RJ VALEO
September
Type
MP3 Release //
£5.99
KHONNOR
Handwriting
Type
MP3 Release //
£2.99
KHONNOR
Burning Palace
Type
7" //
£2.99
The best thing to come out of Birmingham since Jasper Carrot, Type records is the graceful brain child of John Twells and Stef Lewandowski (otherwise known as Xela and, erm, Stef Lewandowski) - a label which can deliver dank delights one minute in the shape of Svarte Greiner, before skimming blossom-scented vistas the next with Helios' 'Eingya'. Quickly establishing a knob-on reputation for truffling out leftfield delights, Type's ethos seems founded on a simple maxim; if it's interesting, it's in, and with the likes of Deaf Center, Khonnor, Ryan Teague, Midaircondo and Mountaineer nestled in the basket, it would appear to be right on target...
In order to get a full understanding of the Type set, we've got an avalanche of lexicon to get you eyes around - with exclusive interviews with label task-master John Twells in both his boss-man and Xela guise, as well as Erik K. Skodvin's (aka Svarte Greiner & half of Deaf Center) contribution to our burgeoning Nine Lives series. As if the senses weren't already revelling in decadent bliss, we've got all the Type catalogue up for download; including a jaw dropping live EP from Deaf Center (exclusive number one!), a label primer from the man Twells (exclusive number two!) and in the coming days a free compilation EP featuring new and old from the Type vaults (exclusive number three!). All this and it's not even December. We better be on your Christmas card list...
John Twells talks Type
Why Type?
Stef (Lewandowski who runs the label with me) and I were drunk, it was the only name we could agree on after a long night out at the now-demolished Circo in Birmingham. I wanted to give the label a really stupid name but Stef wouldn't let me, I thank him for that - he's a good pacifying influence
on my idiocy.
I wanted to give the label a really stupid name but Stef wouldn't let me, I thank him for that
How and why did you come to form the label?
I was touring a lot at the time and meeting loads of interesting artists... after trying to field their tunes to labels I knew, I figured it would be
easier and more fun if I just did things myself - plus then I would have
control over the artwork, which I'm very fussy about. I'd already been
working with Stef promoting shows in Birmingham and he'd done the cover
to my 'For Frosty Mornings and Summer Nights' album, so we decided to go at
the thing together.
Don't believe the rumours that demos never get listened to
As both an artist and label boss you now see both sides of the equation - who has it the easiest and have you encountered any problems in this dual role?
That's an interesting question but it's not something I really think about much. I've been working as an artist for as long as I can remember to some degree, but I've always been interested in knowing everything about the
business itself, how it all works. I'm the inquisitive sort and the more I
learned about the way labels ran the more I thought 'yeah I could do that'.
As for who has it easiest, I don't think that's so cut and dry - both jobs
require very different sets of skills - there are plenty of artists who
would never want to get involved with the running of a label and there are
plenty of label bosses who haven't got the urge to write music. As it is I
only do a proportion of the work for Type - I sign artists, listen to demos,
do art direction, work out the grand master plan etc, but the business side
is very difficult for me to grasp at times, and I don't know what I'd do
without Stef who has much more of a head for that kind of stuff. If it was
just me running the label alone I suspect I would find it much harder, and
it would be much more difficult for me to find time to write music.
Without downloading I don't think I would have found out about as much music
How do you discover new artists for the label?
I listen to most of the demos I get (I say most because I know I must have
lost some when I moved house recently!) and that's the most obvious way I
think. I've signed a bunch of artists from demos - Ryan Teague, Sanso-Xtro,
Midaircondo, they all sent unsolicited CDRs which blew me away. There's
quite a few new artists popping up next year too who sent a demo too, so
don't believe the rumours that demos never get listened to. Also the artists
and labels I know might send over demos from friends or associates of his or hers, which sometimes results in me finding someone new. Really I'm just
keeping my eyes and ears open for exciting sounds, I'm open to suggestion
let's say.
I had been working with Connor for a really long time and it was a lot of fun to see it finally come out, and of course the subsequent
shows/tours/drunken brawls were all just as enjoyable...
What do you consider the definitive releases for the label?
