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What's the story behind the name? Stepped out of bed at the wrong side?
"For a long time my partner Joel Leoschke and I had the idea of starting a
label. Various people referred to some common personality traits Joel and I
share as inspiration for a name. While it was still in the conceptual stages
Joel had the idea of "Curmudgeon" as a name. But it was too unwieldy. A
lady friend of Joel's suggested "cranky." We changed the spelling to
"kranky" in reference to the tradition of brand names like Kleenex,
Rite-Aid, Esso, etc."
Who are the people behind Kranky? What made you decide to start up a label?
"Specifically, Joel and I decided to start kranky when we heard the first
Labradford 7 inch single. We felt they were a band unique enough to begin a
label around. We had talked about the vague idea of starting a label for
some time. Working as we did (at the time) for an independent distributor
we had seen many examples of how not to run a label. Labradford inspired us
to move from theory to action."
For how long has the recordlabel been going now? Experienced any changes along to way?
"Kranky started in 1993. There have been a lot of changes; the distributor
Joel and I worked for when we started kranky is now out of business, kranky
obtained distribution in Europe via Southern Records in London two years
ago, a few bands have moved on from the label or broken up, we got the
opportunity to work with Stars Of The Lid, Low and James Plotkin (artists
Joel and I had long respected) and there's more money in the bank then when
we started."
You're an independent label. There's always discussions going on of the relevance of being independent. What are the good and bad sides of being an indie label?
"I think the shoe is on the other foot: what's the relevance of major labels?
From my personal point of view there are no significant bad sides to being
independent. The financial limitations are more than offset by being
involved in a business with people I respect."
What are the biggest misconceptions people have about indie labels?
"That there are a lot of records sold and a lot of money made."
Most of the Kranky bands have been labeled space rock. Is there a sound you look for when signing a band? Do you consciously want a Kranky sound?
"There is a certain, indescribable something Joel and I refer to as "kranky
kwality" that we look for in a band. We know it when we hear it. We've
always aimed for the label to have an aesthetic consistency to it, we want
the kranky logo to stand for something. Of course, the listener can decide
for him or herself how various bands on the label fit within that aesthetic."
One of the most critically acclaimed bands on your label would be GodSpeedYouBlackEmperor!. How did you find the band?
"godspeed you black emperor! were looking for a show in Chicago in the fall
of 1997. They sent us a vinyl copy of "f#a#ƒ" and we got in touch. When
the band played there show we all got together and began the conversation
about label and band working together."
Kranky has a very recognisable image. Are you influenced by certain artists or elements?
"On a general level we're influenced by some of our favorite labels from our
younger days like Rough Trade, Aberrant, Ron Johnson, 4AD and Factory;
labels that have an internal consistency to them. We put a great deal of
emphasis on good packaging."
When bands produce a cover, do you give them certain guidelines to follow?
"The bands all arrange for artwork themselves. We try and enable the bands
to put together the best looking, most unique packaging they can within the
limits of our budget. I think it's a tribute to the resources of the
musicians we work with that the visual quality of kranky releases has been
so high over the years."
Your label is based in Chicago which has amazing musicians/bands, like Tortoise, Jim O'Rourke,... Does Chicago influence the sound of the label?
"Not at all. Until recently, none of our artists lived in Chicago. Mark
Nelson from Labradford / Pan*American and Brian McBride from Stars Of The
LId moved here well after their other bands were well established. We've
done one CD with Brent Gutzeit, who lives in Chicago and is part of the
improvised/ electronic music scene here. The album Brent did with James
Plotkin was originally conceived in Tokyo. So kranky's connection with
Chicago is purely geographic."
Does the internet affect your business in anyway? If so, in what ways does it help (or hinder) you?
"The biggest affect the internet has on kranky is that it allows people to
find out about the label and musicians without going through the filter of
radio or press. We do get some mail order sales from our website, but as
yet we don't have the ability to take credit cards over the net."
What would a starting point for someone who's new to Kranky?
"I'd suggest the following albums as a good place to start: Labradford
"Mi media naranja", Stars Of The Lid "The Ballasted Orchestra", godspeed you
black emperor! "f3a#", Roy Montgomery "Temple IV", Low "Secret Name" and
Jessamine "Don't Stay Too Long." Joel might have an entirely different list."
Apart from releasing records, does Kranky have other projects?
"We have yet to branch out into other areas, but one reason that we insist on
calling the label simply "kranky" (and not "kranky records") is that we
always wanted to leave ourselves open to other areas if the opportunity
arose."
Any new releases for the upcoming months?
"In North America we'll be releasing the new Pan*American double LP/ CD
"360 Business / 360 Bypass" on Feb. 14. There will be a new Tomorrowland Cd
called "Microbe" released in early spring. Rex Ritter and Andy Brown,
formerly of Jessamine, have a new band called Fontanelle and we'll be
putting out their debut album this year. Stars Of The Lid are working on a
double CD/ triple LP release and Windy & Carl are working on a new album
both of which we hope to release this spring. Brian McBride from Stars Of
The Lid has been working on a megamix project; taking original musical
contributions from a number of kranky artists and working them into one
soundscape. We hope to have that out this spring. godspeed you black
emperor! will start recording their next album the first week in February
and are looking for a summer release."
Visit Kranky online @ www.brainwashed.com/kranky
http://www.kindamuzik.net/label/709/kranky/740/
Meer op KindaMuzik: http://www.kindamuzik.net/artiest/709
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