Exist Dance

Exist Dance was an independent American record label founded in Los Angeles in 1991 by Tom Chasteen and Michael Kandel. The label emerged from the founders’ shared interest in record collecting and the psychedelic possibilities of early British acid house. Rather than following a narrowly defined genre or commercial format, Exist Dance issued music spanning trance, techno, house, breakbeat, ambient house, downtempo, and chill-out styles. Its catalogue reflected the fluid musical environment of early-1990s West Coast electronic culture, when all-night parties, renegade outdoor events, sound systems, and emerging club communities created demand for records that could move between hypnotic, percussive, atmospheric, and highly experimental moods. A key part of the label’s identity was Heaven, a recording studio that Chasteen and Kandel established in an industrial loft in Los Angeles’s Downtown area. References to the studio appeared throughout the label’s packaging and release mythology, including phrases such as “Recorded in Heaven” and “Mixed in Heaven.” The label’s first compilation, Transmitting from Heaven, reinforced that connection. Heaven functioned not only as a production space but also as a symbol of Exist Dance’s independent, improvised approach to making and releasing music. Exist Dance became associated with a broad roster of artists and projects, including Tranquility Bass, Eden Transmission, Voodoo Transmission, Freaky Chakra, High Lonesome Sound System, Ballistic Mystic, Dada Munchamonkey, Skull Valley, and several aliases connected to Chasteen and Kandel. The label’s releases were generally aimed at DJs and specialist listeners rather than the mainstream singles market. Although the catalogue did not produce major chart hits, its records circulated internationally among DJs working with trance, techno, breakbeat, ambient house, and related forms. Commentators from the West Coast dance scene have described the label as an early and influential bridge between psychedelic rock sensibilities, experimental studio practice, and the developing electronic party culture of the period. Around 1994, Chasteen and Kandel stepped back from day-to-day label activity and pursued separate paths. Kandel subsequently developed the Tranquility Bass project, while Chasteen continued working with Exist Dance and released material under names including Skull Valley. Exist Dance resumed more sustained activity under Chasteen’s management in 1997 and continued issuing music into approximately 2004. This later period coincided with declining sales of 12-inch records and the wider disruption caused by digital distribution, factors that contributed to Chasteen’s increasing attention to other music projects and ventures. The label’s catalogue later gained a digital afterlife. In 2011, Exist Dance appeared on Bandcamp with digital editions of early compilation material and previously difficult-to-find recordings by projects such as Tranquility Bass, Eden Transmission, and Voodoo Transmission. These releases helped preserve the label’s music for listeners beyond the original vinyl and CD market. Chasteen also became involved in Los Angeles’s Dub Club series and later collaborated with Stones Throw Records on dub-related work, although those activities were distinct from the core Exist Dance catalogue. Exist Dance is therefore best understood as a historically important independent imprint: a small Los Angeles label whose eclectic and psychedelic catalogue documented the city’s connection to the international electronic music underground during the 1990s.

Exist Dance developed in Los Angeles at the beginning of the 1990s, when acid house and other forms of electronic dance music were spreading from the United Kingdom into American underground scenes. Tom Chasteen and Michael Kandel met at the California Institute of the Arts and became friends through a common interest in extensive record collecting. Their musical tastes were broad, but early acid house made a particular impression because of its intensity, psychedelic character, and potential for transformation in a communal setting. They established Exist Dance in 1991 as a vehicle for releasing music that did not fit comfortably into a single genre. The founders also created a recording space called Heaven in an industrial loft in Downtown Los Angeles. The studio became central to the label’s mythology and visual identity. Release packaging frequently referred to recordings or mixes being made at Heaven, and the first compilation, Transmitting from Heaven, used the studio’s name as part of its concept. The working environment was informal and equipment-heavy, consistent with the label’s preference for experimentation over established commercial formulas. Exist Dance’s catalogue covered house, techno, trance, breaks, ambient house, downtempo, and related styles. Its music was closely connected to the West Coast’s all-night party and sound-system culture, including outdoor events and clandestine gatherings associated with groups such as Dubtribe Sound System and Wicked Sound System. Exist Dance records could provide different functions over the course of a long event: driving rhythms for the night, psychedelic breakbeats for transitions, and slower or more atmospheric material for sunrise and the afternoon. Artists and projects on the label included Tranquility Bass, Eden Transmission, Voodoo Transmission, Freaky Chakra, High Lonesome Sound System, Ballistic Mystic, Dada Munchamonkey, Skull Valley, and others. Some of these names were aliases used by the founders or by closely connected collaborators. The label remained independent and specialist-oriented. Its releases were important to DJs and collectors who were following emerging forms of trance, techno, breakbeat, and chill-out music, even though they did not become major commercial chart products. The label’s eclecticism also linked electronic production to earlier psychedelic and rock traditions. Its releases were treated by later commentators as evidence of a distinctive Los Angeles approach to dance music: open-ended, studio-driven, and connected to outdoor party culture. Around 1994, Chasteen and Kandel temporarily withdrew from active label management and went separate ways. The split was described as an informal separation between longtime collaborators rather than a conventional band breakup. Kandel moved to the Pacific Northwest and worked on the first Tranquility Bass solo album, Let the Freak Flag Fly, which was subsequently issued by Astralwerks with accompanying singles. Chasteen contributed remixes under the name Skull Valley. Those activities helped connect the Exist Dance circle with the wider commercial growth of downtempo, ambient house, breakbeat, and chill-out music in the second half of the decade. Chasteen returned to managing Exist Dance in 1997. The label continued releasing vinyl, CDs, and compilations until approximately 2004, a period when physical 12-inch sales were weakening and digital distribution was beginning to alter the economics of independent music. Chasteen increasingly pursued other activities, including the Dub Club event series launched in Los Angeles in 2000 and later dub-production work. These projects broadened his musical activity but did not erase the importance of Exist Dance as an imprint. In 2011, the label’s catalogue was made available in digital form through Bandcamp. The reissues included the early compilation Transmitting from Heaven and material by Tranquility Bass, Eden Transmission, and Voodoo Transmission that had previously been difficult to obtain in high-quality digital formats. The digital presence allowed a later generation of listeners to encounter recordings that had originally circulated primarily on vinyl and CD. Michael Kandel died of natural causes in 2015. Exist Dance remains associated with the early-1990s Los Angeles electronic underground and with the development of a psychedelic, genre-fluid West Coast dance sound.

