LABEL INTERROGATION:
SPOON TRAIN AUDIO
The SiS Interview by Dany Sloan

The record label is the real distributor of albums. Not iTunes, not some link you found on a message board, but an actual organization that was founded by a person or group of people who have a passion for music and wish to spread it upon the masses. We here at Stranded in Stereo love music and labels so much that we've started a new column entitled Label Interrogation where we sit down for a chat with the people behind the logos on the back of those CDs and LPs.

Four our second interrogation in the series, we checked in with Simen Herning of the Olso-based Spoon Train Audio, home to such great artists as My Little Pony, Simon Says No!, and the Little Hands of Asphalt.

SIS: Hi Simen, for our readers who do not know, what is your record label and when/where did it start?

SH: Our label has always been all about the bands. We started it as both a label and a booking agency called Spoon Train Audio in the fall of 2007, and released some cd-r's and My Little Pony’s first EP. Since that time we've grown a bit, and at a point in 2008 we found out that we were doing booking and management for a bit too many bands to run as a real label. We started talking to some other norwegian up-and-coming promoters, and 1st of january 2009 the booking division of Spoon Train was put together with two other agencies to make Spoon Train Live. As a result of that, Spoon Train Audio is now only a label. We've mainly focused on the emerging indiepop/shoegaze scene of Oslo, but as a result of the merging with the other two agencies, we now also work with some bands from Bergen, and we have a booking office there.

SIS: What releases do you have on your plate for 2009?

SH: 2009 started of nice with the debut album from Lama, a young guy who used to play in the legendary jazz/postrock/whatever-tentet Jaga Jazzist. His record is a bit electronic, and a bit post-rockish. Then we released the first EP of Simon Says No! in february, just in time for by:Larm. Next, we're releasing one of my absolute favorites, the Bright Eyes-esqe indie/country band The Little Hands of Asphalt. My guess is that this record will be on everyone’s Top 10 of the best Norwegian records in 2009. It's fantastic.

In early may, we'll be releasing the second album of the band Cold Mailman. They play some kind of hardcore-influenced indiepop, and have a small, but growing fan base. Check their MySpace for the best Sonic Youth homage-tune ever, "Time is of the essence". Also in may, My Little Pony’s debut album from 2008 will be released in Sweden, Japan and the Philippines, with distribution all over Asia. Then, we head out for festivals. The festival bookings are coming in fast now, I think it's gonna be a swell summer. The upcoming fall is a bit in the dark so far, the second Lama LP is going to be released September 7th, and it's a post rock monster. Six guys in the live line-up now, and with strings, horns and walls of noise I suspect it will turn some heads.

SIS: Some of our pragmatic readers right now are surely wondering why you would start a label when it surely will make you lose lots of money. Tell us how you plan to make Spoon Train Audio successful?

SH: I think that Spoon Train is already quite successful. We have the ability to pick up emerging Norwegian artists and make them known to the world. Financially speaking, I don't have any high hopes. Our policy is to let the bands take most of the costs on their records. I mean, it's no problem to gain enough cash from gigging to get a record recorded and printed, and my experience is that if a band pays for their own record, they are willing to put a lot more effort into promoting it. The kind of band that think that when they get a record deal, they can lean back and enjoy the ride is not the kind of band Spoon Train is interested in working with.

SIS: It's safe to say that STA is artist friendly, but we all know that the music industry is a business. How do you balance the needs of your artists with your real life business needs? I wouldn't really call what we do business. Right now we're making enough money to reach breakeven for most of our releases. Our business plan is this: the artists cover most of the expenses through gigs, and then we at the label work our asses of to make the record sell. Whatever comes back, both from gigs and from record sales, we split even.

SIS: Do you have any employees? What are your roles within the label?

SH: We don't have any employees, but we have the possibility to pay some of our staff when they work on projects that gain cash. We pay our "employees" the same way we pay our bands. If you work hard enough to gain a decent turnout, the money is split between you and the label.

SIS: As a label based in Norway, what difficulties are there getting your music out to the other Scandinavian territories and the world at large?

SH: I feel that it’s easier than ever to get the music out there. Whenever we release a record, people from all over the world orders it through our webshop. Quite nice! Also, through music conventions like by:Larm in Oslo, we have the possibility of getting in touch with good spirited people who wants to help getting our music around the world. We haven't really done that much international work yet, but I suspect that we will run into some difficulties when we next fall start a big project together with a German booking agency for releasing a new wave of great Norwegian bands onto the German territories.

SIS: Lastly, what advice would give anyone thinking of starting his or her own record label?

SH: Sure. It's really just to do it, as they say in Nike. I don't think anyone can teach you how to run a label, you have to learn it the hard way. My best advice is this: If you feel like making money become a real estate broker.