Michelle Haunold Lorenz Oral History Interview, June 6, 2023

Partial Transcript: Go ahead and introduce yourself.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold introduces herself and provides some information about her background. She was born in Nebraska, but moved with her family to Corvallis when she was a young child. She grew up in a large family, and spent much of her childhood playing with her siblings and exploring the woods around her house.

Partial Transcript: So you would have had siblings. Not in your grade, certainly, you weren't that close, you weren't literally in the same grade together. But was there a comfort in having siblings at the same school?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold discusses what it was like growing up in a large family. She notes that she struggled to distinguish herself from her siblings, and that she was often compared to them by teachers and classmates. Despite this, she notes that she enjoyed the friendship she shared with them, and provides some anecdotes about their childhood together.

Partial Transcript: When I got into high school I really started to see where people were mean to other kids, and cruel to other kids.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold recalls her high school experience. She talks about making new friends and becoming more self-assured, which allowed her to stand up for herself at school. She also talks about the bullying that occurred in her high school and how she responded to it. Haunold concludes her discussion of her high school years by mentioning some of her interests, which included music and writing.

Partial Transcript: Did you grow up religious? Thinking about the sense of right and wrong, that there's this kind of responsibility, I think that you were feeling, both in taking care of yourself and of others. Was that part of your upbringing, was the church part of your upbringing?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold talks about her religious background. She was raised up in a devout Catholic family; her family attended mass every week and her parents were actively involved in church programs and activities. Haunold states that this shaped her moral outlook on life.

Partial Transcript: Yeah, it's interesting to think about, about your dad as an immigrant in that hop community which, the family's that he had been working with had so many generations that would have been in Oregon.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold describes her family background. Her father was born in Austria, in a small farming area, whereas her mother was born in New York to Italian immigrant parents. Haunold talks about how that cultural background has impacted her, and describes some family traditions she inherited from her parents and grandparents.

Partial Transcript: What did you, what was the path that you thought you would take when you were a little kid?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold explains that she was uncertain as to what she wanted to do for work for a long time. She notes that she waitressed in college and worked at the library, and that she enjoyed both pathways, but couldn’t see them as viable permanent options for her. She also talks about working in college radio and writing for her college newspaper.

Partial Transcript: And so I ended up declaring myself an anthropology major and then proceeded to take every class I could possibly do under the sun.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold discusses her college life, including her favorite classes, her interests, her jobs, and her relationships. She notes that she became pretty heavily involved in the underground punk scene at Oregon State University, which introduced her to many other people interested in the music industry.

Partial Transcript: And finally in 1988, I graduated with honors from Oregon State and immediately decided I was going to pursue my my passion in music. And I moved to San Francisco and got involved with the local punk rock magazine.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold talks about her post-college life. Immediately after graduating she moved to San Francisco, but shortly afterwards returned to Oregon. She explains that she felt alienated and unmoored in San Francisco, which led to her return. She talks about that experience and her return to Oregon, stating that she was “naive” about living away from home.

Partial Transcript: So in 1998, I moved back to San Francisco again without a job, but a lot more. Educated about what.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold discusses moving back to San Francisco after having returned to Oregon for a few years. She notes that she had more experience at that point, which allowed her to prepare better. She talks about what San Francisco was like in the 1990s, specifically focusing on the music and punk scene.

Partial Transcript: I am curious about people you remember, or, like, library culture that you remember. Did you graduate from high school in 1982? So you would have been here in 1982.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold reflects on her work at the Valley Library at Oregon State University. She describes what the library was like during the pre-internet era and talks about her work as an archivist. She notes that she was very passionate about her job, but felt somewhat that working at the library took the magic out of it. She describes some of her co-workers and offers insight into the particulars of their jobs at the library.

Partial Transcript: This was also the time when your dad was releasing all of his super famous hops.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold talks about her father’s work in the hop industry. She notes that she was unaware of his impact while growing up, and only learned about the effect his work had on the hop industry and beer industry later in life, while talking to other professionals in that field. She talks briefly about how his work influenced her own life and those of her siblings.

