“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness…” When America’s Founding Fathers laid the cornerstones of their constitution – freedom, self-determination, limited government, individual responsibility – on July 4, 1776, it’s doubtful that any among their number could’ve conceived of the world of DIY hard rock and heavy metal. It’s remarkable, all the same, just how transferable those values are to bands and imprints looking to conduct their business away from the prying eyes and interfering hands of music’s multinational major label-dominated mainstream. Almost 250 years into the United States’ existence, there ar...
