BRCast 55: Movement Recordings Label Showcase (interview with Tash)

I am pleased to welcome you to the BRC Label showcase interview, your participation is greatly appreciated. We thank you for the mix and the time you have invested in preparing for everything that BRC requested.

What made you create this label? Why? What is the idea and inspiration behind it?

Hey guys, first of all thanks so much for having me, it’s a pleasure to share ideas,t houghts & facts with BRC. The encouragement from some great artists and friends suchas Andy Moor, Kasey Taylor& more back in the day, for me and my former partner-in-crime Stage Van H in order to be able to release our music independently was the main reason that Movement Recordings was found back in 2008.

How long had the idea of a label been on your mind before its official launch? What were the challenges running up to its launch?

Well, it wasn’t long time before the launch, I think 12 months before the launch the main decision was made. Back then, we had absolutely no expectations or goals, just to be able to release our friends’ and own music, and here we are now. Many things have changed after 5-6 years, coming to a point of releasing some great music and seeing the label growing & gaining fans, followers & supporters.

What is the inspiration behind the logo and artwork?

Our philosophy is to create or be part of a music Movement giving our fans, followers & supporters a variety of high quality electronic sounds. Each and every release artwork is inspired by the concept and contents of them, keeping at the same time the people aware & recognizing Movement through its artworks.

What genre of music the label hosts and what do you look for specifically in a track that gives you that sense of belonging in a track to release it on your platform?

We’ve been always progressive people, not just as a genre but as a state of mind. I strongly believe that music is evolving the same way a human being or brain is. For this reason, and although Movement became known mainly in the Progressive House world, what we’ve always been looking for is “Quality dance music to shake you @$$”. If we have this result, it does the job! So you can find plenty of music on Movement–and our new sub-label Movement Limited-varying from Electonica, Breaks, Deep House, Melodic House & Techno and of course Progressive House.

In terms of demos, how do you accept, review and reject from all the thousands you receive? What are the challenges in sifting through the boat load of demos you receive for releases and the communication you maintain with aspirants?

It’s so honoring to receive numerous demos every week. People’s choice so a great reward for what me and my partners/team have been trying to build all these years. Demos pass from our Label Manager/A&R Stavros for the first ‘filtering’ part based on the genre variety we’re able to support and release, and those who qualify are on the table, for me and rest of our great team to listen, review, maybe try in gigs and come up with a decision/response on it. I’ve always wanted to be as fast as possible on replies inr espect of the artists trusting us with their music, but sometimes it might take several weeks to come up with a super-final decision for every demo.

How many VA and compilations do you release in a year and what kind of tracks you choose? What kind of artists do you select for the VA? Basically what purpose does a VA serve to a label

So far we’ve been doing max 2 VA’s per year which lately became 3. Each compilation has a different concept and philosophy in the back. ‘Technical Progress’ has been our major series, releasing music from prog to techno through label artists of Movement and friends we’ve been releasing. ‘GLBLMVMT’ series is the second one, focusing in every volume/edition to a different country/scene where we are proud to be represented from some inspiring regional producers/artists. Newest compilation series is Prog:Noesisthrough which we try to showcase freshest talented producers sharing music with Movement. We always try to have limited track on compilations, are we believe 5-6tracks are enough to tell a good story, what do you think?

Which one has been a highlight release and why?

The first release that made me change the whole concept and take my chances of doing something bigger, was when I invited the Grand Maestro of Prog House, HernanCattaneo, after all his priceless support on our music to work on 2 remixes for Movement. That was a huge milestone and it still makes my eyes wet when I remember the whole treatment and reaction from Hernan .. Its really important to always remember where you come from, and its so beautiful to see such legends giving you the energy and power to become better each and every other day!

What do you expect from new talent when you sign them? What makes you reject them from releasing on your label?

Well, if we sign new talents then trust me we expect A LOT. it’s very hard to be touched by music from new talents lately but when it’s done, its definitely something worthy to invest time, work & effort! I can tell you that we reject any demo that comes with already 30-40 plays before we get. I really believe every artist must set goals and not randomly try to get music signed in any label without a concept or philosophy on the back. We also reject artists that ignore our demo policy and before we give a response in 3-4 weeks deadline, they get the music signed on other labels. Patience is a huge privilege, and trust me back in the day we have been waiting for semesters or years to get our signed releases out. So be loyal to your goals and patient, time will bring everything on the right moment.

From your country, which other label is pushing the same music as you are and how do you think everyone is helping push the local producers?

Greece has a small but great history with electronic music labels.. One of my fav Greeklabel used to be Klik Records releasing some great artists including Dousk, B.I.G as well as The Sound of Everything and the old Planetworks which really pushed the golden era of Prog House artists from Greece. Right now, in the digital era there aresome wonderful labels doing their very best, labels like Nikko.Z’s Dopamine Music, and Ziger’s Eat My Hat in Prog House, Us & Them in Melodic Techno, Madorasindahouse in Afro/Melodic House, and I believe more new labels from great minds will soon follow. All these labels are helping out the scene to grow, make more inspired artists come to the forefront and test their skills. I must not forget to mention our brother-label Astral Records, our new Melodic Techno imprint ran by me and my brother-in-rhythm Paul Anthonee.

What kind of support do you look for from artists and other parties in promoting your music worldwide? What are the challenges in promoting music to corners of the world where you may not be as popular as in your home country.

We’re always happy to receive support and plays from local local heroes to huge global artists.. Official artist charts always help, as well as radio support and any feature. We try to be generous in promoting and advertising our music and artists globally. Usually artists are more wanted/requested outside of their homelands. For me its very important to adapt and adjust according each region’s market rules or conditions. Of course from place to place, fans & followers and popularity of artists vary or differ. But it’s a great challenge to follow up things and create a good flow on what we do.