands last year, I seemed to find a lot of bands that formed around the mid-2000s. Did you see a sudden growth in the number of domestic metal bands around that time?
JH: Definitely. I think with the digital revolution coming through and the costs of recording going down, it enabled more acts to try and make a push at it.
MIAJ: Also, many of those bands have not released anything new since 2016. Was there a sudden recession in the Canadian metal market around then?
JH: Bands get old, life happens (careers, kids, etc…). Most folks never made much money in the music biz, so it was a hobby, and sadly there comes a time when some hobbies can’t continue for many people. That said, there’s been a decent influx of killer newer acts in the region like Zaum, Diner Drugs, Dumpster Mummy, Hard Charger, Ancient Thrones, Hitman, and many others still carrying the flame. Plus bands like Anthesis, Death Valley Driver, Dischord, Hero’s Last Rite and Orchid’s Curse are still playing (at least prior to Covid). Also, a big shout out to Ancient Temple Records (started by Scott from Anthesis) on doing some brilliant things.
MIAJ: Who were the biggest (most known, most successful) acts that Diminished 5th signed?
JH: Depends on the era, but overall I would say Black Moor, Iron Giant, and Last Call Chernobyl
MIAJ: Was Diminished 5th a distributor or to what capacity did Diminished 5th support bands?
JH: We only distributed stuff released form D5R (Canada was Sonic Unyon, and for a few years we had Relapse disturbing in the USA; was Relapse and Code7/Plastichead in the UK/Ireland.) Outside of the label, I also co-own Red Tentacle Music Solutions who did a lot of marketing, concert promo, and project management for bands not associated with the label.
MIAJ: Were the bands on D5th all from the Atlantic Provinces?
JH: Yes. One exception was the Failure Epics vinyl we did as Jon (Epworth) lived in Toronto but was born in the Maritimes.
MIAJ: What was the reason for the eventual folding of the label? Was it related to a change in the metal market or was there something else from outside that affected the company?
JH: Money was the biggest, and time. In reality, the label lost money 7 of the 9 years it operated and the 2 years it turned a profit, it wasn’t much. It was a hobby for me and after nearly a decade I just couldn’t continue to sink money into it. As I mentioned above, Red Tentacle filled some of those gaps and still continues and operates to this day.
MIAJ: What is the status of most of the bands you once represented? Are most still active or at least not split up or have the majority taken a break from music?
JH: I touched on this above, but there’s only a handful of old D5R acts currently active. Some were very short lived and others have lasted over a decade now. Really just the way of the industry.
MIAJ: How’s the metal music scene out East now? I know COVID has claimed both Oceanic and The Combine from St. John’s. Both bands have split up because they can’t play. Are things looking grave right now or are some bands holding on for brighter days?
JH: Oceanic stopped performing long before Covid, but I do believe The Combine called it quits shortly into the pandemic. Some of the Death Valley Driver guys have a cool side project called Graves of the Abyss; Anthesis is recording new stuff; Orchid’s Curse is currently demoing songs for an upcoming EP. We are all just waiting until we can have proper live shows again and hopefully we can see a resurgence.
MIAJ: Please add anything you’d like to say about D5th, the bands and musicians you knew, the Atlantic metal scene in general, or anything else.
JH: I still keep in touch with many of the members of the bands from the label. I created some true, lifelong friendships, which I will forever be grateful for. Every year or so, I go into a deep dive of old D5R albums and I’m super proud of all we did in our time and the quality of work that we put out to the world. — Long live East Coast Metal!
Many big thanks to Josh Hogan for taking his time to answer my questions. I think we can agree that Diminished Fifth Records made a grand contribution to promoting tons of great bands through their compilation albums and also gave East Coast bands a label on which to release their albums.
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Music is a Journey 