That's really hard to say as when something is 'definitive' I would think it
would be to do with other people's perception of the label or what's been
crucial to the label's growth rather than my idea of how it's perceived per
se. I'd say the first release that really pushed us into bigger places was
Khonnor's 'Handwriting' though, which is still our most successful album to date. I had been working with Connor for a really long time and it was a lot of fun to see it finally come out, and of course the subsequent shows/tours/drunken brawls were all just as enjoyable. More recently the Helios album 'Eingya' has been very successful, especially in the USA where the label is just starting to get a little more 'known'. I think stylistically however one of the most important releases has to be Deaf Center's 'Pale Ravine' which for many has become a kind of 'core sound'
release for Type, with all that cinematic, shadowy stuff we've been
associated with in bucket loads.
I mean what's the point in paying a few pounds more for
a CD that looks crappy?
How do you think downloading will change the record industry?
Downloading is already changing the industry because people just don't know what to do. There are different ways that it's changing though - it's offering more music to more people, so boundaries are being broken. Without
downloading I don't think I would have found out about as much music, let
alone younger generations of listeners, and this is really exciting for me.
It's also making listeners more discerning about what they buy - which makes
palming off average records a lot more difficult. Of course it's going to
hit record companies hard as sales in physical product falter, but at the
moment what we've got to do I think is embrace the future and stop being so
scared of it. MP3 sales are great in my opinion because it's convenient,
instant and cheap - the benefits of buying MP3s rather than downloading them
to free is that you won't have to wait until someone else has it shared
before you can get it, and also you know the quality's going to be
consistent, which is a big thing for rabid music consumers such as
ourselves. I think I'm always going to have a soft spot for vinyl, there's
nothing to compare with that medium, but MP3s are slowly going to take hold
and CDs will become less and less important. They are, after all, only a
storage medium - what's so different about a hard drive?
What will labels need to do in the future to keep people buying physical
product?
I think labels will have to take more care in presentation of their product to keep it enticing, I mean what's the point in paying a few pounds more for a CD that looks crappy? But as less people buy CDs then the price of manufacturing goes up so it's a very difficult situation, and I'm not sure exactly what's going to happen. It feels kind of exciting to be seeing it
happen though, people are still going to be making great music however it's
sold really.
Thinking about it when I'm doing my own work though I'm probably harder on my own stuff than on anyone else, I do send my tracks to a couple of people I know I'll get a blunt opinion from
As a label boss you must have to reject and direct some of your artists musical wanderings. Who keeps an eye on Xela?
That's definitely a huge part of my job as label boss, and I'm usually very hard on artists - I think it ends up being more interesting and more of a collaborative experience that way. Thinking about it when I'm doing my own work though I'm probably harder on my own stuff than on anyone else, I do
send my tracks to a couple of people I know I'll get a blunt opinion from
and they always help me out, but for the most part I just have to simply
make tough decisions and really give thought to my tracks. In the end it's
probably good for me!
Do you still get excited when you see your records in the shops?
I think the most exciting part of it for me is when the product lands for the first time - slicing open the shrink-wrap and fondling the laminate finish will never lose its appeal I reckon. However it's still great fun to see our records in the shops yeah, especially shops you really respect.
Travelling around the East Coast of America earlier this year it was really
incredible to see records in some amazing shops like Twisted Village in
Boston or Othermusic in New York - that was a great feeling; that people on
the other side of the Atlantic were getting the hang of what we were doing
too.
I did however always say that each release had to have it's
own personality, I didn't want a style so uniform that the releases would
necessarily look like a 'set' in any way
How important is the artwork for the label? Do you try and keep a consistent mood or is it more about the individual releases?
The artwork is really important, that was something we made sure of from very early on. I did however always say that each release had to have it's own personality, I didn't want a style so uniform that the releases would necessarily look like a 'set' in any way, although that's nice for
collectors it's often not practical when an artist has a grand plan for an
album project. We've certainly set a certain mood across all of our releases
to a degree but I think for instance the Mountaineer album looks very
different from the Xela album, and the Helios album looks very different
from the Sickoakes album. All I want is for the records to look really great, really high quality so that people will actually enjoy buying them and taking them home. I know what I want when I buy a record (which is very frequently, I am an addict) and I try to replicate that somewhat.
What have you got coming up in 2007?
Loads of stuff! We've got some lovely 7"s from Benoit Pioulard, Mokira,
Tarentel and Grouper, albums from Rameses III, Our Sleepless Forest,
Tarentel and Skallander (a new project from Signer!), a re-issue of
Grouper's amazing 'Way Their Crept' on vinyl, an EP from Helios... and
definitely a lot more on top of that (which I am still working on). I try to
keep everyone as busy as I can!