Partial Transcript: Do you have any...Like anything that stands out as a memory, I guess, of going to like barbecues or picnics for growers...So I'm curious if you have memories of some of those, like what was it like to go?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold talks about what it was like growing up with a father who worked in the hop industry. She talks about industry trips, parties, and events, specifically recalling Oktoberfest gatherings and sleepaway camps that she and her siblings attended. She provides a few anecdotes about some of the events she attended, and also talks about some of her father’s co-workers and friends in the industry.

Partial Transcript: Who was buying homebrew supplies? Do you remember that?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold discusses working in the restaurant industry throughout college and her involvement in homebrewing. She specifically mentions the Old World Center in Corvallis and discusses her work there.

Partial Transcript: What, what was it like to decide to make your life not only away from Corvallis, but in music and and a kind of music that is very different than Corvallis, too? Well, tell me tell me about that.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold talks about how she became involved in the music industry. She talks about her passion for music, particularly the punk genre and the underground scene, and notes that she felt more suited to work in a creative industry.

Partial Transcript: What about major events at that time?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold reflects on the 1990s more broadly. She talks about the growing environmental movement and her involvement in various green energy campaigns, the popularity of scene culture and punk music, the growing music culture coming out of the Pacific Northwest, specifically Seattle, and the political environment of the era.

Partial Transcript: So you moved to San Francisco. You're working in music in San Francisco. What was the point that this became the thing that you were going to do for the rest of your career?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold returns to her memories of San Francisco. She reflects on the culture of the city in the 1990s, noting that it was largely young professionals. She again discusses the music scene in San Francisco, and notes that it was heavily influenced by the large gay population.

Partial Transcript: So after I would work a fully day of work, I would go home and I would work on my label.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold describes how she founded a music and record company in the 1990s. She founded it with her then boyfriend after she was laid off from one of her jobs. Haunold and her boyfriend decided that they wanted to focus on producing and selling music from independent and underground artists, and were able to do so. At its peak her company had about a dozen employees and two shop locations.

Partial Transcript: We both had incredibly different visions for what the business was going to become.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold talks about her experience of filing for bankruptcy after the company she founded began to go under. She notes that she had very little business experience, and struggled with the financial side of things. That, in addition to her increasingly tense and disagreeable relationship with her business partner ultimately led to her filing bankruptcy. She discusses the emotional and financial toll this took on her life, noting that she felt unable to move on for a few years.

Partial Transcript: So I continued to run the company.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold discusses how her career developed after the filed for bankruptcy with her first company. She explains that she started a magazine, and describes the writing, printing, and selling process. She also returned to selling records, and notes that she greatly enjoys that work. After a few years, she eventually began a new record label, which she was still running at the time of this interview.

Partial Transcript: Fast forward to now, when the way that people consume music seems so different...

Segment Synopsis: Haunold reflects on how the advent of streaming has impacted the music industry. She notes that it dramatically reduced the demand for records, CDs, and other forms of phsycial media, cuasing many music shops to go out of business and shut down. She also notes that streams pay much less than the sale of physical media, making it more difficult for new bands to earn an income off their work.

Partial Transcript: Yeah, they want actual physical stuff now. They don't want the streaming stuff. They want the physical stuff.

Segment Synopsis: Haunold discusses the resurgence in popularity of physical media during the 2010s. She notes that vinyls became increasingly popular among young people who are dissatisfied with the structure of streaming services.

Partial Transcript: Do you still enjoy music?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold offers her views and opinions on the music industry. Shen notes that she still loves many of her old favorite records, and that music will always be a part of her life, but that she’s grown disillusioned with the industry itself.

Partial Transcript: Was there anything that you wanted to say that we didn't cover?

Segment Synopsis: Haunold concludes the interview by reflecting briefly on the course her life took and thanking the interviewer.