Label Profile on AustinSound.net

AustinSound.net just ran a label profile on Beats Broke. We love Doug and everyone over at Austin Sound (they’re good people). Good look’n out, friends!

Below is the interview which just ran on their website. Enjoy:

Label Profile: Beats Broke

When he moved to Austin last year, Ryan Goeller brought with him a unique label that consisted primarily of Hip-Hop artists from Holland, an unlikely sound finding an even more unlikely home in central Texas. Beats Broke was the first label to release Dutch rap albums in the US, and the music of artists like Kapabel & Inf and Arts the Beatdoctor translates with impressive style despite the language barrier and has already been embraced in Austin and by a growing contingency nationally for adding a new energy to the genre. You can download Beats Broke’s first release (Kapabel & Inf’s De Avonturen van…) for free on the label’s website to get a taste of the Continental flavor, and look out for a number of new albums in the next year as Goeller continues to expand the scope of our small town from the inside out.

photo: Matthew Genitempo

Label Profile:
Beats Broke

Year Formed:
2007

Present Artists (*Texas Artist):
Arts The Beatdoctor
Inf
Kapabel & Inf
Max Fischer
Pax & Pry

Past Artists (*Texas Artists):
(none)

Recent Releases:
BRK-1: Kapabel & Inf – De Avonturen van…
- Free Download
BRK-2: Arts The Beatdoctor – Progressions
- $4.99 Digital, $9.99 2×7” EP

Upcoming Releases:
Inf – Infstrumentals
Kapabel & Inf – (title tba)
Max Fischer – Nobody Knew

What was your impetus for starting the label?
I started Beats Broke due to the fact that my friends were making more exciting music than what I could find in stores. That coupled with watching High Fidelity one too many times was the light bulb moment for the label. I’d like to also mention I’m not depressed, and my girlfriend hasn’t left me for my next-door neighbor named Ian.

What would you describe as the label’s general aesthetic?
Beats Broke is all about keeping it simple. Hip-Hop, and more importantly rap, music is plagued with extra baggage such as shout-outs, skits and throwaway tracks. Almost all of my artists live in the Netherlands. The Dutch are very resourceful, humble, and socially responsible people. These qualities are what directly translate to the music we make.

How do you view the label in relation to Austin’s overall music scene?
Outside of having our releases for sale in the local shops, we exist outside the bubble. This is not by choice but rather due to geography. Four of my five artists live in Holland, and my fifth artist lives in Omaha, Nebraska.

However, I moved here because I love Austin. I want to become more involved and contribute culturally to what I have experienced. Whether that’s cultivating the next great local talent or donating the proceeds of a project to an arts charity, I want to do my part to make Austin a better place than when I arrived.

How did you get involved with Dutch Hip-Hop, and how would you set it in relation to the genre here in the US?
I got involved with my Dutch crew a bit by accident. I was helping Max Fischer work through his first album when a friend of his brought back an Inf CD while studying abroad. Max and Inf contacted each other to collaborate on a song, and I helped get the results on Inf’s album through a series of emails. As luck would have it, Inf is the nicest person I have ever met. We hit it off, and as our friendship developed, so did the label.

What sets the Dutch genre apart from their US originators is they’ve managed to transport that friendly 1970s Bronx block party vibe into modern times. They kept the original notions of hip-hop pure, and blasted it into exciting new directions. This is partially due to Holland’s size; it’s a small country, and it’s extremely difficult to make money from selling records. Therefore they’re able to keep their art honest, without falling victim to the selfish scene in American hip-hop.

How has the response been both locally and in the US in general to Beats Broke’s international artists?
Everyone who I’ve talked to has been completely excited and a little bewildered. The local response has been fantastic. Beats Broke was actually voted the fifth best local label in the Chronicle’s 2008 Austin Music Awards!

Nationally, we’re just a spec of dirt on the map, but that’ll change in time. Music fans are constantly digging for something new and exciting, and overseas artists are repeatedly the answer. British hip-hop is a powerhouse right now with the Streets, Dizzee Rascal, M.I.A., Lady Sovereign, and Roots Manuva, and the RZA actually signed two Dutch rappers to his Wu-Tang International label. I have no worries.

