When it comes to record labels, the most interesting ones are usually the small independents. Those who are, more or less, run from a bedroom without any kind of real financial backing but with great visions and a genuine love for music. One of them is decorative stamp, a British artist run label. I had the great fortune to ask jamesreindeer, one of the founders, about the label, music and life.
Would you mind telling us about decorative stamp, who you guys are and some history?
Certainly. decorative stamp is a collective of sorts, but shall we say 'curated' ostensibly by myself, jamesreindeer, and the immense James P Honey. We are two decent chaps, with a mutual love for all things musical, having both spent a vast number of years perfecting our skills in the area commonly known as weird-rap, or possibly alt-rap, or possibly just chewing. We met over the internet, as one does in this modern age, around October 2007. We were both living in London, England at the time and so James suggested we meet up to hang out and talk music. We hit it off immediately and by the end of our first meeting we had recorded the first song for what would become the Rough Tongue Surfaces album. We figured that we would handle the physical release of the album ourselves and, as James was also about to self-release the mighty first Murmur Breeze album with AbSUrd, we thought that we should have some unifying symbol which identified the two releases as coming from the same stable. James went away and, along with another close decorative stamp collaborator Jamie Romain, came up with the logo itself. When we talked of this logo, we talked of the 'decorative stamp', and so they became 'decorative stamp' releases. Giving it that official name was only a matter of time.
What was the initial thought behind the label, and has that concept changed since the start?
Mmmn, thusly, there was no initial concept behind the label, as it had not really been our intention to start a label, it just kind of naturally developed out of what we were doing with our self-releases over time. The transformation must have occurred sometime during 2009. In fact, researching it right now, it seems that we created the Myspace page in February, which must have been our first initial indication to the world that we had established this strange beast. That year was wonderfully successful and productive for us both, we took to the road on three separate tours, made a whole heap of real-world friendships from previous virtual ones and recorded a whole bunch of material. By the end of the year we had put in enough groundwork in gearing up to release a series of great releases throughout 2010. The concept behind each release simply being the preparation of great albums by great friends, in complete control of their project, with James and I smiling and excited to get it out to the world at the end of the process. With all of our touring and 'networking', we simply found ourselves in a position of actually having people to inform about all this great work.
It seems like there is a fair amount of new hot record labels in Europe especially at the moment. Why do you think the reason for that is?
It can of course be as much attributed to this great passion for music that we all feel. Music is such an important part of all our lives, shaping our whole worlds even in our teens and into our twenties, and how that deep-set love carries on throughout our adult lives. Much in this modern world is meaningless, but there will always be something so special, so powerful in hearing a particular song that speaks to us in such a particular way. Music fans will always want to start labels, artists will always want to start their own labels, and fans will always want to discover new music. Naturally, the second part is of course the nature of the technology. It is now, and has been for some little while, possible to write, record, mix master and release an album from the comfort of one's home with very little monetary investment. This enables genuinely talented people to be able to release their music, and the music of those they admire to an international audience without having to seek 'approval' from any kind of major or independent record label. Also, Europe is a great place artistically, and always has been. Traveling around France, Germany, Switzerland etc, it is quite quickly apparent that there is genuine support for interesting artists doing different things. A desire to hear something genuinely new and exciting. However, this of course does not translate into the kind of indie label business model of twenty years ago. I will be quite honest in saying that I would be very surprised if any of these new small labels are making any money whatsoever. I imagine for the most part that they are all running at a loss, simply because those in charge love the music. It is easy to start a label but is completely unrealistic to think that you can turn a profit, releasing works for a niche market, especially in this digital age where a large number of listeners are content to do their 'music shopping' on blogs with links to Rapidshare, Mediafire, etc... There are a great number of hot new labels in Europe because it's possible, because there is a passion and a determination there, and because there are amazing artists with releases ready for the world. Long may the passion survive and long may the releases continue.
What upcoming releases can we expect from you?
Well now. We have tentative plans for a great number of releases, but it is all very organic. We're not about imposing deadlines, a release is just ready when it's ready. Thusly, I cannot speak too far ahead. Still, closest on the horizon is probably the upcoming second Murmur Breeze album, entitled Foreshore Reverie. It is an absolute monster of an album, which we will be releasing on both CD and vinyl in a joint effort with Cooler Than Cucumbers. Once again, James P Honey and AbSUrd have absolutely murdered it. The progression from their first release to the 7" on Cooler Than Cucumbers is staggering evident throughout the nineteen tracks that this new album contains. It's just epic in scale. Certainly due to Mr. Honey and Mr. AbSUrd really pulling out all the stops and delivering possibly the best work either of them has produced thus far, but possibly also due to the fact that they admirably opened the floor somewhat and allowed a few lucky outsiders into the fold to contribute. Mildew from the omnipotent papervehicle submits a genre-ending verse, alongside the murderous Babel Fishh, aided and abetted with my own humble efforts. Whilst musically, contributions from the masterful Jamie Romain on cello, Michael Rea on Banjo and Nadia D'Alo on sitar meld wonderfully with mesmerising field recordings to create a hallucinogenic brew of staggering proportions. Perhaps I should blow my own trumpet in saying that I was responsible for mixing this epic creation too, and how it took me nine months to get it just so. It really is outstanding. Haha! So, aside from that, do keenly expect a release from our newest 'signing', the mighty Þverfellshorn, side project of Luke Payne from Wild Dogs in Winter. As yet untitled, it shall be an 'interim' release, to guide us through from his outstanding Bedroom Recordings EP, on into his full-scale debut album to be released later in the year. Expect beautiful post-rock-shoegaze-drone-electronica amazingness, ethereal and enchanting, melancholic but filled with hope. It totally kills me every time, and Luke is a legend of a man. He really is. Lastly, the Decorative Stamp Printing Press is also publishing its first book. Nova Conditions by myself, jamesreindeer, is going to print almost as we speak. It shall be something in the order of a 140 page hard-back book in the form of a kind of extended prose piece, and shall feature forewords by the legendary fbcfabric and James P Honey. More news soon! Other details are sketchy on the ground, so I daren't say more for now... Except maybe, Decorative Stamp Volume Two.
