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Interview of Sébastien, founder of Beast Records

sebastien-createur-beast-records

The label Beast Records is a long-standing partner of maPlatine.com. Sébastien Blanchais, founder of the label Beast Records and owner of the record shop Rockin’Bones in Rennes, kindly agreed to spare a bit of his time for an interview. Label de musique Beast Records   Sébastien’s musical background Creation of the label Beast Records Beast Records and the Binic festival Rockin’Bones record shop – Rennes

Sébastien’s musical background

– How did your passion for music start?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=17s) I think that being born in 1969 helps. At the time when ‘Highway to Hell’ was at the top of the charts in France, you didn’t have a choice. This generation was immersed in rock’n’roll.

– When did your realize that music would become your job?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=32s) It’s really hard… In the sense that when you’re a bit of a dreamer, when you’re 16 and you firmly believe that this will be your job. But the reality is different and you end up continuing via a different route. I started off as a musician for 10 years, and I just about earned a living. And then, the idea was not to definitely quit music, and so to open a record shop, to create my own label, and so on, organising concerts. When you really love something, you can’t just walk away from it like that.

– What was the highlight when you were 16?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=1m06s) I saw a band called Reptile At Down from New-Zealand, quite violent, in the style of the Stooges. And as soon as I saw them, I just knew I had to be on stage, not playing the same music, but I had to play rock music

– Tell us more about you experience in the music industry.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=1m24s) My background in music started with a band called Witcherry Wild that I was in at high school and that went on for ten years. I then moved on to Born In Flames, a bit more punk/rock, we travelled to the US to record. That went on for a few years and we’re still continuing with a few members of the original lineup. It’s called Head On.

Creation of the label Beast Records

– When was the label Beast Records created?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=4m42s) 2003. But it actually started in 2005. We started with a self-produced record. And it all kicked off in 2005. We worked with this band called SixFtHick. They kindly granted me the rights to release their record in Europe, and we sold it in 8 days. That brought in quite a lot of money very quickly. SixFtHick were the real deal, they arrived with double trailer trucks to film them on their tour. They were followed around by ABC, the equivalent of ‘Canal +’ in France. They are an amazing band, I hope they come back to Europe one day.

– When did you decide to create the label Beast Records?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=1m51s) Well, simply at the time of Born In Flames, we were looking for a label and promoting yourself is really hard. I thought that self-production would be an easier way…so the label was born. And then I was in contact with an Australian band called Outside who contacted me directly. Orville Brody asked me to work with him, they were actually mates. The records sold well. And eventually, I organised a concert at the Mondo Bizarro for a band called Digger & The Pussycats. It may seem trivial, but they were a good duo that was known over there. They really helped me to boost my image on the Australian market. After that I worked with loads of Australian bands, the very best…

– Could you tell us more about the philosophy of the label?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=2m33s) The philosophy of the label is really straightforward: I created it to support French bands. Often musicians, as talented as they may be, are really no good at organisation. The idea was to release a first album for French bands. And for Australia, there used to be a job called press agent, which no longer exists. Managers are no longer suited for average bands. There is no bridge between Australia and Europe any longer. I try to create a network so that they can go on to bigger companies than mine.

– Why the name ‘Beast Records’?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=3m11s) It comes from an Australian band – we do like the Australian scene – called Beasts Of Bourbon. They were one of the boldest bands, alongside the Cramps and Gun Club, who brought country, blues to the mainstream with a punk energy: a movement called ‘swamp rock’. And to me, they had all the ingredients of the music I used to love when I was younger. It was really the type of music I used to listen to, a lot of blues and country music… Though country music is broad, there is a lot of rubbish, but there are wonderful things. I really love this band for daring to do that, and I think they are the most talented band. Fate had it that the guitarist, Spencer P. Jones, signed a contract with the label for a CD.

– How many artists are signed with Beast Records? Where do they come from?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=4m05s) I think we work with 150 artists and we are totalling something along the lines of 200 productions. Most are French bands, with the Rennes garage scene at the centre stage… it is currently thriving. We have a lot of Australian and American bands who symbolise what I like, New Orleans with Chicken Snake. We also have Italians, Movie Star Junkies, Blues Against Youth… There are also German bands with Cellophane Suckers. I think that’s about it…

– How many bands sign with the label each year?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=5m26s) It varies, but there is some sort of consistency. We produce about 20 to 25 bands a year.

– Does the logo of Beast Records have a specific meaning?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=5m42s) No… It was designed by a mate of mine, a designer who works in Brest, Tibou, who’s great at logos. He works on corporate logos. I found it really efficient: simple and to the point. A lot of people like to wear the logo on a bag, tee-shirt, baseball cap, in fact the merch’ that usually comes with the label. I had given him no limits, no ideas. I didn’t particularly expect a skull, but he showed me and I said it was perfect, that it would work. And it did.

