A fragment from Intwerview with Manabu Yamazaki,director of the Sublime Rec.
which is out now in Ptuch Magazine, No.7 for 1996, it was taken almost a year
ago. so compare the facts.
P.S.Mr.Zelonky you'll get your copy in no time, if you still have the same
adress.
P: Mr,Yamazaki when your label was found?
Yi: In June of 1994.
P: where?
Y: in Japan.
A: Is it the only japanese artists label?
Y: Well, it's not a Japanese label, because almost every
aspect of
the company is being carried out in several countries.
A: in the middle of the 90s electronic music is
not that"new" as it was in the end of the 80s,so to make a
record label i guess you had to find something special?
Y: Yes, but the artists are in the same situation themselves. Thestandards for
techno music are rising very quickly, which makes me very, very happy. But this
also means that the days are gone when you could put out any noise with a beat
and sell records. And,coming in when we did those days were already gone.
Therefore we need to maintain high standards not only because that is our reason
for starting the label, but merely to survive in this competitive environment.
As I said, the artists are in the same situation. But if this makes for better
music, then the whole genre will become more healthy.
P: lets talk about your artists themselves:most of them are Japanese?
Y: We have 3 Japanese artists, 3 American artists. And we're in
the middle of getting some things together with people from
Europe.But the focus is not on nationality at all, you know.
P: what about the term: Japanese techno?
Y: Techno is a global genre, and I don't think that our artists
Ken Ishii and Susumu Yokota have any more in common than do
Orbital and Aphex Twin, though they're both English.
.
P: what part of the earth is the most succeful for Sublime
Rec.?
.
Y: In terms of sales, Europe. In terms of influence, Japan, I
suppose. Though we're still just getting started, you know!
P: you do your production on vinyl,is it a special conception ?
Y:. We've been doing CD's in Japan from
the very beginning, and from September we'll be releasing CD's
worldwide.
P: what is more popular in Japan Cds or Vinyl?
Y: CD's are 99% of the mass market, but in our genre it's pretty
even.
P :have you ever thoughtabout using
any modern technology like CD-rom?
Y: We're developing a CD ROM and we're looking into some new means of
distribution via the internet.
P: When you started your label you did this because
you thought that all the record labels
are not good enough
and you can distribute
to the world something new?
Y: No, not at all. We hoped that we could offer a somewhat
different perspective and taste. And we have great admiration for
many labels.
P: all others labels are your friends or competitors?
Y: Friends, absolutely. We have lots of friends, and we're very
grateful for the cordial treatment we've received.
P: how would you rather describe your production?
Y: I think we put out a variety, from modern acid house, to
floor-oriented techno, to intelligent listening music, to pure
experimental.
P: What have you done before you organized a record label?
Y: I've been a DJ and promoter in Tokyo. My Saturday night
afterhours, also called "Sublime", is the longest-running
weekly club in the city.
P: do you still work as a DJ?
Y: Yes, and we have an incredibly loyal crowd, who love the music
and dance til 10 AM every Sunday morning.
It's very small and intimate.
P: a record label for you is a work of your life,or it is more like
a hobby?
Y: This is my life.
This is "life" for a lot of people. That's what's so exiting
about electronic music.
.
P: indeed,is there any difference between techno scene in Japan and Europe?
Y: Well we don't really have a hard core scene.
And techno is bigger than house music. But I don't think, on
the whole, it's all that different.
P: is techno popular in Japan,as it is in Europe?
Yamazaki: It depends on what kind of techno. If you mean trashy pop
techno, then I'd answer that it WAS as big as in Europe, but that's
over.If you mean good techno, then I guess that we're slightly
behind in terms of percentage of the population.
.
P:Do you care abou twhat your artists do in their freetime?
Y: Of course not.
P: Lets talk about your artists and finally name them,who is
the most popular?
Y: Ken Ishii is certainly the best known, having released some
great records on ESP and R&S.
The record I gave you "Flare" is not really characteristic Ishii.
He's usually more on the listening side.
P: What do you think is your biggest musical achievement?
Y: I think it's been introducing REALM and Low Res, who both
debuted on Sublime.
P: both of them are from the US?
Y: More or less.
P: Ken Ishii makes his records only on Sublime now?
Y: No, he records for R&S as Ken Ishii, and for Sublime as Flare. He's also done
a track for Plug Research as Flare.
This hasn't been released yet.
P: What other production of Sublime we ll see in the nearest
future?
Y:Well I can't tell you everything, but we have another 12" from
Dan Curtin, and also a CD album a bit later, an intelligentjungle
compilation, a 4 HERO album, a REALM album, a Low Res album....
We have some Flare stuff ready to go. We're working with new
artists, and doing some collaborations with outside people.
Juan Atkins has remixed a Low Res track which will be out
shortly.
.
P: and we could find your production all over the world?
Y: We're trying, but it's not easy.
P: we ll do as much as we can,to help you(maybe)