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2000 |
Despite the continuing tendencies in local DJ culture to follow the sounds of overseas there is more local music being produced than ever before. The National Independent Electronic Labels Conference that Kenny Sabir and I are organising along with a host of volunteers, has already got about seventy local labels signed up to attend and amongst the speakers are some of Australia’s most committed and long-serving independent producers, label owners and media folk. Not only the old-timers but also a raft of new labels and new artists from across the country. What was initially envisaged as a series of small-scale workshops has quickly sprawled into 25 sessions over three days and ten gigs co presented with Electrofringe, with over 120 local acts plus a few internationals. Hopefully this represents a shift towards two compatible goals. Firstly the expansion of locally produced electronic music through better national touring, national distribution, national media and intercity cooperation rather than rivalry. Second, the overwhelming sentiment being expressed by the old timers and new skool alike is one of wanting to keep independent creative control over their music be it hip hop or techno. During the process of organising this conference it has become increasingly apparent that there are many local artists who are better known overseas than even to local DJs. For every well known name like Ollie Olsen, who has spent the last 20 years moving between independent and major label projects, there are relative unknowns like Damien Donato who set up the internationally acclaimed and Adelaide-based Juice Records back in 1990 and has been steadily releasing and recording since. As electronic music continues its move into the mainstream the need to have a complementary and equally expanding community of artists who operate alongside their mainstream counterparts becomes all the more important if only to demonstrate that other ways of creative success other than radio-friendly pop hooks are possible. That electronic artists still feel the need to move to major labels to secure good national distribution, press coverage and national touring is indicative of the difficulties in Australia that are caused in part by our immense geographical spread. The Labels Conference has been set up to try to set up the building blocks for a network of independents that will offer electronic artists a way beyond the majors that still offers the benefits of size and scale that the majors hold as drawcards. Some of the sessions are technically focussed covering legal, financial and small business issues for labels and artists, but the vast majority are more broadly spread with the opportunity for people to hear the many and varied experiences of a variety of independents in the fields of production, distribution, promotion and touring. These sessions bring the opportunity for a sharing of knowledge and the building of community ties. Anyway, if you are an electronic artist or label, do try to come along as there will be a wealth of knowledge on hand to tap and contribute to. Register in person on the days (Oct 5-7) at Newcastle City Hall or in advance online at www.octapod.org.au/nielc where the full programme is online. And don’t forget the mass of gigs each night . . . . and in a year where it has been impossible to find a venue for Freaky Loops (although its still planned for summer), this is an event bigger in scale but as locally-committed as Freaky Loops. If you are back in Sydney for the Sunday then Frigid has the Kog Transmissions crew over from New Zealand to drop tracks on the 8th alongside local artist Bloq; whilst the 15th has members of Salmonella Dub live with DJ Neural. Yellow Peril (www.snarl.org)  Goto
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