From Blue Frog to Mummy Daddy. We are not talking about evolution, we are talking about the many independent labels that have been flooding the metros in the past few months. They are the patron saints of little-known musicians who are not singing Bollywood tunes or even the staple pop numbers. They are about music that goes way beyond mainstream tunes.
?All outlets of music today are restricted to Bollywood and indie-pop. And it is hard to believe that in a country as diverse as ours, people are not interested in listening to newer genres and fresh artists. Independent labels thus create a platform for the niche music to surface and be discovered,? says Amrish Kumar, Director, Mummy Daddy Records (MDR), which launched just last month with the release of its first compilation of independent artists ? Jalebee Cartel, Shaa?ir n Func International, Bandish Project and Midival Punditz ? from varied genres such as progressive house, rhythmic rock and even Indian funk.
?The Indian music industry is changing. It is moving towards a different business model. And independent labels are a key driver in this change ? offering undiluted attention to their artists and audience,? adds Akshai Sarin, an Indian producer, composer and a DJ, who started Rebirth Records, to fill a major gap in the music economy ? which lies between what a creator wants and what the bigger labels emphasise on doing.
Major labels by definition are those that own their own distribution channel and generally have a brand value in the market. This explains why they are more profit driven, with their focus on commercial music. ?When a major label makes huge monetary investments in its artists, it is bound to seek returns. And returns come from mainstream music. However, the indie labels can take the risk of experimenting with newer genres of music since their initial investment is not as high,? explains Shatadru Sarkar, Artistes & Repertoire (A&R), Saregama.
So while a major label invests anywhere between Rs10-80 lakh in their artists ? to record, manage and promote them ? smaller labels do the same things at a much lower cost. Dogma Tone Records, for instance, put together a compilation of rock bands, The First Mutiny: Dogmas of Indian Rock, from across the country, at an investment of Rs 1 lakh a year ago. ?A lot of bands have been putting out their music for free on the internet to get visibility and spread awareness about their music. We wanted the entire rock scene to be recognised as a serious entity and started Dogma Tone Records,? says Bangalore-based Ramprakash L. He started the label with two friends, Sunil Anand and Varun R, who hold down full-time IT jobs and work on the music over the weekend.
?The cost of getting a band together and getting into a studio to record eight tracks could range from Rs 50,000 to Rs 2 lakh. Nowadays, many musicians master their own tracks so that the cost gets absorbed and production expenses depend on the number of tracks put out,? says Samiran Gupta, founder of Indiabeat, which embarked as a web radio for world music in 2006 and was recently launched as a music label too, bringing out the works of Indian and international artists such as Amit Heri, Amit Chatterjee and Sanjay Mishra ? spanning Indian classical, folk, jazz and even Indian progressive rock.
While the major labels remain risk averse, getting an indie label going could be akin to guerilla warfare. In April last year, musician Raghu Dixit decided to give up his search for a musical career, after being turned down by most of the labels. But at his solo gig at Zenzi in Mumbai, which he decided was going to be his last performance, the folksy tunes impressed Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravijani (the Vishal-Shekhar duo). That was enough to swing an album deal for Raghu Dixit on their label, Counter Culture Record. The seven-track album titled Raghu Dixit released in February this year, has been a huge success. ?Every artist?s preference is to be signed with a major label. It?s only when that doesn?t work, that independent labels come into the picture,? says Rajeeta Hemwani, VP, A&R, Universal, who also adds ?The reason being that while the smaller labels are driven by their passion for music, it?s very difficult for a lot of them to sustain themselves considering the kind of economics involved. Hence, sustainance is the biggest challenge for any small label, both in terms of money and distribution.?
While the indie labels may be bringing together artists not just from India but abroad as well, they are free to work with other labels too. ?It?s about getting the music out there. More the merrier,? says Gupta. Another label that was recently launched by musician Nikhil Mahajan and Bawa Mohit Singh along with Supermodel Joey Matthews is Audio Ashram. ?It?s a platform for offbeat digital musicians,? says Mahajan, who has been in the industry for 12 years and is better known for projects like Sattyananda, Kalyug and Shiva Central. The label already boasts of international artists as well. London-based Pete Lockett, a multi-percussionist, is an example, who has worked with artists such as Robert Plant and Steve Smith but is finally releasing his first solo album in India on Gupta?s label. ?It is important that the CDs become available in the stores and there is some sort of push and sales initiative to continue awareness of the release. Be it a smaller or larger label, it should get great distribution,? says Lockett, who is also releasing his albums with Music Today and Saregama later this year.
And it is this distribution network which the indie labels need to strengthen. While it?s a time consuming process, the answer lies in having harmonious tie-ups with bigger record companies. As the Mumbai-based Blue Frog records has tie ups with Sony BMG for distribution, IndiaBeat has collaborated with EMI and MDR has Times Music distributing and Raghu Dixit?s album was distributed by Saregama. ?The music stores in India take your approach seriously only when you go via a distribution channel? says a hopeful Ramprakash, who admits to finally having tied up with Underscore records for distribution of their second release by the end of this year.
Looks like commerce might not be the only driver for the big labels either who are opening up to the growing phenomenon of indie music. While Saregama recently launched a three series underground album, Universal, which has had mainstream artistes such as Josh, Babul Supriyo and Malkit Singh on its list, is also now looking at a reinvention of the label with a focus on new-age music. ?There is a lot of quality music, away from the mainstream stuff that one has been hearing, which needs to be tapped. And that is why we are willing to experiment with all kinds of sounds. Yet, commercials have to be kept in mind while running a label,? says Hemwani, who recently released their Indian solo act, Gaurav, as a part of their re-invention and are also working with a Pakistani percussion outfit called Overload. ?There is space to do new things, but a major label cannot entirely focus on the niche content,? adds Sarkar, who is also looking for avenues to release solo rock and fusion acts in the coming months.
?Major labels function as a pipeline for music exposure, while indie labels function as a support system,? says Sarin, whose company has now entered the global artist management field, with digital music distribution in 26 countries. And whether it is competition or collaboration, the music should play on.