Dear Readers,

We at Gratisvibes have been thinking of implementing new features (rather than just a stream of reviews!) for a long time now, and interviews with people in the netlabel scene was just one of the new things we’d been planning for. Look out for more soon!

Edit (30/07/07): Updated Sebastian’s picture to a more recent one, he has also provided a more complete answer to the question “Do you think netlabels suffer a bit of credibility problem ?”

Sorry if I’m flooding your Newsfeed reader!

We start off the interview series with Sebastian Redenz, A&R / Director of “Thinner” (and its sister-label “Autoplate”), a German based netlabel well known for its dub-infused techno and ambient, minimal aesthetic.

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How did Thinner/Autoplate start out?

Originally it was founded in 1998 by the Swede, Thomas Jaldemark. I joined the label in 2001. By then it was decided that Thinner would release mp3 files instead of .xm (Fast Tracker II modules) and we had the goal to model the netlabel the way a vinyl label is presented. Today Thinner is a big team with 13 members and will be 10 years old in 2008.

What kind of music do you look for in submissions/demos?

The music should tell a story and sound coherent.

Do you think netlabels suffer a bit of credibility problem ? (as in regards to quality)

Yes, definitely!

The main factor is of structural origin: everybody can generate a netlabel without having to invest money or much of human resources. Let’s compare the structures a bit:

If you find a vinyl label you compete in a small, tough and highly oversaturated market – being aware of that situation you consider very well where to invest your limited money in. Artists with a solid reputation can choose the labels they want to work with - if you are unrelated or else have no proper connections, a remix from a rather known act easily costs 500-1000 euro. Then you have all the dependencies … pressing plants and distributors, which may operate from a different country (where different law applies to), record shops, tax accountants etc.

These factors are all pretty much non existant with the Netlabels – thus everybody can do what he wants without having to fear to lose money since it simply is irrelevant. A Masterplan simply wouldn’t exist. I sometimes observe people announcing they are starting a netlabel signalizing they have talked to any artists in advance ( “new netlabel xy is looking for artists”) – a clear hint that the A&R fails to actively screen the “market” for talent. If you would start a vinyl label under these circumstances – better bury it from the beginning. If you would start a netlabel like that: no problem. You only place yourself into the mainstream.

I’m not telling that this is “bad” per se, in fact it is amazing, however these structural factors add up to 95% of the netlabels around leaving a very “amateurish” impression, where I, now introducing the perspective of the consumer, having the power of “choice” and surfing the web under a time constraint, very carefully select the netlabel I wanna enjoy – there are some crucial factors that must meet my standards – if the website looks improper or bitrates are 128kbps then there is a very fair chance I will never checkout that netlabel. It might sound obscure indeed to point out seemingly insignificant details, however with about 1000 netlabels around, the “average” consumer barely has ressources to keep track of 10-20 netlabels – thus he will set priorities and go with a basic rule called “quality goes over quantity”.

But how can a netlabel signalize “quality”? That’s the edge of becoming “professional”: Produce a nice website with a good corporate ID, have consistent and good artwork, high bitrates, proper tags and filenaming, a nice releasetext … all these factors add up, leave an impression and in the long run transform into credibility. And still so few netlabels operate under these terms – because they neither have money, human ressources or interest in achieving honours.

What are the most pressing difficulties faced by netlabels?

Steep resistance from the magazine reviewers … the perception still holds strong that netlabels is received as “different” music. Also working on a minimal budget all the time doesn’t ease up things.

Whats your take on the Creative Commons philosophy? (copyright and etc.)

CC certainly is one of the most significant and important law theories developed during the past years. It just happens that I’m in the middle of reading Lessig’s book “Free Culture”. Everybody involved with netlabels should read it. ;)

Which labels (net or otherwise) do you look up to in running this label?

None. I like the concept of limiting a label’s output to 10 releases though, just what Basic Channel or Studio 1 did.

Whats your favourite release on Thinner/Autoplate?

I would do injustice to many artists if I name songs that stand out – there’re phases where I like this or that release very much just because it fits my mood in that particular situation. With both labels there are almost 150 releases with close to 1000 tracks – there is so much music available for every mood.

Whats your favourite release on other netlabels?

Too much to mention – certainly the biggest impact on me had the early Mono releases from Dreamfish, Mortimer Twang, Substance et al. I can tell that Mono has socialized me, musically. Then there’re Schleudertrauma, Rohformat and Dreamsource, Milk and a couple other quality netlabels … great stuff. MP3 wise there is simply too much to mention, really!

There are so many netlabels out there - What makes yours stand out?

I think people are used to a certain standard they may expect form us on every release – and they honour it. Although we in 2006 we had less than 50% of the output we had in 2004 people would still vote us #1 at de:bugs annual readers poll for netlabels. Proof enough for the matter of quality.

What are you listening to at the moment and what else can we expect from you in the future?

I’m right now listening to the fabulous new album by Aril Brikha on Peacefrog. A great musician indeed. Upcoming on Thinner are new albums by krill.minima and Selffish and new EPs from Das Kraftfuttermischwerk and many others … on Autoplate we will soon have a new EP by the Finn, Twile, which is a masterpiece in dub electronica with acoustic instruments.

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Thanks to Sebastian @ Thinner for a fascinating and enlightening interview.

Check out Thinner’s latest release: “Born On A Houseboat” by Benfay