While I certainly do
not claim to be any sort of authority on European punk and hardcore, I do know
enough to realize that Adagio 830 is among the best and longest-running labels on
the continent. While primarily releasing screamo bands, they have a wide range
of releases, including crusty hardcore, indie rock, post-rock, etc. Their stuff
tends to be visually stunning, and overall just really, really good.
My only “real-life”
encounter with Robert in person was a few summers ago when his band Zann came
over to the U.S. on tour with Black Kites and played Grand Rapids. Great Rev
got asked to play as well and I was suuuuper stoked. Zann brought it and then
some…delivering a rousing set of their patented brand of crushing, noisy, 90’s-inspired
hardcore.
Robert is my only
international contribution to the series, and I feel honored he took some time
to share his perspective.
Talk about how you
stumbled into the punk and hardcore community. When did you know it was
probably going to become a permanent fixture in your life?
That
would have been in 8th grade. The brother of a guy I went to school with had a
punk & hardcore record store and we were hanging out in his garage playing
basketball and he played all those records and I was blown away. Another friend
and I started a "Deutsch punk" fanzine shortly after as well as a
band that never left the garage. Anyway - the brother that had the store took us
to all those shows in the early 90’s like Born Against, Agnostic Front, Sick of
it All, SFA, Soul Side, Integrity etc … and then we were running his merch
table at shows, etc. So we got more and more involved, we started also setting
up shows and so on. That’s when I felt home with like minded people and we all
had something in common with the music and the ideas of punk life. Also, I
began to meet more and more pen pals via fanzine trading which gave me a better
impression on how big this whole thing is and how the strong the community is
so the circle got bigger and bigger. I was amazed and I still am. I mean in
almost every city you have people you can crash with on their couches. That’s
awesome and so more things started, then the label also started in 1997 w/ the
mail-order... and here I am. No regrets…
What could have
possibly prompted you to think it would be a good idea to start a money pit
(record label)?
I
don’t know - I never thought about money etc. when I started the label. I mean
it was just mind blowing to release records and have them in your hands. Being
a part of it was just exciting and it still is … I still love every record I
release and get still excited when they pop up at the door. Of course money is
a part and you have to try to at least make your money back. But I never
thought about in the first place.
When you consider
signing/working with bands, how do you balance your own personal feelings
towards the band and their music with what you see as the potential for the
thing to actually sell a few copies and for you to recoup your money? Which
generally takes precedence?
I
mean first of all we never sign bands. It’s all handshake deals and usually 80%
of the bands we release are friends or become friends later on. That’s why we
have so much different music on the label. I mean I like lots of different
stuff and I wanna release what I love. I mean of course there are times where I
say NO - cause some stuff is just too hard to move because the band maybe never
plays or whatever … But most important is still that I love the people and
their music and then we can go from there. So far we are pretty lucky w/ the
releases we put out. Most of the records sold pretty stellar - some of course
less. But I believe in every record that I release and every record gets my
full attention. So far I haven´t regretted any releases. So bottom-line, I have
to like the people and their music … and if they sell well, then it’s perfect.
What gets you more
stoked…..getting YOUR copies of a record in from the plant, or hearing the
BANDS reaction to getting THEIR records from the plant?
That’s
hard to say. I think the best moment is when the records get delivered and you
unpack them and they turned out like you wanted them to…and then when the bands
get them and are as happy with the result as I am. But yeah, the best moment is
to see the truck pull up and get the records.
In your experiences,
what are the best places to press vinyl/get your jackets and inserts printed,
and what are the worst places? Why?
Over
the years I have tried a bunch of places - but Handle with Care/Optimal here
close to Berlin are my favorite and we have used them now for a couple years. I
think they are the best plant we’ve ever used so far. We use them for jackets
and vinyl…if there are special needs we get covers printed somewhere else w/ friends
etc. and inlays at a normal print shop.
About
shitty places. I don´t know - I don´t wanna bad mouth any place. There have been
some that just haven’t worked for us service wise and quality wise - especially
since colored splatter vinyl is not our main priority.
Your fairy god mother
grants your wish and you get to put out a split with any two bands on the
planet. Who shares the wax and why?
Mmmmm–
that’s hard to say. There is so much awesome stuff, I can´t think of anything
particular at the moment.
Talk about the most
frustrating and the most rewarding things about running a label.
The
most frustrating stuff is if the graphic designer doesn´t read the templates
correctly and we have to do the artwork millions of times again till it fits …
2nd thing is when you distribute your records and you love your release so much
and believe in it - but don´t get the feedback as you wished, cause maybe the
band is not hyped somewhere, etc. Or when you trade and some people that you
are trading w/ consider their releases "better" than yours.
For people who are
considering jumping in and starting a label, what’s the one essential piece of
advice you would give them?
Well
- if you wanna start a label make sure that you are aware of all the extra work
that a lot of people do not think about. I mean there is more than sending a
master to the pressing plant and receiving the records. A lot of peeps seem to
forget that they have to send out all those records, sending review material,
etc. There is a lot of extra work and lots of time and you might never see your
money back.
