Sub Pop is such an institution that in the past year, the record label started a podcast to keep tabs on its own history. At 28 years old, there’s certainly a lot of history to sift through, something co-hosts Arwen Nicks and Alissa Atkins are gearing up to do in-depth in season two. It doesn’t take a historian to tell you that Sub Pop’s impact on Northwest music has been massive though—even on global scale, independent music wouldn’t be quite the same without them. subpop.com

First runner-up: Light in the Attic

Second runner-up: Hardly Art

Honorable mention: Good to Die, Killroom Records

Read about the rest of the Best of Seattle Reader Poll winners here. If you didn’t get a chance to vote this go-round, make sure your voice is heard next year. Email us at bestofseattle@seattleweekly.com and we will let you know when nominations open for BoS 2017.