Record Store Day: TLOBF meets Cascine

15 April 2011, 14:14

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Chad Valley and Evan Voytas vinyl

Stockholm based alt-pop record label Service has spent years carving out a distinct sound for itself, a sound that has helped shape the face of Swedish music since its inception in 2001. With an ever-expanding roster and sphere of influence, those involved in the label began to discover more acts than they could find room for and thus Cascine was born. Based on both sides of the Atlantic, this extremely young pop label already has an incredible track record with releases from the likes of Chad Valley, Shine 2009 and Selebrities.

As part of TLOBF’s Record Store Day week Cascine’s Sandra Croft and Jeff Bratton were more than happy to answer some questions on the secrets of their success and what role independent record stores have played in their lives and in the running of the label.

So I know that Cascine is an off-shoot from Service Records, how did all this come about?

I met Jeff Bratton from Service early last year while I was working on press with the label for a band called IKONS. We traded emails for a few months, talking mostly about music and Jeff’s dream of one day starting his own label. At the end of the summer, I was working with a Finnish band called Shine 2009. They had this amazing sound that reminded me so much of Service’s pop aesthetic, so I immediately asked if they were interested in signing them. Service didn’t end up signing them, but Jeff fell in love with them and so, Cascine was born with our first signing. We used the ethos of Service as our starting point, and Ola from Service has supported us in many ways through all this. If you look at the logo of Service, it’s a diamond, and I guess we were after – pure, pristine pop melodies, but with precision-cut geometrical edges.

Cascine is actually four people – including Jason Romanelli and Jason Kapiskosky – based in New York, DC and London. All of us run the label together, sharing the A&R, management, press, art direction and production duties.

There is a lot of emphasis on ‘family’ at Cascine. We work very closely with all our bands in every area of the presentation of their music. Those relationships we’ve formed have turned out to become one of the most fulfilling things about Cascine.

Kate Moss in the video for Evan Voytas ‘Tomorrow Night We’ll Go Anywhere’

What was it that drove you to start this kind of indie-label with a particular focus on experimental pop?

It’s just the sound we’ve always been in love with. ‘Pop’ today has such diverse meanings, and we wanted to explore the realm of this new electronic pop that has been bubbling up since the early 2000s. Year Zero for me was probably when the first Embassy and Tough Alliance records came out, and Air France is a huge blueprint behind the music I love so I guess for me it’s just subconsciously finding the joyful, unexpected echoes of that in the music our bands make. If that doesn’t make sense, you’ll see what I mean when we release the Southern Shores EP in the summer.

There’s a strong undercurrent of nostalgia in our sound, whether it’s pining for a specific decade or a place that is too good to be real. I guess the most recent form of that aesthetic was called chillwave, but the sound will always remain endlessly relevant and fascinating as more advances are made in music technology and kids find new ways to create the sounds they love from bygone eras.

The ‘experimental’ aspect is just seeing the different directions we can take the ‘pop’ sound in. It is as much in collaboration as it is in sound – whether it’s Evan Voytas with Kate Moss and Jamie Harley, or Shine 2009 with Paula Abdul.

Shine 2009 – So Free (feat. Paula Abdul) by CASCINE

Do you think it is important to have such a tailored aesthetic as a label?

Well ‘experimental pop guided by intuition’ is not really tailored as much as it is just a guideline to evolving over time. If it doesn’t feel right, then it probably isn’t. As far as an aesthetic, yes, very important. The music is the main aspect of what we do but we also imagine what every release should look like, and what that means for the overall look of the label. Our favourite labels all do the same. It doesn’t necessarily even have to be something tangible, maybe just even a philosophy that shows up in different forms on each release.

With almost kind of boutique releases coming from the label what role have independent record stores played in gaining support for artists like Evan Voytas, Jensen Sportag, Selebrities and Chad Valley?

Well we operate almost exclusively in the sphere of independent music, so totally indispensable. I can’t imagine our demographic being regular chain store shoppers, and the flexibility and variety of independent record shops are essential to small labels like us. We still manufacture vinyl, so independent record stores are integral for helping us shift product.

