Archive for July, 2008

The Outsiders: Claire Lim and Paul McCallum

Thursday, July 24th, 2008

You get two for the price of one in our penultimate Outsiders feature in which underground gig promotion is the name of the game.

Name: Claire Lim and Paul McCallum.
Job title: Promoters, A Badge of Friendship.
Hometown: Glasgow.
Age: Claire: 24; Paul: 28;
When did you leave Scotland? 2002.
Is your Scottish identity important to you? If so, in what ways? Claire: It was more important when I had just arrived in London as I hadn’t left home before. There are lots of Scots down here and we seem to migrate towards each other subconsciously! I am proud to be Scottish but because London is such a multi-cultural place being Scottish, English, French, German etc doesn’t seem to have an importance. Paul: Definitely. Scots have a warmth and humour inherent in our culture unlike most other nationalities, a trait that attracts us to other people as well as each other. Since moving down to London, I have made probably just as many new Scottish friends as I had back home, which is an indication of the sense of community felt by most Scots.
How did you get your job and what had you done before? Claire: It was quite hard getting a foot in the door in the music industry so Paul and I ended up just creating the job for ourselves. We love music erring on the side of alternative and there seemed to be such a great scene down here and lots of bands waiting in the wings to play so why not start promoting? I had written some fanzines and promoted some shows in Glasgow before but A Badge of Friendship has really taken off and we have big plans for it. Paul: Before ABOF I was involved in music in various guises. I was in charge of sales whilst touring with bands, I took photos and shot videos for bands and for Fender guitars etc. In addition, I have worked in the TV and film world.
Who is the most famous person you have met while doing your job? Claire: Har Mar Superstar. He was all sweaty and was wearing pink cords. He didn’t say much. Paul: There are quite a lot of famous people I have met over the years, however most of them are quite uninteresting. The ones who have excited me would be so obscure to most they are barely worth a mention!
What’s the best and worst part of your job? Claire: Best parts are having fun with bands, meeting so many nice folk, watching crowds flood in to watch great music and have people tell us how much fun they had afterwards. Worst parts are giving shedloads of money to venues for the expensive hire fees when we could be giving it to the bands. Oh, and sound problems – there is nothing worse than the band being unhappy with the sound. Paul: The best is most definitely being my own boss in an industry I truly love and hopefully making a difference. The worst has to be the uncertain nature of putting on any underground gig – you just don’t know how it’s going to go.
What music are you excited about right now? Claire: We put on some really excellent bands recently – These Monsters, Wintermute, YouMeTheSwitch and And So I Watch You From Afar. I’m really excited about the new Dianogah album – I also work for Southern Records so I get to hear lots of awesome bands all day. Paul: In terms of bands that we have put on, The Cathode Ray Syndrome, Lite, Shield Your Eyes, Antelope, The Paper Chase and Silent Front. In terms of what I am personally listening to, Minus The Bear, Traindodge, Riddle Of Steel, Band Of Horses and Melvins.
How would you rate your knowledge of the current Scottish music scene? Have any new Scottish acts caught your eye recently? Claire: I would rate it as zero! Sorry, but I’ve not been back in such a long time. We put on The Twilight Sad last December and they have been the only thing from Scotland recently who’ve grabbed my attention. Lovely boys too! Paul: My knowledge is nowhere near as great as it once was but I have heard good things about Frightened Rabbit and Errors. And, of course, there is my good friends Biffy Clyro who some people may have heard of!
Anything else you’d like to add… Claire: If you are looking for great new music, dig deep. Don’t just rely on the magazines and usual indie websites for the answers. Look at labels’ back catalogues, sift through allmusic.com to see your favourite artists, go see live shows, speak to DIY promoters and bands. Paul: Since this is all about music I’ll end with a Frank Zappa quote – “Without music to decorate it, time is just a bunch of boring production deadlines or dates by which bills must be paid.”

4 Dianoagh – The Smallest Chilean
4 Errors – Dance Music

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The Outsiders: Paul Barton

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008

The Outsiders is all about Scots who have left the comfort of their homeland to carve out careers in the music industry. Everyone has their own opinion on who they think the next big thing will be, but the reputation of our next interviewee depends on getting it right.