Also, the calculation you might have learned in business school does
not work for records…the profit on records is SMALL. So do your calculation on
expenses wisely in the beginning and check what you really need and what your
market is. I mean pressing has gotten really expensive. But sometimes it amazes
me to see some labels that press at the same plant, use their cheapest stuff, thinnest
vinyl etc and charge 12 Euros wholesale or so…and yes not even paying the
recording.
And
also - keep in mind trading as an option to get your records distributed. Set
up a small distro … it definitely is the easiest, best and fastest way to get
your records around if you don´t release a super hyped band in a limited quantity.
Obviously you love
every record you put out or you wouldn’t spend thousands of dollars on them,
but let’s be real here; what’s the one record from your catalog that you listen
to the most/that has the most value for you and why?
I
mean from the older stuff I still play the City Of Caterpillar LP, the Haram
LPs, Pygmy Lush and Stirling Says. At the moment I cannot stop listening to the
Static Me LP, the Naked Lights LP and the Holy and Ruined Families LP’s. I
don´t really have one record I can focus on 100% - since it also depends on my
mood. I guess I love them all.
You fronted the band
Zann for well over a decade, and in that time you guys put out tons of records,
toured the world, etc. What were the highlights during your time in Zann, and
what ultimately lead to the band's break-up?
Well,
there are a couple things that blew my mind. I mean when we started we didn´t
spend any thought on what we can do or what is possible as a d.i.y. band. When
we released our first 7" that was the first highlight. I mean having a
record w/ your own music on it is an awesome feeling and then having people
buying and even liking it; that was great. And then going on tour and playing
all those countries…we got to do the US a couple times, Japan twice, Russia
twice and Europe multiple times. We saw so much stuff through a network of
friends and having this band, it’s amazing. Having that band going for so long
and doing so much awesome stuff is definitely a big part of my life and I have
no regrets on anything.
Breaking
up just came over time. We all lived in different cities, other things came
into life, life changed, we changed, priorities became different, etc. and so
we decided after a certain point that we all wanna do different things. The
point was we really wanted to break up w/ no hard feelings and still liking
each other instead of any bad blood. We were sort of on a one way street and
felt like we couldn’t take it any further. We were kinda stuck and we already
did so much stuff … it got more difficult. So that was a wise decision. A band
is like a relationship - just w/ like having 3 or 4 girlfriends or boyfriends.
Having been in that
band for so long, now that it's over do you find yourself enjoying what I
imagine is a lot more free time, or do miss playing, writing, etc.? Are you
itching to get something going again or do you think you may be done playing in
a band?
In
the beginning I enjoyed the extra free time, since I´m pretty busy w/ the
store, the label etc. and it was good to have time on the weekends again for
other things. But somehow of course I also missed it as well. I actually started
a new band w/ some good friends and so far it’s going great. We have a couple
songs, wanna record soon, play our first show this Fall and tour, so I´m stoked.
I always hear people
talk about how compared to the U.S., hardcore in Europe is way more organized,
people take better care of the bands in terms of food, lodging, etc. As
somebody who has first-hand experience in both places, how would you say things
compare?
Yeah
I know. I mean over the years from my perspective touring the US got much
better than it used to be like a couple years ago. Maybe we also just got more
lucky, went through better channels every time. But every tour we had in the US
got better and better each time. I mean payments, food, places to stay etc. are
def much better in Europe and there are more things you can count on. But in
the last couple years there are just too many bands coming over and people get
fed up. It seems like a lot of bands have never even toured the States before
they come to Europe and expect to get treated like kings if you know what I
mean. So people shouldn´t think that touring Europe is always easy and you can
always make your money back, etc. It can be hard as well and if there is no one
that wants to see your band you sometimes don´t get paid well etc…you know what
I mean? I don´t know - both sides of the pond are different and both sides have
their up and downs. I think like show-wise and energy-wise we def had better
shows in the US. There is just so much more energy at like house shows and
people get more into a band. (I miss house shows). In Europe people are
sometimes much more reserved, but also older … I mean if you go to shows there
are way more people that stick w/ the scene their whole life. I like that -
since it’s not just a short trend or a period in their "wild years".
I mean in the UK you have so many guys in their forties and fifties and I love
that. Bottom line - both sides are good one way or another.
On the theme “Baker’s
Dozen”, what do you have cooking for the rest of 2013 and into early 2014? Give
us a virtual taste of what we can expect from you.
There
are a couple things coming up. The next one will be the Lord Snow LP and a Bad
Vision LP. Maybe a new record w/ Kids Of zoo, then the Trembling Hands LP, a
Pills 5", hopefully something w/ Mean Man’s Dream…and some other goodies.
THANK
YOU
For
all things Adagio: http://www.adagio830.de/
For
your listening pleasure: https://soundcloud.com/adagio830
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