Interview with Pascal, director of CALIF and organizer of the Disquaire Day 2019
Who says April, says Disquaire Day! In a few days, on Saturday 13 April 2019, the ninth edition of this unmissable musical event will take place. For this occasion, we had the chance to meet Pascal, the director of CALIF (Club Action des Labels et des Disquaires Indépendants Français), the association that organizes the Disquaire Day (French Record Store Day).
– TO START, CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT CALIF?
CALIF was founded in 2002, at the instigation of a group of independent labels. It was when the record industry crisis had just emerged in France in a very violent way, after having hit all the other important markets and several independent producers had tried to find a solution to a situation that was becoming more and more difficult. They had the idea of setting up an aid system for independent record shops, a clever way to help independent labels since, of course, it is the record shops who sell the labels’ records. They knocked on the door of the Ministry of Culture, and they were listened. Since its creation, CALIF has helped 120 new record shops to establish themselves, and more than 20 others to sustain.
– SO YOU TOOK THE LEADERSHIP OF CALIF A YEAR AGO NOW. WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR CAREER WITH THIS ASSOCIATION?
I was very close to David Godevais, one of the founders of CALIF and who was the director for a long time, and I was treasurer of the structure during many years. When I left Harmonia Mundi, a very nice independent record company, for which I worked for more than ten years, CALIF was looking for a new director and I found it quite logical to propose my application…
– HAVE YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO WORK IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY?
I do not know if I wanted to. But in any way, it was done in a very natural way, and I realize that I had luck. I was a journalist specialized in culture and music for 25 years, I wrote several books, including one about Charles Trenet and another on Kraftwerk, and then I worked in record companies with very important identity: Island, the Warner group, harmonia mundi, exciting experiences since I could launch some projects, to sign catalogues, discover artists. I have had a huge chance and I know it.
– SO THAT IS CALIF THAT ORGANIZES THE ANNUAL DISQUAIRE DAY… COULD YOU TELL FEW WORDS ABOUT THIS ANNUAL EVENT, THAT HAS BECOME UNMISSABLE?
The Disquaire Day is the French version of the Record Store Day, an event born in the USA in 2008. The basic project is really to highlight the independent record stores, which are more and more mishandled between e-commerce and the big anonymous distribution stores that cut the prices and are really the antithesis of the independent record stores with a salesman who is here and advises, who shares his favorite products. Anyway, a culture ambassador!
– WHAT IS THE GOAL OF THIS DAY DEDICATED TO INDEPENDENT LABELS AND RECORD DEALERS?
It is clearly to put the independent record stores in the spotlight and reminding people of their role and importance.
The Disquaire Day takes place each year on a Saturday during April, and independent stores offer limited editions, mostly vinyl records, which record companies, independent labels as well as majors publish for the occasion. And I remind you that this international event that takes place in the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, and several European countries.
– WHAT ARE THE EVENTS PLANNED FOR THE DISQUAIRE DAY 2019?
Beyond all the highlights in the independent stores that offer showcases and dedications, there are a lot of concerts worth mentioning, such as a carte blanche to Etienne Daho at the Metronum in Toulouse, a DJ set by Dee Nasty who is one of the pioneers of hip hop culture in France in Paris place Sainte-Marthe. Note that all these events will be listed on the Disquaire Day website, disquaireday.fr. We always thought that the disc and recorded music are inherent to “live” music.
In addition, I would like to signal to several quite different partnerships that we are setting up this year: one with the Rivages Rouge publishing house on the occasion of the publication of a very lively and funny little book called “L’art de ranger ses disques”, another with the RATP which will lead to the publication of a map of the Parisian subway where all the independent record dealers in the capital will appear, and another with a microbrewery for a special Disquaire Day cuvée…
– HOW HAS THE DISQUAIRE DAY EVOLVED SINCE ITS CREATION? (INVOLVEMENT, RENOWN…)
Clearly, we have been from a very “indie” event to something that has become a reference date for the global industry, and everyone takes advantage from it, from the majors to the smallest labels, without forgetting of course the stores that often make their biggest sales of the year on that day. The Disquaire Day has really become a brand. There are three important things to highlight.