Also, independent stores like Pure Groove and Rough Trade have been crucial to our most recent releases – in-store and website features help our records get notices, and also direct people who have bought similar releases to check out ours. Most chain stores don’t provide that level of tailored service and we’ll be eternally grateful that independent record stores do.

How do you feel Independent Record Stores sit within the musical community as a whole?

They’re completely essential to people who love music and thrive on the discovery of new music. All kinds of sophisticated programs and algorithms exist in this day and age to aid the discovery of music, but nothing beats the feeling of discovering music the organic way – seeing a record or band you’ve never heard of before, picking it up, listening to it and falling in love. Those experiences are few and far between and completely facilitated by independent music shops just because of the comparably huge variety of labels and artists they stock.

What do they mean to both of you personally, on both sides of the Atlantic?

They’re a way for us to just check out of the online realm of music, which we live in every day, all the time and check into a calmer, more sensory way of relating to music. I love the feel of records, even CDs. The true colour of the artwork, the crackling of the paper, the surprise of finding coloured vinyl. All the sensations that digital music doesn’t find necessary to evoke. In-stores are amazing too – a good way to check out a band in short bursts and find yourself in the company of like-minded people.

Where did you shop for records growing up? Any particular fond memories of local independent stores?

Well actually when I was growing up I shopped mostly in HMV and Borders and Tower Records. This was a different era though, from the mid-90s, where chain stores actually sold music not DVDs. And a wide variety of music. Growing up outside of Europe and North America they were the only place to go to find all the bands I wanted to hear. Tower Records was actually my favourite – they had the feel of an independent record store and each location felt different, a little ragworn and they let you listen to CDs, as many as I wanted (that was a novel concept then). All this doesn’t say much about independent record stores, does it? It was only when I got into vinyl and deeper into specific genres that I shopped much more at independent music stores. I really loved Rotate This! and Soundscapes in Toronto, a lot of fond memories from those in my university days.

Jensen Sportag – Pure Wet by CASCINE

What is it about independent record stores that you feel is special, and worth championing?

Definitely the air of serendipity and the potential excitement of a new find. You let your intuition guide you towards a discovery, or find something that you didn’t think you’d like. Knowledge is a factor too – often the staff are happy to recommend things to you or check for the 30th time if the Keep Shelley In Athens EP you’ve been waiting 2 months for is finally in stock.

It’s not just records – having in-stores and events keep the community alive by bringing together people with a shared interest in music. There’s a sense of communality that exists when I go to in-stores at Rough Trade and stores like that that I would be very sad to see disappear. Also it reminds you that music is a holistic thing, not necessary a trading of commodities, and it’s always good to be reminded of that.

Are there any local and or independent stores that you have seen close in recent years that you think is a particular shame?

Pure Groove in London. They had a great selection of 7”s and the best in-stores when you could sit on comfortable couches and have a drink and watch bands. They still exist online but I miss the feel of the actual store.

Selebrities

How important do you think Record Store Day is for highlighting all these issues?

Very – even if it just reminds people we should be thinking about them. I think it’s important to highlight the role of physical music at a time when so much music is consumed in bytes online. Music ought to be larger than life, inescapable! But now the people who make it don’t even matter, it’s just about which of your friends are into it and then you forget it the week after. That’s a maybe a more-cynical-than-necessary way of looking at it, but the fact that so many people come out to Record Store Day and buy physical music, it’s a way of saying — this stuff, physical music, used to be mainstream, not just something collectors care about. CDs started to die when people stopped wanting to pay for a product, and then social media and music streams came along and let people stop paying for it all legally, and the product vanished. But when you can’t see what the product is and someone’s still making money, then the product is you.

Have you got any exciting exclusive records coming out for Record Store Day?

Not this year, because we’re stacked with one release a month, approximately, til the end of the summer! This year we’re going to gawk at other people’s releases. But next year, for sure. Once we have cash to throw around on gratuitous 7”s we will be making a lot of them. Not just for Record Store Day. All the time!