Type's Forthcoming Releases
Xela - 'For Frosty Mornings and Summer Nights' - January 2007
Benoit Pioulard - 'Fir EP' - February 2007
Mokira - 'The Bum That Will Bring Us Together' - March 2007
Rameses III - 'Jozepha Parsimonia' - March 2007
Grouper - 'Way Their Crept' - March 2007
Skallander - 'III' - April 2007
- Erik K. Skodvin's Nine Lives
Seeing as we're up to our knees in all things Type, we thought it would be the perfect time to get Erik K. Skodvin (aka Svarte Greiner and one half of Deaf Center) to have a rummage round his racks and give us the low down on what nine records sculpted his musical vision. Ranging from Boards of Canada though to David Darling, Skodvin provides a hearing aid that sheds new light on the textures and influences which bruise Deaf Center and Svarte's moonshine output. Central heating!
Erik K. Skodvin:
Here´s s a list of the records that have had the most impact on me in terms of influence and moved me further down the line of enjoying and making music.
1. Future sound of London - Dead Cities
This record was unlike anything else I had ever heard when it first came out. It had everything I liked about music mixed into one big pile - combining the beautiful, dark, crazy, rhythmic and ambient. I was very into the demo scene and the music being produced at the time, and this just had all those elements but taken to a new level. You could say 'Life Forms' is a rival record for this position, but 'Dead Cities' just has the little extra... I think you can still hear inspirational parts in my music from this record. I Just love it to death! (Oh and just found a vinyl copy of it over eBay! YAY!)
This record was unlike anything else I had ever heard when it first came out
2. Boards of Canada - Music Has The Right To Children
Even though their latest efforts haven't been that hot, I can't look away from the impact this record had when I first heard it. I was star struck! 'Music Has The Right To Children' and 'Hi Scores' were on constant spin for ages. It's still a damn good record, and it defiantly changed my musical taste for the better - so it's on the list!
3. Biosphere - Shenzhou
I was already a big fan of Biosphere before this came out, but the use of classical samples and nature field recordings just hit me in the right spot. Since then I've been super fond of the whole classical influenced use of modern music.
This was also solely responsible for the influence that made 'Neon City'
4. Murcof - Martes
2002 was a good year for revamping ambient music (with 'Shenzhou' also out that year), I think however this is the album that really defined the whole post-classical electronic scene. It's no secret that I've been heavily influenced by Murcof and this record in particular and I honestly think the time I first heard it was one of the greatest first-time listening experiences I've ever had.
5. Cliff Martinez - Traffic OST
The film is ok...but the soundtrack is one of my all time favourites, totally stealing all the attention. This was also solely responsible for the influence that made 'Neon City'. I remember listening to this over and over every single day and found it worked especially great in the morning. 'Solaris' is also up there with this record though...
'Souvlaki' is the record I should have heard a decade ago, but only encountered a couple of years back
6. Angelo Badalamenti - Mullholand Drive OST + all others
Angelo Badalamenti is just a genius - capable of coming up with the most mind-twisting atmospherics. I can't say anything else other than he has to be my biggest influence in music. Full stop. Even though I put 'Mullholand Drive' here, it's impossible to pick out just one of his albums for this list. I would say everything from 'Twin Peaks' onwards. Man I can't wait for 'Inland Empire' to hit!
7. Slowdive - Souvlaki
Since I was raised on electronic music, I was never exposed to any shoegazing or similar genres until relatively recently. 'Souvlaki' is the record I should have heard a decade ago, but only encountered a couple of years back. Since I listened to it I have never looked back though; with this actually standing as my all-time favourite record. I cannot stop playing it. I would say however that 'Pygmalion' is just behind, and is also an amazing piece. Ever since encountering Slowdive I've been searching through the shoegazing scene and found a whole new world I'd been missing out on.
It's full of melancholic, dark and minimal cello arrangements set in a shadowy forest
8. David Darling - Dark Wood
This album came to my notice around 1 and a half year ago, and I loved it immediately. It's full of melancholic, dark and minimal cello arrangements set in a shadowy forest. I find it to be maybe the most cinematic album I've ever heard. Heartbreaking and evil at the same time. Amazing.
Vincent Gallo is one weird and fascinating guy
9. Vincent Gallo - When
Vincent Gallo is one weird and fascinating guy. 'When' actually took me some time to get used to, but when it did sink in I think it's one of the most beautiful albums ever made... It's just lovely, lo-fi, a bit strange, and severely fascinating. Add to this his amazing 'Music Recordings for Film" and the great "Buffalo 66" movie, and you have one of my favourite
producers.
