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"It was really challenging, because [as] that recorded started to pop off, I basically [was] kinda homeless," Round says. He had gone through a breakup with his girlfriend and was transitioning between jobs while maintaining the label. But that didn't stop Pure Noise.
"I think what's cool about Pure Noise is that it has a vibe: neo-punk rock. Everything from new emo to new hardcore and new pop-punk and a raw spectrum of young punk rock. I want to do it all," Round says.
With The Story So Far doing so well, he eventually felt comfortable enough to make the commitment to do Pure Noise full-time. Round quit his job at Rasputin Music and found an office in Berkeley, which is where he lived for two years before moving to a San Francisco apartment in the fall of 2013. But he was able to focus all of his energy on his record label.
Booking agent Brad Wiseman of the Soroka Agency now shares the Berkeley office with Round. The two often work with the same bands, and they also recently began Bake Shows, a show promotion company for the Bay Area. The proximity adds to the familial vibe of the two companies. "We're not just here to make a dollar," Wiseman says. "I would bend over backwards, and so would Jake, for everything we work on."
Round does bend over backwards for bands. In addition to providing a home for touring bands -- and not just bands on Pure Noise -- Round flies out to meet bands on tour, he takes time off to visit them in the studio, and he has a personal relationship with all bands he has worked with. Round ensures that all of his band's music is accessible to the audience by providing digital, vinyl, CD, and online streaming formats.
"I definitely accomplished the first goal: I put out a record that a lot of people are going to be in to for a long time," Round says, referring to What You Don't See. "If you go see The Story So Far, often times in the room that's everyone's favorite band -- and it means something to them."
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