Candyflip Records

Interview with A&R Manager

Author: Sequential-X
Date: May 1, 2002
Views: 2396

   

May 01, 2002 - Text: Sequential-X

Photos: Candyflip

1. How many people are involved with Candyflip and what is their job ?

Candyflip Records is a relatively new label based in Thessaloniki, Greece and consists of Stratos, Jon and Alexis (myself!!). Other team members (Candyflippers!!) include Alex and George (Candyflip Creations Team) and Christos (Candyflip Studio). Myself and Stratos form the Candyflip DJ Team and are involved in all the everyday operations as well as having the responsibility for the artistic direction of the label and overall coordination of activities. Jon provides invaluable support in many operational and strategic areas but has to face time-constraints in his involvement in the label due to heavy workload for other non-label related work activities. Regarding A&R, I am mostly occupied with international relations while Stratos takes care mostly of the domestic ones. We also handle our own distribution in Greece.

 
2. Candyflip Records another label ? Or a new bread of life ?

I would like to think of Candyflip as a new bread of label !!! We want to be as professional as possible regarding all our transactions and at the same time be friends with all the people we cooperate with (artists, distributors, other labels, party organizers etc.). This stems from the fact that we simply can not view Candyflip merely on strict business terms since it is directly associated with the music we love, our big circle of friends and our lifestyle in general.

 
3. What is the broader vision behind setting up a trance label (especially in Greece) ?

I believe that I have answered this question to a wide extent from my answer to your previous question. We view Candyflip twofold : first, as a professional record label releasing quality electronic music and secondly, as a potential umbrella-network that unites many good friends from the scene into cooperating creatively within their own field of interest (e.g. music production, graphics and web design/ mutlimedia, party decorations and interactive video projections, accessories and streetwear, organising of label parties, fire juggling etc.) for the benefit of all.

 

Candyflip Records Releases 1 (Wizzy Noise) and 2 (Etsi)

 

4. Recently I've heard that you expanded the Candyflip service product. Please mention any further info.

As I mentioned previously, a Candyflip Creations Team and Studio have been developed. The Candyflip Studio engineer is Christos (Igneous Sauria) who undertakes all mastering works for the label as well as other labels and individual artists. The Candyflip Creations Team consists of Alex and George who undertake web-design/multimedia and graphic design (flyers/posters, promotional material, cd artwork/cover design etc.) tasks respectively. Therefore, apart from our Candyflip music releases, we provide a product package to other labels/artists that includes music production as well as all necessary graphic design work (cd artwork/cover, flyers/posters, web-design) that may be required for a release. Please visit our site (www.candyflip-records.com) and contact us for more info.

 
5. Your first CD (Wizzy Noise) seems to be selling pretty well... Apart from that, the critics have been very kind to it. What shall we expect from the label in the future ?

The new Wizzy Noise album "Cyclotron" received superb critics worldwide and tracks from this cd are played by top djs at parties. Micky and Uriel, more mature than ever, have produced an outstanding album and have been playing with great success at parties all over the world.

Our upcoming release will be the first Candyflip compilation "ETSI", featuring 8 previously unreleased tracks by top artists such as : Wizzy Noise, EarGear, Das Medikament (Dj Aze, Charasmatix), Igneous Sauria, Skizofrenic Society (Kostas/ Phacelift- ex-Magus), Bent Sentient vs Pied Piper Paul and talented newcomers Drone and Unearthed.

Future releases include the second Candyflip-V.A. compilation, a cd single by Drone, the first Phacelift album by (Kostas/ Skizofrenic Society - ex-Magus) with the planning of more releases in the works, also including the release of chill-out music.

Chaishop Review of Cyclotron by Wizzy Noise

 
6. Could tell us who you think is the most influential man of all times regarding the trance scene (you can name bands also) ?

