{{Short description|American independent record label}} {{More citations needed|date=March 2007}} {{Infobox record label | name = Asthmatic Kitty Records | image = Asthmatic Kitty logo.png | founded = 1999 | founder = Sufjan Stevens<br />Lowell Brams | distributor = | genre = Indie rock | country = United States | location = Lander, Wyoming<br/>Indianapolis, Indiana<br/>Brooklyn, New York | url = {{URL|https://asthmatickitty.com/}} }}

'''Asthmatic Kitty Records''' is an American independent record label founded in 1999 by a community of musicians from Holland, Michigan led by Sufjan Stevens and his stepfather Lowell Brams. Some were Holland natives, and others had come to attend local colleges and universities. While the original Holland nucleus has dispersed across the country, the community has grown, with new artists and shared projects with other independent record labels. The Library Catalog Music Series, inaugurated in 2009, showcases instrumental music from a wide variety of musicians, with eighteen albums in print as of February 2013, and more scheduled for release. Asthmatic Kitty is now based in Lander, Wyoming, Atlanta, Georgia and Brooklyn, New York.

The label's name refers to Sara, a stray with feline asthma adopted by Lowell in 1994. From 2002 on, she lived in Lander, Wyoming (elevation 5,358&nbsp;ft / 1,633 m), where the thin, dry air alleviated most of her asthma symptoms. Sara died in December 2008, aged fifteen or sixteen years old.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://asthmatickitty.com/goodbye-to-sara-an-asthma-kitty-1993-2008/|title=Goodbye to Sara, an "asthma kitty," 1993–2008|publisher=Asthmatic Kitty|date=29 December 2008|access-date=6 November 2014}}</ref>

Between 2007 and 2010, Unusual Animals was a special series of limited-edition vinyl releases, parties, artist showcases, and music events.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Krinsley|first1=Jeremy|title=Unusual Animals Hitting Its Third City |url=http://www.imposemagazine.com/bytes/chatter/asthmatic-kittys-unusual-animal|access-date=21 November 2014|agency=Impose Magazine|issue=July|date=2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Debut of Unusual Animals Project Space in Indianapolis|url=http://puddlegum.net/debut-of-unusual-animals-project-space-in-indianapolis/|website=Puddlegum|access-date=20 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129045222/http://puddlegum.net/debut-of-unusual-animals-project-space-in-indianapolis/|archive-date=29 November 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> In 2007, the Unusual Animals Project Space founded by Michael Kaufmann at the Harrison Center for the Arts in Indianapolis featured exhibitions by Cindy Hinant and Stuart Snoddy.<ref>{{cite web|last1=McCormick|first1=Craig|title=Cindy Hinant at Unusual Animals Project Space|url=http://on-the-cusp.blogspot.com/2007/10/cindy-hinant-at-unusual-animals-project.html |website=On The Cusp}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Watt Grade|first1=Susan|title=Cindy Hinant: Cascades |url=http://www.nuvo.net/indianapolis/cindy-hinant-cascades/Content?oid=1231388#.VG1RVIcVI7B| agency=Nuvo|date=September 19, 2007}}</ref>

In 2020, Sufjan Stevens and Lowell Brams released ''Aporia,'' a 21-track album.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://consequence.net/2020/03/album-review-sufjan-stevens-and-lowell-brams-aporia/|title=Album Review: Sufjan Stevens and Lowell Brams Design an Atmosphere for Daydreaming on Aporia|date=2020-03-25|newspaper=Consequence|language=en-US|access-date=2020-04-17}}</ref> The album has been described as "mixing organic instrumentation with experimental electronics, intertwining both new age and ambient music."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.michigandaily.com/section/arts/aporia-captivating-collaboration-sufjan-stevens-and-his-stepfather|title='Aporia' is a captivating collaboration from Sufjan Stevens and his stepfather|last=Writer|first=Drew Gadbois Daily Arts|website=The Michigan Daily|date=30 March 2020|language=en|access-date=2020-04-17}}</ref>

==Active artists==

{{div col|colwidth=22em}} * James McAlister 900X * Angelo De Augustine * Denison Witmer * Half-handed Cloud * Sisyphus * Sufjan Stevens * The Welcome Wagon {{div col end}}

== Former artists and alumni==

{{div col|colwidth=22em}} * Cecile Believe * Castanets * Cryptacize * DM Stith * Dots Will Echo * Epstein * Fol Chen * Helado Negro * Hermas Zopoula * I Heart Lung * Jookabox * Julianna Barwick * Land of a Thousand Rappers * Lily & Madeleine * Liz Janes * My Brightest Diamond * Ombre * Osso String Quartet * Linda Perhacs * Pepe Deluxé * Rafter * Raymond Byron and the White Freighter * Roberts and Lord * Royal City * Chris Schlarb * Shannon Stephens * Shapes and Sizes * The Curtains * Trumans Water {{div col end}}

== See also ==

* List of record labels

== References ==

{{reflist}}

== External links ==

* {{Official website}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20071209134449/http://www.eye.net/eye/issue/issue_09.08.05/music/stevens.php Interview with Lowell Brams] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20070927221443/http://www.cmj.com/relay/?p=1353 Interview with Michael Kaufmann]

{{Authority control}}

Category:American independent record labels Category:Record labels established in 1999 Category:Indie rock record labels Category:Experimental music record labels Category:Companies based in Wyoming Category:Companies based in New York City Category:1999 establishments in Michigan Category:Sufjan Stevens

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