Do you have any plans to work with any local groups as well?
I don’t have any plans at the moment, but I really would love to collaborate on anything with The Octopus Project.

Given infinite resources, what major band or act would y’all most like to have on the label?
If I had infinite resources, I would use them to bring Ol’ Dirty Bastard back to life. I recently had a friend send me a track he did with Rhymefest called “Build Me Up,” and all Ol’ Dirty did was sing, “Why do you build me up? / Buttercup, baby just to let me down…” on the hook. It was amazing. We’d get him in a tuxedo with a bartender on stage, and just let him croon you like a lost member of the Rat Pack. Don’t tell me that wouldn’t be brilliant.

What do you feel are the most important elements for success of an indie label?
It all depends on what you deem as success. If you want to be a financial success, then you need money to make money. If you’re shooting for an artistic success, then you need talent and time.

To us right now, success means (A) not compromising our work and (B) not losing money on a release. At the end of the day, that’s what we can look back and smile upon.

What have been your most gratifying and most difficult moments in running the label?
The most gratifying moment was visiting Holland and meeting my artists in person for the first time. There were two highlights of that trip. The first was a local showcase where I got to see everyone perform live. The other was watching Inf deejay at the Dutch premiere of Hair. Inf has one of the world’s largest collection of Hair records, and the producers of Hair actually found him and asked him to spin his gems at their premiere. The event was insane; no expense was spared.

The most difficult moment was putting together our latest release Progressions by Arts The Beatdoctor. It’s a double 7-inch EP with a lot of extras (download card, insert, sticker, ect). We almost changed the title of it to Murphy’s Law because everything that could go wrong did. The vinyl had to be repressed, the jackets reprinted…just one thing after another. This normally would be no sweat, but I had to get records to the release party in Holland by last Saturday. Arts received them a day or two before the party thanks to express international shipping. I’ve never been so stressed out.

What are your thoughts on the current state of the record industry, especially in relation to new technology?
I think that whatever technology the industry comes up with to combat piracy, techies will find a way to hack it months before its unveiled. It’s just a fact of life.

What bothers me is the rampant abuse of the system. I’m irritated when people rave about what’s on their iPod, but didn’t purchase a single song on it. Music is now expendable and art has become devalued.

That being said (this is where you can call me a hypocrite), I’d rather someone hear our music than not hear our music. I’m smart enough to realize digital piracy is a fact of life, and it’s too big to fight, so we decided to embrace it. I’ll scour the web for people spreading our music and kindly ask them to put a link to our store so people have the option of directly supporting the artist. I’ll also try to get them to write a review of the album or interview the artist. I call the process “search and employee.”

I think the only way to thrive as an indie right now is to be a boutique. Focus on what you want to hear. Your listeners will be loyal because you have a finger on the pulse of what they love.

Other than the label’s bands, what’s playing at Beats Broke headquarters these days?
Burial – Untrue
Tokyo Police Club – Elephant Shell
Ruste Juxx – Slic Vic Da Ruler
Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings – 100 Days, 100 Nights
Maxilla Blue – Maxilla Blue

And a whole lot of public radio…

Website:
www.beatsbroke.com

7 Comments   Post a Comment

1. ryan you look like a vampire haha

   Comment by max — Jul 22 2008 @ 6:21 pm

2. I look like Billy Corgan…with hair.

   Comment by Ryan — Jul 22 2008 @ 6:56 pm

3. i’m gonna make that my new myspace picture

   Comment by max — Jul 22 2008 @ 9:42 pm

4. Is it not sunny in Austin this time of year?

   Comment by jason — Jul 22 2008 @ 10:24 pm

5. you look like the bass player from placebo.

   Comment by AJ — Aug 4 2008 @ 12:00 pm

6. Ryan whatsup how are you! Did that Max Fischer scratch track ever have a release?

   Greets from Utrecht!

   Kyp

   Comment by kypski — Sep 8 2008 @ 1:13 am

7. Just want to say what a great blog you got here!
   I’ve been around for quite a lot of time, but finally decided to show my appreciation of your work!

   Thumbs up, and keep it going!

   Cheers
   Christian, iwspo.net

   Comment by bowsattam — May 28 2010 @ 10:18 pm

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