Mmmm…Ali Baba and the 40 thieves !!!…hahaha….No seriously, I don't think I am in a position to provide an answer to this question. I can tell you who my all-time favourite artists/ projects are : Rip van Hippy, Ray Casttle, Olie Olsen, Andrew Till, Nick Taylor, Sinister Association, Texas Faggott, Slinky Wizard and DIMO/Annunaki.
Current favourites include of course, all the artists releasing on our label and other projects such as Bitmonx, Paste, Phoney Orphants, Lando, Reefer Decree, Antix, Shakta.
Of course, these are my personal favourites and are not necessarily in line with the views of the other Candyflippers.

 
7. What is your opinion about the progressive sound ? Many people accuse it for not being psychedelic but pure nonsense noise. How do you comment on that ?

Firstly, I believe that people should not accuse music of belonging or not to a particular genre based on personal subjective beliefs on what is psychedelic and what is not e.g. I consider absurd the fact that many people consider only full-on goa as psychedelic and at the same time experimental music from Australia or Finland simply as wacky stuff but not psychedelic (!!). I have also noticed that the definition of the progressive sound varies significantly and there are no clear defining lines. For example, some people consider Son Kite as progressive while others Logic Bomb (!!). I prefer not to use such definitions and to adopt a broader vision of electronic music and its evolution through time. In my opinion, it is good to keep your horizons (and ears) open wide, to listen to various types of music, to be open to experimentation and crossover of styles…open-mindedness in general !!

 
8. Why should people buy your audio products? What is the thing you do differently than others ?

People should buy our cds if they like the music style we release, its production and the way it is presented to them. I would like to believe that the music we release is intelligent and that we are offering something different but I guess time (and people) will tell !!!

Regarding sales in general, I believe that people should support the music they love in more ways than simply going to parties. Buying a cd is definitely cheaper than most party expenses ; ) …and it surely lasts longer !!!!!

 
9. The competition field in Greece is getting really hot. Candyflip, Acidance, Loopsnoo, Devic Craft all of them seem to try and get their share from the market. Do you believe the native market is healthy or your label relies mostly in international sales ?

No Greek label can rely only on sales from the domestic market. However, the scene is evolving and expanding and clear evidence of this trend is the growing number of festivals taking place this summer in Greece. This would have been quite unthinkable two years ago. It is also very pleasing to see that many new local artists are emerging, which is a healthy sign for the scene in general.

From our point of view, the other Greek labels are not really competitive to Candyflip, simply because the music style of our releases is different. I believe that there is much more space available for potential cooperation among the Greek labels rather than competition. Cooperation can take place at different levels and often you achieve and gain much more by cooperating constructively rather than competing aimlessly.

 
10. Please do a small comment regarding the local scene in Thessaloniki ?

The local scene in Thessaloniki is expanding and some very talented new artists are emerging such as Drone, Unearthed and Proteus adding to the well established artist names such as : Wizzy Noise, Igneous Sauria, Skizofrenic Society/Phacelift (Kostas, ex-Magus) and Source Unknown. Now, regarding parties, there is a growing number of people going to parties that are held almost every weekend and often feature well-known international artists and djs. However, from the party/festival organizers, I would personally like to see firstly, more emphasis to be placed in quality and not in quantity and secondly, greater respect and better treatment towards local djs and artists and of course towards the party people !!!

IMO it is pathetic to see local djs and artists who have been recognized worldwide not receiving the respect they deserve in their own hometown while foreign djs/artists are being worshipped (!!) just for the sake of being foreign. In general, I would like to see more unity, respect and support at all levels among the trance people of Thessaloniki and the rest of Greece …less hypocrisy and more P.L.U.R. pleeeease !!!!!

 
Finally, I would like to thank you personally as well as the Chaishop for hosting this interview. You have been doing a very good job in the Greek section of the Chaishop for a long time now and you deserve full credits. We also want to thank the Chaishop, which is truly one of the cornerstones of the development of the trance scene on the Internet.

And, a wish….I would like to wish everyone a very happy festival time this coming summer !!!!!

Always think positive !!!!!…Keep smiling !!!!! ETSI !!!!! : )

 
Demos can be sent to the following postal address :

Candyflip Records
PO Box 50505
THESSALONIKI 54013
GREECE

Email : contact@candyflip-records.com
Web Site : www.candyflip-records.com

 

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