First of all, there has always been an international sponsor for the special event, generally an American musician or music band, this year it is Pearl Jam. But we also have for the very first time, a specific referrer for France, Arnaud Rebotini, who is a former record dealer and who is very present in the new electronic music scene. He won the César Award for the Best Film Music past year for “120 beats per minute”, and he also released two albums for the Disquaire Day: a re-release of his first record released in 2000 under the name of Zend Avesta, “Organique”, and music for a contemporary ballet, “Fix Me”.
And I think it is great to have on the one hand Pearl Jam as a sponsor for this Disquaire Day, because they symbolize the integrity of historic American rock, committed, close to Neil Young and all that… and on the other hand Arnaud Rebotini, who represents a whole generation of particularly open-minded French musicians who have listened to every kind of music and who prove that all the music of today forms a culture where everything comes together, from blues to electro, black music, jazz and pop. That is why the Disquaire Day is all about.
Then, beyond the events organized or relayed by CALIF of which I spoke earlier, there is also the fact that for several years the Disquaire Day radiates even beyond France since CALIF works on this occasion with independent stores of three bordering countries, Switzerland, Belgium and Luxembourg.
However, and without bury my hand in the sand, some drifts have appeared because the record market has always been wild and with a lot of competition, sometimes unfair. And today there are e-commerce sites and supermarket chains that offer selections stamped Disquaire Day, when they simply do not have the right to do because the Record Store Day and Disquaire Day are brands belonging to CALIF. For the selection of the records of the Disquaire Day, it could really be improved if all the labels played the game of the truly rare and interesting object instead of enabling easy profit with for example, re-releases of 33 rpm pressed on colored vinyl records, which too often have a rather limited interest. We have a lot of work to do about that, but it can only be achieved if everyone participates, big as small labels. For the latter, we are also thinking about ways to help them.
– FOR MANY YEARS NOW THERE HAS BEEN AN INCREASE IN VINYL RECORDS SALES. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS STRONG COMEBACK? FAD OR LASTING?
Ok, that is the most complex question you are asking me now. What is sure, is that today the two segments of the music industry that are progressing are vinyl records and streaming, while CDs are in decline. And the record, which the comeback was a fad a few years ago, has really become again for many people the support of reference, something that absolutely nobody could have predicted ten years ago. In the same way, we cannot predict if it will last, especially with the same exponential curve. If I risked a hypothesis, I would say that vinyl record and CD are going to become two big niche markets that will evolve in a parallel and maybe complementary way; many labels offer vinyl editions that also include a CD.
– THIS YEAR WILL BE THE NINTH EDITION OF THE DISQUAIRE DAY, WHICH WILL CELEBRATE ITS 10TH ANNIVERSARY NEXT YEAR! SOME THINGS TO SHARE WITH US TO CELEBRATE THIS ANNIVERSARY?
Of course, we want to take advantage of these ten candles to build an even stronger event. We are currently looking for a sponsor who agrees to accompany us, and for promotion and marketing discussions have started with potential partners. I cannot say much more today.
– ARE YOU A VINYL LOVER? IF YES, ON WHICH TURNTABLES DO YOU LISTEN TO YOUR RECORDS?
Before answering your question, please allow me a little preamble. We could make a round table with fifty specialists who would discuss for three months about the respective advantages of vinyl records, CDs and dematerialized music. Well, no one would agree and everyone would be right because the subject is to complex and full of prejudices, traps and caltrops …I listen to all medias, and even more tapes. Regarding to my records, I recently had a Rega turntable, repaired and modernized, which is not very young but perfectly suits me. In addition, it is beautiful when it turns with the very elegant “tripod” platter…
– THANK YOU PASCAL 🙂