Erik K. Skodvin's Nine Lives in brief:
1. Future sound of London - Dead Cities
2. Boards of Canada - Music Has The Right To Children
3. Biosphere - Shenzhou
4. Murcof - Martes
5. Cliff Martinez - Traffic OST
6. Angelo Badalamenti - Mullholand Drive OST
7. Slowdive - Souvlaki
8. David Darling - Dark Wood
9. Vincent Gallo - When
- Xela's Nine Lives
Severing his label head for that of Xela, John Twells is now in the Nine Lives enclosure to deliver a distillation of what makes him tick. Given that his own sound has matured with age from wide-eyed electronica to oak-stained instrumentation, it's little wonder that the likes of Goblin, Delia Derbyshire and Wolf Eyes all make an appearance. Eclectic in the best possible sense, the following records not only display Twells' personal tastes but provide a cut-out-and-keep schematic of what guides the good ship Type. Under 18's should seek parental permission before reading on...
1. Ron Grainer & Delia Derbyshire - Doctor Who Theme (BBC)
I thought I'd start with something from my distant past that had a profound influence on me. As a kid I was a huge Doctor Who nut - it was a good way to get away from the fact that where I was living was hugely uninteresting, time and space travel was probably better than burning out cars. Anyway part of the allure as any fan will no doubt agree was the fabulous music (and of course the theme) from the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. I have since managed to collect up a lot more of this stuff - but I still get tingly when I hear that theme. Utterly classic.
As a kid I was a huge Doctor Who nut...
2. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation (Blast First)
Skip on a bit and I spent much of my teenage years listening to metal and lo-fi rock music (when I had got over my obsession with Tori Amos that is), so finding Sonic Youth was like finding the Holy Grail for an atheist like myself. The band just had a knack of making great songs from guitar noise and mayhem like nobody else I knew and I couldn't get them out of my head. The first I heard from them was actually 'Bad Moon Rising' which I decided I hated, but I kept going back to it week after week... not bad for a record you supposedly hate. Then I went out and bought 'Daydream Nation' and was a lifetime convert. For a fifteen year old those kind of bands can totally take over your life and I don't think I've ever grown out of it - I'm lucky that SY are still making great music though I suppose.
Sonic Youth was akin to finding the Holy Grail for an atheist like myself
3. Mogwai - Young Team (Chemikal Underground)
Around this time I managed somehow to stumble over Mogwai, a band who were constantly called 'Scotland's answer to Sonic Youth' - hence my initial interest. Of course I was instantly hooked, and 'Young Team' showed me exactly what I wanted to hear from music, exactly when I needed it. The final track 'Mogwai Fear Satan' I must have played hundreds of times, it was just so crushing. Sadly at school it was hard to convince all my friends (and my band at the time) that the way to go was +15 minute droning epics, but at least I tried. This record opened the door to so much more for me, and I think for a lot of others at the time.
I still think Broadcast are one of the best bands in Britain at the moment
4. Broadcast - Work and Non Work (Warp)
It's got to be this Broadcast album for me because by the time they had released their first 'proper' album I was already a long-time fan! They're a Birmingham band and because I lived near Birmingham this gave me 'access' so to speak, and after hearing one of their early Duophonic singles on the radio I went to see them live at local rock club (and the best place for underage drinkers) 'The Foundry'. They totally blew me away and gave me a way into less rockier sounds I suppose, they were certainly the closest I had got to electronic music at that time, and along with Stereolab converted me into a lover of all things analogue and synthesized. They played along with Plone, another awesome Birmingham act who are sadly no longer in action... after this I discovered Aphex, Autechre, all that business, but I still find myself going back to Broadcast - and with good reason, I still think they're one of the best bands in Britain at the moment.
5. Cocteau Twins - Heaven or Las Vegas (4AD)
There's so much 4AD stuff I could write in here - Belly, Pixies, Throwing Muses, The Breeders, but Cocteau Twins I think will always be my number one. I remember the first time I heard this album, I was in a comic shop flicking through EC reprints and it was playing in the background - it was one of those moments when I knew what the record was before I even asked. I read a lot of the music press and put two and two together, and that voice has haunted me ever since. I left the shop immediately and bought the album and for a long time I didn't listen to anything else by the band, I felt like I only needed that one. Luckily I backtracked eventually and got their whole (largely excellent) catalogue, but I think 'Heaven or Las Vegas' will always have a special place in my heart.
