Defunct Philly vinyl pressing plant Softwax gets new life thanks to Pittsburgh’s Hellbender Vinyl

Philly-area bands and artists have a new resource for getting their music pressed on vinyl with Hellbender Vinyl’s recent acquisition of the now-closed Softwax Record Pressing.

Softwax, founded by Federico “Kiko” Casanova in 2020, unfortunately filed for bankruptcy after a major record label pulled out of a deal with the company, putting the company into dire financial straits. But thanks to Pittsburgh’s Hellbender Vinyl, the pressing plant in Northeast Philly is up and running again and cranking out vinyl for local and national acts under the Western PA company’s name.

Hellbender’s roster of artists includes Guster, Dizzy Reed of Guns N’ Roses, The Ataris, Wiz Khalifa, Victoria Monét, Castle Rat, Apes of the State, and more.

Co-owned by Matt Dowling and Jeff Betten, Hellbender is now the largest record manufacturer in Pennsylvania with its expansion to Philly after opening in just 2023.

Nick Landstrom serves as the plant’s general manager, and Ben Schurr is the floor manager. Casanova joined Hellbender earlier this year to helm client and project development.

“I met Matt through some mutual friends in late 2024 and I thought our vision for serving indie artists was crazy aligned,” Casanova said. “The joining of forces has been super fun and, at times, wild, but such is the world of vinyl pressing.”

The company also brought on Travis Whitlock as head of business development in conjunction with their eastward expansion.

“We know what it means to hold your own record in your hands for the first time. That feeling is why we do this,” Whitlock said. “I joined Hellbender largely because I was struck with how genuinely they care about their customers. It’s more rare than you might imagine. Matt and Jeff put together a really great crew spread between the Pittsburgh and Philly plants. I’m thrilled to be a part of it.”

According to Schurr, it took about six months to clear about the space in the Bond Building where Softwax existed.

 ”It was a lot of work,” he said. “Then a couple of months after that, [Landstrom] moved to Philly, and me and him kind of started everything up.”

Softwax’s pressing machines that sat idle for quite some time took months to get back into working order, but in January Hellbender Philly started pressing vinyl.

Philly bands they’ve worked with include Vesuvian, My Wife’s An Angel, Attack Dog, and Evil Sword.

While the company is growing, Schurr said they’re aware of the pitfalls of growing too fast too soon.

“The goal is that we want to be growing and expanding, but not at an untenable rate,” he said. “Even this was a bit of a risk.”

And part of the reason the company is keeping itself in check is their commitment to customer service.

“I ’ve been on the other side where I’ve had really bad experiences with the press plants,” Schurr, a longtime member of Philly’s music scene, said.

For example, Hellbender’s quality control process has Schurr or another staffer listening to every 10th record in a run of 1,000 records to catch any errors in the pressing, which can come from worn-down pressing plates, sound mastering errors, or simply a lack of attention to detail on pressing floors.

“ I will do whatever I can to realistically help you solve the problem,” he said of the customer service ethos. “This is an opportunity that I can use to ensure people don’t have negative experiences [with having records pressed].”

Artists and bands looking to go with Hellbender can also choose from various colors for their records. And, Hellbender works hard to limit its environmental impact by reusing excess vinyl that gets trimmed off records during the production process.

 ”We try to reduce our plastic footprint as much as possible,” Schurr said.

Those interested in Hellbender’s offering can inquire with the company online here.