– Name a few bands that you’re particularly proud of working with.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=6m13s) Ron Peno, Died Pretty’s frontman, is just stunning. I saw him at the Ubu 20 years ago, he had just come out of a psychiatric hospital, his concert was to die for, equally beautiful and violent. Signing him on the label somewhat beat the odds. Then definitely the SixFtHick because these guys are extremely kind and talented. In the band, there are actually two brothers, the Corbett brothers. I also released an album called Shifting Sands with one of the singers and the other singer The Gentle Bens. And whatever these two guys do, it’s always amazing.

– As the manager of a music label, what are your fondest memories?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=6m54s) It’s always a thrill when you get, when you open a record sleeve, the end result. After the process, I wouldn’t say painstaking, but you first receive a master, then you have to take a close look at the sleeve. Romain, who works with me, checks the templates. After, it has to be sent to a cutter, who has to do a good job… First with mastering, and then it goes to the factory. It’s more stressful than anything else. It’s a relief when you get the final product and it sounds as you excepted it to. We sometimes have problems as well. But the greatest thrill is during gigs, you’re really proud of signing these people on your label. I’m thinking about the Release parties we had at the Ubu, the Binic festival, which I consider as the best showcase you could get. They take 15 bands every year, it creates a real audience, who generally have a good pair of ears and who know when they hear talent with the bands we headline.

Beast Records and the Binic festival

– This year is the 8th edition of the Binic Festival, what role does Beast Records have in the Binic Folk Blues Festival?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=8m01s) We provide 40% of the lineup. Initially, it was a joke between Ludo and me, it was a festival with a very small stage, with a bit of decor. I had Australian mates who were hanging out in town, it was an opportunity to put a guitar in their hands, to show their talent. It was fun. There was some busking, but it became a nuisance for the restaurants, so it soon stopped. From the third edition onwards, Ludo started working with Buzz, a guy I introduced him to who runs a U-Touring and who does a lot of interesting things. It was him who signed the Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segall, The Monsters, and the festival took off from the third year and it was something else altogether. And then Ludo trusted me as did the people from Nef (editor’s note: D Fous) also to get around 10 to 15 bands each year.

– Where do the other bands who play at the festival come from?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=8m54s) It’s Buzz, with a company called U-Touring. There are also bands from other places, but it’s really 95%. This way, when there is a trusting relationship in a small team, things move a lot faster in the community life. There are only three of us, so when I see associations with labels like ours, between 15 and 20 people: there are people working on publicity, the rest… I don’t want to spend the day on the phone and I don’t have the patience for it. So three is more than enough.

Rockin’Bones record shop – Rennes

– What is the proportion of vinyl sales in your shop Rockin’Bones?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=9m29s) Vinyl is 95% of sales. I have still got CDs, but I very rarely sell any. Today was an exception, I sold 5 CDs, but I sometimes don’t sell any for weeks, months even. CDs really have come to an end. Also, with the kind of music I sell, namely indie music, people want vinyl. They usually know music. A vinyl record is expensive, but at least there is something left. You can burn a CD easily, even varnish it, create some sort of ersatz. I’m open to every format, even though I have never had a CD player at home because it is not my generation. I grew up with records, I’ll live and die with records.

– Did you notice a rise in record sales in recent years?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=10m15s) A major increase. It is due to the revival of vinyl, everyone is going back to it. And in Rennes, there is a specific context, with a great number of great bands. So it’s buzzing with activity and youth, it is a great opportunity to show them something different through labels like mine or another. I would say that every generation is represented: there are a lot of 15-25 year olds and there are also people who go back to vinyl at the age of 60, which is quite odd. People who have used CDs for 20 years and who want to go back to vinyl.

– Are there any records you could recommend amongst your latest findings?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=11m04s) There’s one I just love, called Ooga Boogas. It’s Australian too, it came out in 2013 but I’ve only just discovered it because I recently found out about a label called AARGHT! (editor’s note: Records). They signed the Ausmuteants who headlined at the Binic festival. It’s a kind of synth/punk that is currently viral worldwide, and looking into the label, I said to myself ‘I’ll give it a try’ […] There is a label I love called Fat Possum, a huge label in the United-States, and they have reissued what was on CD to vinyl. Artists like Paul ‘Wine’ Jones, they were bluesmen who, generally, recorded their first album at the age of 75. They have had incredible lives. There is Leo Welch who I love, this guy recorded his first album at 81, he’s been a lumberer all his life. After that … on his own, he is currently travelling across the United-States to play gigs. It’s not only their life experience that’s a bit romantic, it’s their life that is a true life of blues. And all the bluesmen who come from this Fat Possum label, I’m a fan and I’m listening to a lot of new artists.

– How do you manage with all your activities?

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_N0qCGAn8TE&t=12m21s) It took me 10 years =). It snowballs: the more artists you sign up on your label, the more you get approached by other bands. Before, I used to reply to every single e-mail, but not any more. When you get 30 to 40 e-mails and you have to explain to someone that it’s not the label’s policy to produce this type of music and the guy won’t listen and tells you ‘come on, that can’t be right, we do great music, you have to produce us’… By the third mail, you know it will just go on forever and turn sour, so I just stopped replying. Because we just don’t have the time, if you have to reply to every single request… Romain does it from time to time, for friends of friends. Otherwise it’s just too much to handle. But I always listen to every demo I’m sent.