Next in our series of interviews in the netlabel/CC music scene, are the guys representing the smooth sound from Finland: Lo-Kiwi. These 10 questions were mostly answered by Teempee and Scarlet Hideout from the label.
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How did Lo-kiwi start out?
Teempee and Scarlet Hideout happened to hang out on a Finnish tracker music IRC-channel in September 2004, when there was some discussion on netlabels in general. Realising we share the same vision of a missing netlabel we put up another irc-channel where both of us came up with some great ideas. Later we discovered some other talented musicians to join our netlabel, one of them was Moosefrog who kindly became our webmaster and had the first release ready in May 2005.
What kind of music do you look for in submissions/demos?
Interesting, enjoyable and emotional. We like to have a jazzy vibe on downtempo, hiphop or more electronic stuff. Our music should also be worth concentrating on, otherwise it is suitable only for elevators.
Do you think netlabels suffer a bit of credibility problem ? (as in regards to quality)
Some do some do not, but of course netlabels have no street teams or able to get the hype anyway. Even though the overall sound would need a bit of polishing, we are able to get kicks out of it.
What are the most pressing difficulties faced by netlabels?
The occasional lack of feedback. The available ways to promote are quite limited too.
Whats your take on the Creative Commons philosophy? (copyright and etc.)
Creatice Commons makes life much easier for bloggers and podcasters and every creative individual in the internet. Why would we want to stop someone spreading our music freely when it is released for free in the first place?
Which labels (net or otherwise) do you look up to in running this label?
Ninja Tune, Compost and Sonar Kollektiv are worth mentioning. The now defunct Tokyodawn Records had also a great influence on us.
Whats your favourite release on Lo-Kiwi?
Many of us like the latest one, Owltree’s Tender Pecking. It is just brilliant. Moosefrog’s Adrift is another killer in our catalog.
Whats your favourite release on other netlabels?
Teempee’s pick would be Tokyodawn’s Comfort Fit - Forget and Remember LP and Miasmah’s Aphilas - Instrumentally Ill. Scarlet hideout names Kahvi Collective’s Alpha Conspiracy - Aura ep and Ronin Collective’s excellent Gama va-compilation.
There are so many netlabels out there - What makes yours stand out?
We have a fairly low percentage of IDM releases. We also prefer our website non-confusing and easy-to-use. But we like and repect the other ways to do things as well.
What are you listening to at the moment and what else can we expect from you in the future?
At the moment Teempee is curious about Justice and the other French guys out there. Scarlet Hideout has been digging for some old soul records and 90s’ boombab. Lo-kiwi is constantly shaped by its artists, and hopefully releasing high quality and pure hearted music will give us a decent image. Vinyls or CDs can be expected to come out sooner or later, and the first edition of Lo-kiwi T-shirts are just around the corner.
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Thanks to the guys at Lo-Kiwi for the interview.
