Sometimes I feel like I can't stand all this "myspacefacebookfriendsterandsoon" thing anymore: this wide corporation, never-ending networking, globalization of millions of people on a same platform, synthesized our personality, reducing each person to a group or a same charter, being friend of your friends, insatiability, this eternal and irremediable idea of being cool. And finally we're all under control.
Sometimes it doesn't matter anymore, because of trivial encounters, bands or labels from far lands where it is good to remember that things are also happening there.
Kindassault is a label from the Philippines, run by Joffy and his little sister.
Manila sounds really exciting to me.
Joffy, you just started a record label called Kindassault. Where do you come from?
I was born in Manila and moved to San Franciso when I was 6 and moved back to Manila when I was fourteen. I got into rock music started writing music. I formed my first band with my cousin and his friends when I was in college. A few years ago I formed The Dorques. We're recording our first album right now. About six months ago I started Kindassault. I've always been into drawing, video games and music.
Most of the bands of your upcoming compilation (to be released in April 2008) are from Asia, and some from Europe or the USA. How did you find all these bands?
Everyone was found on myspace except Endofcontracts who doesn't have a myspace account and Miami. Endofcontracts invited my band to play at his birthday and a few weeks later we played a gig with him which is how I discovered his music. Rupert, my promoter friend from Vietnam got Miami to play in Ho Chi Minh City several times and suggested I get them to play in Manila to help promote Kindassault. That was a great idea.
I am really curious to know more about the Philippines and the artistic scene over there.
How is the political situation in terms of culture in the Philippines?
Oh well I try to stay away from politics in this country. It's a big mess. I can tell you a few things that have happened in the past though. In the last 20 years we've had a couple regime changes and a few additional attempts.
I think it stems from a sort of childishness, jealousy, selfishness and fickleness. People aren't content with the people in power unless it's them. There are already a lot of people who are very cynical about the government and have lost faith in the system.
There's also a lack of unity in the country. The Philippines is an archipelago with thousands of islands and a lot of different languages and dialects. Tagalog and English (which was imposed on us by Amercians when they colonized our country) are the two official languages of the country. So if you're from say, Cebu your first language will be Cebuano and the other two follow. How would you feel voting for a president who campaigns for your votes using an "imperial" or "foreign" language?
My Spanish teacher just told me today that the Spanish national anthem had no official lyrics so that the non-Castillian regions wouldn't feel alienated. This type of thinking would seem very foreign in our political culture.
What's about the pop culture and the independent scene in the Philippines?
It's developing. Five years ago it was smaller plus I was less open-minded so I wasn't interested at all. Now there are more interesting bands and more pop culture/underground shops. It's quite exciting really cuz I get to see the scene evolve and grow as well as be a part of it.
What are your musical references?
Well when I was a child I liked pop music like Billy Joel and Tears for Fears which I saw on MTV and my dad got me into his music like the Doobie Brohers and Supertramp . In San Francisco my cousin introduced me to hip hop when I was about 10 and I really got into rap listening to late night underground radio programs. I recorded their shows on tape and I wish still had them. When I moved to Manila there was hardly any hip hop on the radio so I got into rock and indie music. Plus it was accessible. I went through an emo phase as well. Then I got into the whole ecstasy thing and got into trance, chillout (cafe del mar CDs) and eventually house. Now my taste is just sum of all the music I've listened to I suppose. I also listen to other types of music like random French stuff like Francoise Hardy and Dionysos, random Japanese stuff like Supercar and Shibuya-kei, classical, opera and experimental on the side. I think the coolest songs ever made are Genius of Love by Tom Tom Club, Gymnopedie by Erik Satie and Avril14th by Aphex Twin.
Do you want to get some visibility in Europe?
Europe's definitely a place where I want to get some visibility. It would be great to travel there and meet other artists. I think it would be a great place to get some ideas and inspiration because simply, there are more artists there and Europe has a long history of music, art, and culture. I think it's also because the people are very open-minded and progressive so it's really conducive for creating new ideas. Japan is another place with a lot of great art and I'd love to do a few projects there.
As you just started your record label, what's your opinion on digital music?
I'm addicted to music. I don't even buy CDs anymore. The only CDs I have are the ones given to me by independent bands or the ones I buy from independent bands. When you hear a great song all that matters is the feeling you get from listening to it (over and over in my case) and the digital format is the best way to go because I listen to most of my music either on my computer or phone. I still need a CD though when I play my music at a bar.
Do you think it's important to make an effort on the artwork of a cd?
I believe that artwork is very important because of the existence of digital music. People need a reason to buy a CD and not just download it. Because really, who needs the CD when you can download the music. CDs just take up space. They should be sold in plastic boxes or something else that is functional and can be reused.
For the Kindassault compilation I want the packaging to be unique and have really nice artwork because I want people to buy it for the artwork as well as the music. I think both should be a reason to buy a CD. With digital music readily available you need to give your customers a reason to buy the CD instead of downloading it.
