Thoughts regarding the current state of Matador

[ericseguy]

Before I begin this short list of thoughts/questions regarding what I percieve to be the current state of Matador, I would first like to say that Matador always has been and will be my favorite label, and that if I hadn't bought that Yo La Tengo album several years ago, I never would have known such a thing as indie rock existed. So, here goes:

As someone pointed out in my thread about Matador possibly releasing another compilation, the Matador rosters of today and yesteryear couldn't possibly be more different. And after thinking about it, I think I know what it is. Whereas in the past, Matador seemed to have a few "marquee" bands (Pavement, Yo La Tengo, et cetera) and many "minor" bands who dabbled in more experimental work (Console, Lesser, Pell Mell, MC Paul Barman, Jega, Demolition Doll Rods), it seems as though now every single band of theirs is generally liked or accepted. So I guess my question is, has this (signing fewer bands like these, perhaps to have a stronger roster overall?) been a conscious decision on Matador's part, or have the tastes of the Matador staff merely changed? Do you ever again plan on signing such bands? I'm not really complaining either, but you can't really deny that some of the more challenging and interesting works were by some of the lesser-known names.

An epiphany, on my part: I guess in the end it isn't about whose on the roster right now, and who's not: Matador has been lucky to have the wealth of talent it has had on its label, and I'm sure will continue to put out great releases. It only a tiny bit saddens me that the wild diversity--in music, style, and yeah, even quality--that Matador once had isn't there. It sounds weird, but sometimes I liked listening to an album by a band I had no clue existed, even though I might be disappointed.

Are Gerard and Chris still signing bands (I'm not trying to hawk one of my own), even though they say the workload is perfect right now?

Well, bye!

Sincerely,

Eric

[Joseph]

I think all of Matador's current roster problems could be solved by signing one small band from Louisville called Tyrone. Tyrone wants you to listen to its music, because Tyrone thinks you might like it.

RIYL: Frank Zappa, Mogwai, Pink Floyd (circa Syd), Air, Tortoise, Yo La Tengo, Slint, and other good stuff.

They sound like at least two different Matador bands! Whee!

[jt. r]

it's funny to me that the same people who disdain critics are the least constructive in their criticisms. i don't understand how it's possible to believe that matador has "roster problems" when it's pretty clear that matador and merge are possibly more commercially viable (not to say mainstream) and stable than subpop was in their heyday. i think that matador has improved greatly over the last three years in fact by signing bands that have crossover potential, however modest.
and although i was bored to tears by the guy sitting next to me at the most recent interpol show, i was still intrigued by the number of people who were into joy division and sought that sort of aesthetic in a new band. i don't think you can fault matador's staff for choosing a band that people are in to. i feel similarly about pretty girls make graves, since they seem to be the other band on the roster that's set to explode. pgmg have the sort of fanbase that is probably young and doggedly loyal. combine that with the relatively older set (like me "older" = 25) who appreciate their technical skill, and you're reaching a bunch of people who will buy a disc for 8.50 pre-order. again, i don't feel like this is a "roster problem."
i did think that the arsonists weren't very good, as well as a number of the quasi-rap/electronic acts, some of which are still on the label, but you must also bear in mind that as an international label, matador needs to appeal to the electro junkies overseas as well as the boring splooges who languish wasted in the midst of so many mcdonald's hamburgers packaging, orey-eyed at the most recent post to the matador bulletin board.
of course the upshot of this is that there's no contract with a fan requiring loyalty to all bands on a label-even if they're loosely within the same genre. i like steve malkmus, but i'm not ga-ga over mogwai or yo la, and i don't think it's a label problem, but one of consumer budgeting and acquired tastes. sure i'm never gonna own an aereogramme disc, but i'm sure someone would have a pleasant conversation and try to convince me, which is a vast improvement over the condescending remarks that have been made of late on this message board.

[Joseph]

it's funny to me that the same people who disdain critics are the least constructive in their criticisms.

This is directed at me? I was not making a comment about Matador (though the first guy was, I guess), I was merely making a joke at the expense of the band Tyrone, who used this board earlier today to pimp its MP3s... I thougt this was rather obvious. I will try to dumb it down for you in the future.

sure i'm never gonna own an aereogramme disc, but i'm sure someone would have a pleasant conversation and try to convince me, which is a vast improvement over the condescending remarks that have been made of late on this message board.

Oh, like the condescending remarks you just made about me?

Anywho, Matador is a business. They sign acts they can market and sell to you, little man. Hell, this bulletin board is a marketing tool, in case you hadn't noticed. Sure, Matador signs bands they like, but they also aren't gonna go into the hole releasing records by bands like, I dunno, Tyrone that no one will ever buy. Mystery solved!

[ericseguy]

I wasn't necessarily referring to commercial viability, but label diversity. And I'm not complaining about crossover, it just seems that Matador's current label is decidedly less experimental and more straightforward.

[ericseguy]

Jt.R, I really don't understand you're comments...could you better explain them to me? I'm not at all faulting Matador for their success, or their roster. I'm just noting that there are definately fewer "minor" groups, some of which were very interesting on the label...and questioning Matador whether they have any intention to sign such groups again.

[t.d.]

