Suitcase Records Throws Spotlight on Indie Artists With ‘Showcase’ Release

It’s tough out there for independent Australia artists.

Bumps (and perhaps craters) litter the road ahead as festivals wave goodbye, grassroots venues shut their door, and the promise of riches from streaming platforms, with their inventory of 100 million-plus songs and wafer-thin cuts, remains elusive for most.

Suitcase Records is doing its bit.

Just two years after switching on the heavy machinery, Brisbane’s Suitcase Records is spinning its second annual “Suitcase Showcase,” an annual campaign designed to give independent artists both a financial leg up, and a special memento.

“Suitcase Showcase Vol 2.” is a compilation album that showcases indie acts, chosen by Australian music fans, and raises money for good causes.

Entry is open to all independent artists who’ve pressed with Suitcase this year, the 10 chosen for the final cut selected by fans.

The album will be pressed on low carbon orange with a gatefold jacket, all proceeds from its sales split between both the 10 selected artists and music industry charity Support Act.

As a bonus for voters, they’re entered into a prize pool.

Partners this time include independent, alcohol-free brewer Heaps Normal, and audio specialists Audio-Technica.

Voting closes midnight Saturday Aug. 31. Prize winners and the record line-up will be announced next Friday, Sept. 6, the final day of Bigsound 2024.

The Music Network caught up with Suitcase Records co-owner Kathy Wilson for a snapshot of a vinyl industry that has been booming in the past decade.

According to ARIA, Australian consumers snapped up $42 million worth of vinyl albums in 2024, up 14% from the year-before period.

Remarkably, the market for wax is worth more than twice that of CD albums which, for decades, was the king of the jungle that is the record industry.

Wilson will feature in the Women In Music Australia (WIM) virtual roundtable this Thursday, Aug. 29 for a discussion on music entrepreneurship and how women can create their own lanes in the industry.

Suitcase Records’ Kathy Wilson

Why (and when) did you launch Suitcase Records?

We pressed our first record in September 2022.

We started because both Neil (Wilson) and I had spent all our careers in the corporate sector and were looking for a new adventure. We have both always loved music and had often hosted visiting musicians in parlour-style gigs with all our friends buying tickets to support them.

We knew that merch could be and should be a critical part of how musicians can support themselves but that it was tough for artists to get local pressings.

So we jumped in.

How’s business for you generally? Are we experiencing the resurgence of vinyl?

We are slowly and steadily growing and are delighted to report that we are picking up small indie jobs of 100 – 200 as well as some really big jobs of many thousands.

As far as the resurgence – absolutely yes and I am certain the upswing has far further to go.

You’re giving back to artists with this project. You’re close to the artist community. How tough is it for them right now?

Suitcase Showcase is our way of throwing the spotlight on the unbelievable talent of the indie artists we press for.

The goal is to get dollars into their pockets so they can keep creating and also give money to Support Act which does an amazing job of supporting musicians.

How tough is it? I think the answer is that it has always been a brave choice to be a musician but right at the moment –  it takes a superhuman kind of commitment to make music. And yet – despite it all Australian talent continues to rise.

Every day, we work with artists who continue to innovate and create beautiful records – often just for the joy of it. I think that is something to get behind and I think a lot of music fans feel the same way.

Vote here for “Suitcase Showcase Vol 2.”