The people who know or knew me well growing up will be only too aware of my constant obsession with horror films
6. Goblin - Suspiria (Dagored)
The people who know or knew me well growing up will be only too aware of my constant obsession with horror films. It started at primary school, and I think it was probably because I wasn't allowed to watch them, but I'd go to school and hear stories about these films, occasionally sneaking a pirate copy or watching one at a friend's house and that feeling has never really left me. I'm still just as obsessed with the genre now as I was then and although many of the movies I will acknowledge as pretty ropey the obsession has on occasion introduced me to a number of actually great ones. 'Suspiria' is one of those movies, and not only is the film almost matchless; the soundtrack is a shocking and incredibly original piece of work. This was the first I had heard of the band Goblin, and was the start of another obsession for me, the obsession with Italian horror movie music (and the movies themselves of course).
But this album really was the first I heard of the whole Finnish free-folk explosion and left me totally dazed
7. Shuttle 358 - Frame (12k)
This album is so special to me, and really sums up a very important period in my life and development as a musician. I actually downloaded it originally, I saw it listed as 'minimal, ambient' or something equally as downplayed, and was curious. The first track came, slowly of course because I was on a 33.3 connection, and I was hooked - it was one of those moments when I couldn't believe what I was hearing, it just sounded so absolutely perfect. Before it had finished playing I had made an order from 12k and bought a few of their other records in the bundle and that was all it took. This album still sounds fresh today I think, and still gives me that same warm feeling every time I hear it, it's so magically written and produced - truly great electronic music. It's strange but so much electronic stuff I heard after this really didn't have the same impact, if any impact at all, and I would say that when I was writing 'For Frosty Mornings...' this album was probably the biggest influence on me.
Noise music; it's one of my most recent fascinations
8. Islaja - Palaa Aurinkoon (Fonal)
I have to whizz a bit further on now because I only have two more choices left, but this album really was the first I heard of the whole Finnish free-folk explosion and left me totally dazed. It was my ex-girlfriend that stumbled across it actually but as soon as I heard it I knew there was no going back, and I proceeded to consume as much of this stuff as I could, it just sounded so darn fresh. I still think that 'Palaa Aurinkoon' is one of the most definitive statements of the whole scene too, it just sounds out of time and free from any of the trappings of modern music - it sounds honest if you like. If you're wondering where to start with Finnish free-forest-folk or whatever you want to call it today then I don't think there's a better place.
Then there are the live shows - this is music that actually works live, not a laptop in sight!
9. Wolf Eyes - Burned Mind (Sub Pop)
Noise music, it's one of my most recent fascinations (this and black metal) and it all came from this record. Wolf Eyes were this band I kept seeing mentioned everywhere so I figured I had to see what everyone was on about, and on hearing this record I could see why. Utter clattering analogue noise insanity - I wasn't sure whether to laugh, cry or fall in love and that's when you know you're on to something special. Like when I first heard Sonic Youth I was sure I hated it but I kept coming back, finding more layers, digging deeper, and before long I was trying to buy ever piece of limited vinyl and every cdr I could by the band. It led me on to a lot more too - Prurient, Hair Police, Skaters, Dead Machines, Double Leopards etc. It's funny, I'd heard stuff like Hecker before and it had only really made me think 'why?' but this stuff was just so raw and visceral, it was like punk or metal but somehow more instant, deeper and darker. Then there are the live shows - this is music that actually works live, not a laptop in sight!
Xela's Nine Lives in brief:
1. Ron Grainer & Delia Derbyshire - Doctor Who Theme
2. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation
3. Mogwai - Young Team
4. Broadcast - Work and Non Work
5. Cocteau Twins - Heaven or Las Vegas
6. Goblin - Suspiria
7. Shuttle 358 - Frame
8. Islaja - Palaa Aurinkoon
9. Wolf Eyes - Burned Mind
Further Reading
www.typerecords.com - Type's Official Site
www.deafcenter.net - Deaf Center's Official Site
www.midaircondo.com - Midaircondo's Official Site
www.khonnor.com - Khonnor's Official Site
www.ryanteague.com - Ryan Teague's Official Site
www.steflewandowski.com - Stef Lewandowski's Site
www.discogs.com - Full Type Catalogue
