Lisa Fancher’s venerable Frontier Records celebrates 44 years of independence, its initial releases include debut albums by the Circle Jerks, Adolescents, TSOL, China White, Christian Death and Suicidal Tendencies. Two decades after this impressive string of hits, Frontier discovered Portland’s Heatmiser, featuring the great Elliott Smith. Fancher is a San Fernando Valley native. She worked at record stores like Bomp!, Vinyl Fetish and Licorice Pizza in North Hollywood. She recalls: “We were the black sheep, punk store with Cliff Roman from the Weirdos, Kid Congo, writer Don Snowden and members of the Quick…” In high school Fancher wrote about the Runaways and lines from the piece became part of the inner sleeve of their self-titled debut album. Also while attending John H. Francis high school, she mimeographed her first fanzine, Academy in Peril, and went on to publish subsequent ‘zines, Street Life and Biff! Bang! Pow! as well as writing for Bomp!, Back Door Man, New York Rocker and L.A. Times (fired by Robert Hilburn for being “too enthusiastic”) and L.A. Herald Examiner. She witnessed punk shows at the Masque, Cuckoo’s Nest, Starwood, Whisky a Go Go, Fleetwood et al, somehow finding it completely routine to run like hell from cops wielding batons before, during and after gigs, including the Elk’s Lodge riot and infamous Black Flag gigs at the Whisky. In the early ‘90s, Fancher revived the legacy of the great, pre-hardcore L.A. punk label, Dangerhouse Records (X, Avengers, Weirdos, the Bags, Blank Randy, The Eyes). Switching gears and morphing into a “punk rock Rhino” (OC hardcore combo, Middle Class; the Stimulators; reissues by Lilys). Fancher now owns a streaming radio station: predictably, the call letters are KXFU! She explains: “After being stiffed again and again over and over by dozens of record distributors over 30+ years, I co-founded Independent Label Distribution with Mike Beer from Beer City Records in 2011.” Visit frontierrecords.com for more information.

Links:

https://www.frontierrecords.com/

Song Samples:

(0:00-0:41) TSOL, “Love Story,” Dance With Me, Frontier, 1981. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tJ-R5kDGaaY 

(0:06-0:40) Circle Jerks, “Back Against the Wall, Group Sex, Frontier, 1980. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2lVud0v3RA 

(0:00-0:45) Adolescents, “LA Girl,” Adolescents, Frontier, 1981. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ldy-micKe5U 

(0:00-0:37) Thin White Rope, “Elsie Crashed the Party,” In the Spanish Cave, Frontier, 1988. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vczgw9JH4w 

Interview Transcript: https://sonix.ai/share/wG3hT7iSTJ8ay3A6tH6rSxvh

This episode was recorded on March 22, 2024, in front of a live audience at the Lineage Performing Arts Center in Pasadena. 

Bella Gerard edited the audio and interview transcript.