I thought of creating packaging where the person who buys it can just upload the songs to their computer or mp3 player and discard the casing. Most products are sold this way anyway. It's the end product,which is the music that counts. Or maybe the casing can be folded into origami or fold out into artwork which can be hung on your wall.
www.kindassault.com (coming next month)
Sometimes it doesn't matter anymore, because of trivial encounters, bands or labels from far lands where it is good to remember that things are also happening there.
Kindassault is a label from the Philippines, run by Joffy and his little sister.
Manila sounds really exciting to me.
Joffy, you just started a record label called Kindassault. Where do you come from?
I was born in Manila and moved to San Franciso when I was 6 and moved back to Manila when I was fourteen. I got into rock music started writing music. I formed my first band with my cousin and his friends when I was in college. A few years ago I formed The Dorques. We're recording our first album right now. About six months ago I started Kindassault. I've always been into drawing, video games and music.
Most of the bands of your upcoming compilation (to be released in April 2008) are from Asia, and some from Europe or the USA. How did you find all these bands?
Everyone was found on myspace except Endofcontracts who doesn't have a myspace account and Miami. Endofcontracts invited my band to play at his birthday and a few weeks later we played a gig with him which is how I discovered his music. Rupert, my promoter friend from Vietnam got Miami to play in Ho Chi Minh City several times and suggested I get them to play in Manila to help promote Kindassault. That was a great idea.
I am really curious to know more about the Philippines and the artistic scene over there.
How is the political situation in terms of culture in the Philippines?
Oh well I try to stay away from politics in this country. It's a big mess. I can tell you a few things that have happened in the past though. In the last 20 years we've had a couple regime changes and a few additional attempts.
I think it stems from a sort of childishness, jealousy, selfishness and fickleness. People aren't content with the people in power unless it's them. There are already a lot of people who are very cynical about the government and have lost faith in the system.
There's also a lack of unity in the country. The Philippines is an archipelago with thousands of islands and a lot of different languages and dialects. Tagalog and English (which was imposed on us by Amercians when they colonized our country) are the two official languages of the country. So if you're from say, Cebu your first language will be Cebuano and the other two follow. How would you feel voting for a president who campaigns for your votes using an "imperial" or "foreign" language?
My Spanish teacher just told me today that the Spanish national anthem had no official lyrics so that the non-Castillian regions wouldn't feel alienated. This type of thinking would seem very foreign in our political culture.
What's about the pop culture and the independent scene in the Philippines?
It's developing. Five years ago it was smaller plus I was less open-minded so I wasn't interested at all. Now there are more interesting bands and more pop culture/underground shops. It's quite exciting really cuz I get to see the scene evolve and grow as well as be a part of it.
What are your musical references?
Well when I was a child I liked pop music like Billy Joel and Tears for Fears which I saw on MTV and my dad got me into his music like the Doobie Brohers and Supertramp . In San Francisco my cousin introduced me to hip hop when I was about 10 and I really got into rap listening to late night underground radio programs. I recorded their shows on tape and I wish still had them. When I moved to Manila there was hardly any hip hop on the radio so I got into rock and indie music. Plus it was accessible. I went through an emo phase as well. Then I got into the whole ecstasy thing and got into trance, chillout (cafe del mar CDs) and eventually house. Now my taste is just sum of all the music I've listened to I suppose. I also listen to other types of music like random French stuff like Francoise Hardy and Dionysos, random Japanese stuff like Supercar and Shibuya-kei, classical, opera and experimental on the side. I think the coolest songs ever made are Genius of Love by Tom Tom Club, Gymnopedie by Erik Satie and Avril14th by Aphex Twin.
Do you want to get some visibility in Europe?
Europe's definitely a place where I want to get some visibility. It would be great to travel there and meet other artists. I think it would be a great place to get some ideas and inspiration because simply, there are more artists there and Europe has a long history of music, art, and culture. I think it's also because the people are very open-minded and progressive so it's really conducive for creating new ideas. Japan is another place with a lot of great art and I'd love to do a few projects there.
As you just started your record label, what's your opinion on digital music?
I'm addicted to music. I don't even buy CDs anymore. The only CDs I have are the ones given to me by independent bands or the ones I buy from independent bands. When you hear a great song all that matters is the feeling you get from listening to it (over and over in my case) and the digital format is the best way to go because I listen to most of my music either on my computer or phone. I still need a CD though when I play my music at a bar.
Do you think it's important to make an effort on the artwork of a cd?
I believe that artwork is very important because of the existence of digital music. People need a reason to buy a CD and not just download it. Because really, who needs the CD when you can download the music. CDs just take up space. They should be sold in plastic boxes or something else that is functional and can be reused.
For the Kindassault compilation I want the packaging to be unique and have really nice artwork because I want people to buy it for the artwork as well as the music. I think both should be a reason to buy a CD. With digital music readily available you need to give your customers a reason to buy the CD instead of downloading it.
I thought of creating packaging where the person who buys it can just upload the songs to their computer or mp3 player and discard the casing. Most products are sold this way anyway. It's the end product,which is the music that counts. Or maybe the casing can be folded into origami or fold out into artwork which can be hung on your wall.
www.kindassault.com (coming next month)
