Thirteen of the University’s best student bands showcase their talents on Playlisted, the sophomore album of Green St. Records.

More than 50 bands submitted samples of their music to Green St. Records, the only entirely student-run record label in the Big Ten. The record label then narrowed the selections down to the top 13 based on several elements, including lyrical quality, according to Josh Morton, Green St. Records president of public relations and junior in LAS.

“We encourage ourselves and the staff to put our musical preferences aside,” he said, so that they can make an objective decision.

The free album contains songs from The Lifeline, Elsinore, Sincerely Calvin, Agent Mos and Spinnerty, i:scintilla, Ambitious Pie Party, Triple Whip, Zirafa and Spinnerty, Missing the Point, The Ending, Shipwreck, The Elanors and Bullet Called Life.

In the wake of success from their first local band compilation album, last year’s Emergence, the record label released 2,500 copies of Playlisted”this past weekend at two concerts featuring bands from the album.

Each band recorded with producer Mark Rubel at Pogo Studio in Champaign for eight hours in order to make the album, which is double the amount of recording time last year, Morton said.

“This album’s a step up in terms of production value,” he said. “We really tried extra hard this year to get the best bands we possibly could.”

At the album release concerts on Saturday at the Canopy Club and Sunday at the Highdive, Green St. Records wanted to give the bands, which must be comprised of at least one-fourth University students, as much publicity as possible, according to Morton.

“It’s tough because nobody really wants to go out and see a band they’ve never heard of,” Morton said.

He said he wants students to know that these bands are “the next big thing.”

“You (students) have a great music scene right under your nose,” he said.

Jon Langley of Ambitious Pie Party agreed that it is difficult to get a local band known on campus. The band said one of the biggest challenges is competing with other events and activities that take the attention of students.

“It’s hard to get anyone to care,” Langley said.

Kelly McMorris of Ambitious Pie Party said that he likes working with Green St. Records because they do so much promotion for the bands and upcoming shows.

Morton said one of the goals of Green St. Records is to get local bands known nationally.

“We try to get the Champaign music scene as much publicity as possible on the national level,” he said. “We’re trying to get Champaign on the map.”

The non-profit record label, which gained national attention from Billboard Magazine last year, puts all donations and profits from their shows toward next year’s album. Morton said the album is free because they really want people to listen to the music.

Fans said they appreciate the dedication and hard work of the employees of Green St. Records, who receive no pay, to produce quality records and shows.

“I like how much preparation Green St. Records put into the show,” said Scott Adametz, sophomore in communications and an Illini Media employee. “All the work they put into it really shows.”