• 2015

  Michael Kandel dies

  [1]Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org

  The co-founder dies of natural causes.

• 2011

  Catalogue receives digital reissue

  [1]Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org

  Exist Dance appears on Bandcamp with digital versions of selected early compilations and catalogue recordings.

• 2004

  Core release period winds down

  [1]Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org

  Exist Dance continues issuing music until approximately this period, amid declining 12-inch sales and the industry’s shift toward digital distribution.

• 2000

  Dub Club begins in Los Angeles

  [1]Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org

  Tom Chasteen starts the weekly Dub Club event at The Echo in Los Angeles, expanding his musical activity beyond the Exist Dance imprint.

• 1997

  Chasteen resumes label management

  [1]Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org

  Chasteen returns to more active management of Exist Dance as interest in downtempo, breakbeat, and related electronic styles grows.

• 1994

  Founders take separate paths

  [1]Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org

  Chasteen and Kandel step back from joint label management and begin pursuing separate projects.

• 1991

  Exist Dance is founded

  [1]Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org

  Tom Chasteen and Michael Kandel establish Exist Dance in Los Angeles as an independent electronic music label.

• 1991

  Heaven studio is established

  [1]Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org

  The founders create the Heaven studio in a Downtown Los Angeles industrial loft, providing a production base and recurring identity for the label.

An eclectic, independent Los Angeles dance-music imprint focused on psychedelic, experimental, and DJ-oriented electronic music rather than mainstream chart performance.

• Vinyl singles and EPs · 1991

  12-inch vinyl catalogue

  The main body of the Exist Dance catalogue consisted of numbered 12-inch releases. These records presented club-oriented tracks, remixes, and experimental pieces by projects including Merge, Tranquility Bass, Eden Transmission, High Lonesome Sound System, Freaky Chakra, Ballistic Mystic, Skull Valley, and Tom Chasteen. The format suited the label’s DJ audience and its connection to late-night and outdoor dance events.

• Compilation

  Transmitting from Heaven

  Transmitting from Heaven was the label’s first compilation and introduced the Heaven studio concept associated with Exist Dance. It gathered material representative of the imprint’s broad electronic range and helped document the label’s early Los Angeles sound across multiple artists and tempos.

• Compilation series

  Musical Rampage

  The Musical Rampage releases formed a later compilation strand within the label’s catalogue. They reflected Exist Dance’s continuing interest in varied electronic forms and its preference for presenting a community of artists and aliases rather than building the imprint around a single genre.

• Electronic music recordings

  Tranquility Bass catalogue

  Tranquility Bass was one of the most prominent projects connected with Exist Dance. The project’s releases explored downtempo, ambient, breakbeat, and psychedelic electronic territory. Selected recordings later received digital editions, helping preserve music that had originally been available mainly through physical releases.

• Digital music · 2011

  Exist Dance digital editions

  Beginning in 2011, selected Exist Dance recordings were issued digitally through Bandcamp. The programme included the early compilation, Tranquility Bass material, and recordings by Eden Transmission and Voodoo Transmission, making portions of the catalogue available in higher-quality digital formats.

• 2011

  Move selected catalogue material to digital distributionStrategy

  Background

  Many early Exist Dance recordings had circulated primarily on vinyl or CD and were difficult to obtain in high-quality digital form.

  Action taken

  The label made selected compilations and artist recordings available through Bandcamp.

  Aftermath

  The digital releases extended the catalogue’s accessibility and helped preserve the imprint’s historical contribution to electronic music.

  Source

• 1997

  Return to active label managementStrategy

  Background

  After the founders’ separation and a period of reduced activity, Exist Dance faced a changing dance-music market and growing interest in downtempo, ambient house, breakbeat, and related styles.

  Action taken

  Tom Chasteen resumed management of the label and continued developing its catalogue.

  Aftermath

  The label remained active into approximately 2004, although the broader decline of 12-inch sales and the emergence of digital distribution reshaped its operating environment.

  Source

1. 1Exist Danceen.wikipedia.org