Do you have any dream project?
A dream project. I guess a dream project would be one that would receive the kind of attention that I think all of the Decorative Stamp releases so far have deserved. My dream project might be a new release from Babel Fishh where I can turn on the television and see an extended feature of Scott telling the world just exactly how it is. Or to see Dug Yuck live at Glastonbury, just murdering the pyramid. Maybe it might be Mildew double album, with 250 page book of his lyrics and artwork, pressed up on vinyl and shipped to every corner of the western world... Just dreaming the good dreams.
What is the long term vision of decorative stamp?
Well, it depends on how upbeat James and I are at any given time. It would be lovely to somehow find decorative stamp financially buoyant, able to pay us for the amount of hours a week we invest in it. Being able to continue to release 'strange' and 'interesting' things to a wider and wider audience. To be able to increase the 'seriousness' of it all in terms of being able to spread the word, to convert the masses, to bring about world peace. Oftentimes, in truth, it is simply a case of a bunch of friends making music in their spare time, putting it out there and seeing what happens. No reason why that should ever change.
What kind of response have your releases got so far?
Mmmn, yes! We've been outrageously lucky with the kind of response our releases have had thus far. When James and I first met, we were both pretty established in our own circles and very much ready to ride. But, by the time we'd finished the Rough Tongue Surfaces and taken it on the road, we we're totally blown away by how much folk were into it, how supportive audiences were and how a lot of our indie-rap heroes were kind of taking us seriously as an artistic proposition. Naturally, we worked really hard, with the sole intent of making the best music we possibly could, playing the best shows we possibly could, but it was still remarkable to us that we would be bestowed with such high praise from so many quarters indeed. And then for this whole decorative stamp situation to grow from that, for it to be a name on folks' lips, that all of our releases have been widely understood to be of artistic merit, that's just fabulous indeed. We believe wholeheartedly in the artists we get to work with, and the music they create, and so for that to translate into the understanding of the listeners themselves is just the ultimate final piece of the puzzle.
Your physical releases so far have been hand crafted. Is the design of the records as important as the music itself?
Well now, it couldn't be said that the design is as important as the music, but good design should certainly be seen as a great opportunity to enhance the musical experience contained therein. In this modern world so much is disposable, so much is just plastic and faceless. If we are picking up the gauntlet of preparing a physical release, why ever not make it something a little more special and pleasing in a tactile way? Perhaps, because it is such a niche form of music that only warrants limited numbers, we find ourselves in the position where hand-crafting releases isn't such a terrible burden time-wise. It's certainly a lot of hard work, but more than worth it when seeing the end result. It also seems to very much strike a chord with our audience too. Just manning the merch table on tour for example, seeing patrons skip straight past the digipack CD's, on to the weird hand-made stuff, and of course the majestic vinyl. Still, it would be worth mentioning also that, although a lot of releases thus far have been crafted by the mysterious Raindrop Watchers, largely each artist has been responsible for the presentation of their own release. For example, when you buy the Babel Fishh CD, you can be sure to know that it was hand-crafted by Babel Fishh himself, and there's something very special about that indeed.
What qualities do you look for in an artist?
I guess what decorative stamp looks for in an artist is simply what James P Honey and I look for in artists that we like to listen to. We are a group of friends, working together, and releasing music together. To that end, we don't really 'sign' artists, rather release works by those closest to us. That which we admire in the work of our friends is their originality, their conviction and belief in what they do, the great effort, blood, sweat and toil which they invest in their work. Naturally, we like slow and sad songs, songs with urgency, songs with fragile beauty. Being that we are also both very much in the field of lyrics, we are also extremely keen on 'listening to the words', something of great significance and importance to us. An amazing line has the weight of oceans behind it. When it comes to weird-rap, it's all about the chew. If a rapper isn't chewing their way through their prose, then it might well not be for us. When it comes to folk, it needs to be darkly beautiful, it needs to be that real murder-ballad material. When it comes to electronic music, it needs to sound real, like it was recorded in a real space, not that it has come straight out of a plastic computer. Distinct voices, inspiring lyrics, moving melodies, and naturally, tape hiss and vinyl crackle help a whole bunch too.
Shout outs?
The whole decorative stamp family! AbSUrd, Band of Buriers, Air Con Pyramid, Babel Fishh, Coffin Cutters, Dug Yuck, Edison, Evak, Iron Filings and Sellotape, Fawns, Mesparrow, Mlle Métronome, Murmur Breeze, Nadia D'Alò, Pumpernickle, Radio Disorder, Raindrop Watchers, Sold Out Cyclone, Þverfellshorn... and to all the wonderful friends that James and I have come to make in these last few years riding together, too many amazing people to mention... and to all the folks who have a decorative stamp release or two on their shelf, who have braved the evening to come to a show by any one of our artists, who leave kind comments online and send encouraging messages... we are truly, very grateful.
decorativestamp.org
decorativestamp.blogspot.com
jamesreindeer.blogspot.com
jamesphoney.tumblr.com
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