035 Bill Sassenberger on Toxic Shock Records

On this episode, Marc talks to Bill Sassenberger, author of “Toxic Shock Records - Assassin of Mediocrity: A Story of Love, Loss, and Loud Music,” published in the spring of 2024 by Fluke Publishing. Bill and his wife Julianna ran Toxic Shock Records from 1980 up until about 2014 - it was a store, a label, a distributor, and tour booker, and much more.

Bill’s book is both a personal memoir and a history of his business, as well as a diary of his time with Julianna after she had a stroke in the early 2010's. Julianna passed away before Bill wrote the book, but he includes her voice via an interview she did, which he puts right after his introduction. All together, this is a compelling portrait of two people who worked hard to get deserving music heard.

As Bill writes, “We preferred to work behind the scenes. Much to our chagrin, it was this fact that probably kept us from being more successful in a business where who you knew led to your success or failure. It was just us against the world and we preferred it that way.”

We hope you enjoy Marc's conversation with Bill Sassenberger!