The word "indie" seems to have lost its meaning. If multi-platinum bands such as the Kooks, Razorlight and Snow Patrol are categorized as "indie", isn't the definition — a label run as a cottage industry, supporting new or esoteric music — now dead? In fact, the old ideal of indie, as in "independent", is in ruder health than it has been for years. While the rest of the record industry is grappling with the demons of piracy and declining record sales, new independent labels, many of them digital-only or single-band affairs, are sprouting at a faster rate than at any time since the birth of the sector in the aftermath of punk.
With MySpace and YouTube firmly established in music's promotional circus, anyone with a demo and a spare evening can potentially become a mini record-company mogul. Find yourself an artist and upload their music to the web via a chart registered online store, such as IndieStore.com, and you're in business.
According to Adam Taylor, head of digital at Ministry of Sound (whose download store sells contributions from 2,500 labels), independents were quicker to grasp the potential of the digital world. "It's easy to set up a label deal with a download store. There are bedroom DJs producing amazing tracks and putting them out, there and then," he said.
With recent changes in the rules allowing download-only tracks in the charts, it is now theoretically possible to score a top-40 hit without leaving your bedroom. This weekend, unsigned English three-piece Koopa are expected to enter the chart on download sales alone. "If I started out now, all I would be doing is pressing up a few seven-inch singles for the collectors' market, and then putting things out digitally. It's so cheap," says Alan McGee, the Creation Records founder turned Internet evangelist and artist manager.
Daniel Tickner set up Wi45 last year, one of several labels doing just that, and on a shoestring budget. "The future of the album is a bit uncertain. But while people can download a song for GBpence 79, the single will prosper again. It made sense to marry the two formats. In a way, it feels like we're going back to the 1950s and 1960s in that it's all about the songs again. It's a good leveler," he said.
Reversing the trend
At the other end of the scale, Franz Ferdinand's decision to sign for Laurence Bell's Domino Records in 2003 is viewed as a watershed moment in reversing the trend for artists to sign for the biggest check. The example of Alex Kapranos and co was followed by Bloc Party, who signed to London's Wichita and are about to release their second album, A Weekend in the City, and Arctic Monkeys, who also followed Franz Ferdinand to Domino.
"Franz's success was a huge factor in Bloc Party signing to us. Everyone was after them, but Franz were having their first hits and it showed an indie could compete with majors for the first time in a long time," says Mark Bowen, the co-founder of Wichita. "It's been great to think that in the last couple of years we can compete when it comes to signing artists with major labels, because artists are more savvy about what we can offer. Managers and bands have become a lot more aware in terms of creative development, and the indies have been better at providing that."
The ability of indie labels to adapt to digital technology has been crucial, suggests Alison Wenham, chair of trade group the Association of Independent Music. "All change signals a rethink," she says. "Independents by their very nature are small, flexible, light- footed early adopters. Anything new tends to evoke a 'he who dares wins' mentality rather than a defensive attitude." Moreover, say the optimists, the Internet is helping the cream rise to the top as recommendation engines and amateur podcasts become more sophisticated — and if indie labels are attuned to this, they are in a position to take advantage.
Crucial, too, is the fact that being indie is no longer seen as an ideological stance, so indie labels are now happy to engage with the corporate world if it means providing some financial security and getting artists heard. Many labels put as much effort into so-called "synch" deals with adverts or movies as they once did to getting into the NME (New Musical Express newspaper) and on to John Peel's BBC radio show — a trend started when every track of Moby's Play album, released on the indie label Mute, ended up being licensed for film, TV or advertising. Peace Frog's Pete Hutchison is quick to point out the effect the Sony Bravia campaign, memorably featuring Jose Gonzalez's Heartbeats, had on that artist's career. He hopes for similar things from Findlay Brown, who soundtracks a new Mastercard ad.
The biggest challenge to the indie sector remains the need to adapt to the longterm decline of the wider industry. McGee has long insisted that the Internet will revolutionize the music business. Today, he says he went into artist management because he saw which way the wind was blowing. “It's a great time for music. But the record companies have finally worked out they're on the losing team. Whether you do it yourself through MySpace, or on a label, the record is just the smallest part. It's all based on a model born of the 1970s and 1980s. It doesn't apply to 2007.”
Barriers to entry
Most observes agree that both majors and indies face a challenge turning their bands' profiles into revenue. Even for indies with popular acts, the galvanizing effect of the Internet can be overstated when it comes to the bottom line. The majority of profits now come from the booming live scene and merchandise, with the might of the supermarkets, the travails of high-street record stores and excessive discounting slicing the revenues a label can make from selling music ever thinner.
And though indie labels might be booming in number, it's still hard for them to make their impact in “old media” promotion. “There is still a massive barrier to entry in radio, TV and retail,” says Bowen. “You try putting out your own record and getting it played on Radio 1 (the BBC's flagship pop music station) or in the NME or on MTV.” And though it is easier than ever to launch a label, the gap between putting out a few tracks a month and establishing a secure business is getting bigger.
Meanwhile, some are starting to question whether new acts will need record labels of any kind. The test case for whether a band can do it on their own is likely to be Enter Shikari. The band, who fuse techno and metal to form an improbably melodious whole, are widely tipped to be a success this year. Rather than signing to a label, they have done their own publishing deal — the one that brings in the money for songwriting — and signed a deal with Integral, a new marketing division launched by sales and distribution company Vital to aid independent labels and acts (Integral has already worked with Jose Gonzalez). The deal allows Enter Shikari to retain control of their recordings, while Integral provides the marketing — and Vital's parent company, PIAS, has licensed Enter Shikari's future recordings for European release.
Vital's managing director, Pete Thompson, believes Enter Shikari, with their ready-made fan-base, will prove an exception rather than the rule. “I knew they were an incredibly exciting band the first moment I saw them. It became apparent that we could build a support structure around a band rather than a record label. But the idea that Enter Shikari could signal the death of the label is a bit dramatic.”
Tony Wilson, who founded Factory Records, is intrigued by Enter Shikari. “They understand that the first deal they have to do is a publishing deal,” he says. “They are the first unsigned band to sell out the Astoria, they got chased by every label. But one of the greatest things you can have as an artist is freedom.” And the publishing deal provides that.
Whatever the financial pressures, McGee still believes the sort of colorful characters who drove the expansion of the indie sector will still play a pivotal role in bringing new artists to our attention. “There's always going to be a place for boutique record labels and characters like [Rough Trade founder] Geoff Travis and [Heavenly's] Jeff Barrett. Strong artists are always going to want to work with maverick individuals.” If anything, he believes, the personal seal of approval will become more, not less, important.
Yet, in the best traditions of trudging around grotty venues in search of the next big thing, most retain a reassuring faith in the creative potential of independent labels to prosper in the Internet age. Or, as Wilson puts it: “It's exactly the same as ever. If you get a great band, it's piss-easy. If you don't, it's bloody difficult.”
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