Mentat Records
“We never say die” Don states firmly His two colleagues, Ray Shaffer and Erik Martell, nod in agreement. One would be reluctant to disagree, as these men work endlessly every day to ensure their record label, Mentat Records, is something more than the standard fare of other corporate labels aiming to exploit a band in the bloodthirsty pursuit of the almighty dollar.
Emerging in 2001, Don C.Leiffer and his friend Chris Farrell started Mentat Records as a vehicle to promote their own band, Nocturnal Assenbly. “We pretty much wanted to have pure control of our misic and do what we wanted.” Don adds taking that vision to heart Don desired more and pushed one step further by searching for others who shared his ideals in expansion and growth. Amidst the men that would help Mentat Records to become Mentat Records, Inc was Ray Shaffer, Director of Operations at Mentat Records, Inc. “We just don’t want to sign good acts, but we also want to help the community as well.” Ray says. Wih the intent on giving back to the community they grew up in, Ray and Don launched the first rock concert in the California Theater of Performing Arts with their bands heading the bill. It was a historic event, posing as the first rock concert held within the walls and illustrating the warm reception the city of San Bernardino had towards Mentat and its overall vision of community unification and local band exposure.
Eventually the team comprised of Ray as the Director of Operations, Don as the Producer/Sound Technician; Chris as the Marketing, Distributor, and Promotions Representative, Erik Martell as the General Band Manager and Merchandising Representative; and John Monro as the Accountant responsible for aiding Mentat Records in expanding and growing. “Essentially, we’re a pure indie lable.” Don chimes in. A bold statement,but provided with plenty of proof as Mentat is geared towars exposing the hidden talent within the Inland Empire. “We want to provide guidance for those bands that reach a point where they don’t know where to go.” Don states in a serious tonre. Considering Don,Ray, and Chris were born and raised in San Bernardino from the early days of their youth. Mentat is prime for an expansion. With explosive live acts such as Gonzo Fiction on their label. Mentat is focused on displaying the talents of the Inland Empire with unrelenting force.
Mentat records uses The Dragon exclusively for mixing and mastering their bands' material to CD for demo and production purposes. The Dragon has also provided Mentat with recording services for overdubs on their production recordings.