... I thougt this was rather obvious. I will try to dumb it down for you in the future.
[/B]

Nice, maybe you should try to dumb it down for your own sake.

[winterwooskie]

i think the bands on the roster today are getting more attention and big to some degree because of all the publicity matador and who they choose to be on their roster gets. they have been around long enough that people trust in them to some degree to at least be curious about new bands. and if the bands that were experimental and not very well known were on matador today or released those albums today they would have gotten more attention. especially considering that many people will buy an album just out of curiousity like the first poster said he did with some of the bands, but since matador has been around longer there are more people who buy the cd's for the same reasons.

and i think the roster is eclectic. belle and sebastian are not on it anymore but they don't sound like many other bands on the roster, the same is true about solex, interpol, catpower, and yo la tengo's music has been changing over their albums, they are not even like the way they were when they first started. also the bands back then generally seemed more similar sounding than the bands today, they are part of the reason with how music started being labeled indie because of some of the similarities they shared along with bands not on the roster of that time.

and i think gerard and chris still just choose bands that they are interested in and not concerned about how marketable they are, they are always saying this is how they choose bands and just because they had some hip-hop and techno bands does not mean they are trying to get in on those genres.

[ericseguy]

Winter Wooskie: I mostly agree with everything you say, especially about Matador being a more recognized label than it once was, and therefore, more bands having "cross-over appeal." But where I continue to disagree with posters in this thread is in the issue of roster diversity; Cat Power and Yo La Tengo (and Interpol and Whatever Other Matador Band) don't sound alike, that's true, but three years ago it seemed that Matador was unique in that the artists were so, so divergent. I realize that Matador never tried to "be" a rap, techno, or rock label, but there were many artists from each a little while ago, whereas today's roster seems heavily skewed towards indie rock.

[DefenderOfPants]

after losing belle & sebastian
and gaining interpol
matador does not appeal to me as much
anymore

i can't quite put my finger on it
i want to say that their roster is kind of samey
but it's not that simple
and i don't think "samey" is a word...

i know what it is
matador doesn't have any bands that appeal to my...
somewhat homosexual taste in music.

.
.
.
ok, who am i kidding? my taste in is 100% homo.

[Gerard]

"I'm just noting that there are definately fewer "minor" groups, some of which were very interesting on the label...and questioning Matador whether they have any intention to sign such groups again."

Hmmmm.....I think it is fair to say that the roster has gotten a bit smaller. And that is intentional on our part. When we looked at our inability over the last few years to make a serious impact for any number of new signings or licensees, we came to the conclusion (perhaps incorrectly) that a big factor was the sheer number of new releases we were putting out. That not only were these titles competing with each other for the the time & energy of our staff, but they also competed with each other in the marketplace. I'm not naive enough to think that Techno Animal, Console and Graeme Downes were all going to sell to the same music fan (though I do like that idea), but it still created a glut. Record shops like to devote their weekly purchasing budget to more than one label! Editors and radio programmers have to find room for other labels, too.

Eventually, whatever prestige you might've associated with a new Matador signing (and that's presuming you ever thought there was such a thing) was devalued by the volume of stuff coming out. Some would allege that what Chris or I might call "diversity" was instead a lack of musical focus.

Anyhow, we did make a conscious decision to move forward by releasing fewer new titles per year, but trying to put more of our resources into each of those projects. On a sheer business level, this decision seems to be working out quite well (though it is very easy to say that during a calendar year in which most of our biggest artists have delivered new albums). On a musical level....well, that's for each individual to determine on their own. In terms of what kind of signings Chris and I will make in the future, I don't think it is fair to say that we will no longer put out anything we want --- and there are future projects that are hardly household names. But it is true that we can no longer put out EVERYTHING we want, and that is an important distinction. To be perfectly honest, putting out so many records in the past did a disservice to those many of those artists.

I think at one time or another in the label's history, we might've convinced ourselves that certain projects would not have seen the light of day without Matador's involvement. In 2003, that is a harder statement to make as there are many other qualified labels, some as big as us, others not, that are capable of documenting things that all of us are interested in.

But getting back to Eric's original post, I'm not sure that all of the bands you mentioned thought of themselves as "experimental" -- certainly we had commercial aspirations for each of them. To this day there are people who tell me that Console's "14 Zero Zero" should've been a big hit. Depending on whether or not you like them (and I know some of you don't), the Demolition Doll Rods were as deserving of recognition as many of their Detroit neighbors who have gone on to sell tons of records. We've got a new Lesser album coming out in November.

I also wouldn't say that every Matador artist is universally liked or accepted (I do know that I'm taking your quote a little out of context) ; much as I wish Aereogramme sold as many records as Mogwai, that isn't the case just yet. Though we'd like it if Dead Meadow sold as many records as Cat Power, that isn't the case yet, either, but it is all part of a process. When we signed Interpol, their previous sales history was quite modest and our initial expectations for what they'd end up doing were quite conservative. That was a campaign that evolved over time. Certainly there is a lot we can do in terms of strategy and spending, but ultimately someone else out there has to like the record, too.

So the short answer to your question is, yes, we are still signing bands. But not very many, not very often, and when we do, we don't think of them as minor or experimental or anything other than someone we'd like to work with.
thanks
GC