Name: Paul Barton.
Age: A young 31!
Job title: A&R manager, Warner Bros Records.
Hometown: I was born in Edinburgh but moved to Falkirk before I was one. So, really I’m from Falkirk.
When did you leave Scotland? I moved away in November 2000, returning in February 2001. I left again in May 2001 and have been in London ever since.
Is your Scottish identity important to you? If so, in what ways? It is important to me personally but I don’t think it is important to me socially or for work. I’m very proud of Scotland as a country and, having been away for so long, Scots are absolutely some of the friendliest people you will ever meet. I come from a through and through Scottish family and they made sure I learned the heritage and history of Scotland – I can’t thank them enough for making sure I did!
How did you get your current job and what had you done before? When I was living in Falkirk I was in bands, ran a rehearsal studio and booked bands for a local pub. While doing this I did a Music Technology course at Falkirk College then a Music Management and Marketing course at Stow College in Glasgow. The idea of getting a job in London came from my lecturer at Stow, Alan Rankin, who really opened my eyes to how the industry works. I got work experience at Sony Music and assisted the press department for a month doing everything from making tea, delivering packages, cleaning out cupboards and answering the phones. Just as my course was finishing I was asked back to Sony to cover a load of people’s holidays, so for three months (unpaid!) I did whatever they asked me to do. I was put forward for a load of interviews and got a job as a royalty administrator at a small independent music publisher/record label called SPZ. This led to me moving into label management at ZTT Records and then becoming A&R manager at Perfect Songs, the publishing arm of the company. A couple of years later I joined Warner Bros Records as A&R manager.
Who is the most famous person you have met while doing your job? I guess having lunch with Coldplay while they were recording their third album was a good laugh.
What’s the best and worst part of your job? I am a total music lover so every day all day I’m listening to music, getting to work with some of my heroes and being creative. I’m extremely lucky, you can’t call it a proper job. The worst part is that no-one wants to pay for music these days. Everyone thinks they should get it for free and that is killing the entire industry. Many people don’t realise that it isn’t the music companies – major or indie – they are killing. It is the chances of all the young bands and artists out there wanting to make a living out of playing music they are killing.
What music are you excited about right now? Iglu & Hartly, In Case Of Fire, Haunts, Flight Path. The new album from The Subways is absolutely blinding as is the new My Morning Jacket album – two of the best this year.
How would you rate your knowledge of the current Scottish music scene? Have any new Scottish acts caught your eye recently? I’d say 9/10. I have a fantastic scout in Glasgow called Ali Davidson. He is my eyes and ears in Scotland and without him I’d be totally lost. He is on everything really early and has a good idea of what is good and what isn’t. He called me in a state of complete excitement about Make Model having only heard half a song… through a wall! And he was right – I really wished I’d signed that band. I really love Broken Records and Black Alley Screens, Jocasta Sleeps and Paper Planes are also worth keeping an eye on. And I think Y’all Is Fantasy Island make some of the most interesting music I’ve ever heard.

4 Jocasta Sleeps – The Crayfish Cocktail
4 Y’all Is Fantasy Island – Consider Yourself Swallowed

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The Outsiders: Pam Ribbeck

Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008

Our next Outsider hasn’t looked back since leaving Scotland to navigate the murky waters of press publicity. Here, she reveals the secrets of her success.

Name: Pam Ribbeck.
Job title: Senior press officer at Fiction/Polydor.
Age: 31.
Hometown: Arran.
When did you leave Scotland? Coming up for 14 years ago.
Is your Scottish identity important to you? If so, in what ways? Absolutely. Home is where the heart is, as they say.
How did you get your job and what had you done before? I did an HND in Music Business Administration at West Lothian College. The course ran for about 10 years and was run by Gordon Campbell, a great guy. I would never have had the courage to move to London and try to get a job in music without the knowledge, contacts and friends made during that time. I was lucky.
Who is the most famous person you have met while doing your job? I would say Slash. He’s pretty famous, right? Nice chap too.
What’s the best and worst part of your job? Best: The people I meet and work with, and being immersed in music. Worst: Getting the work/life balance right. It’s a sociable job and it’s pretty hard to switch off. And emails – the greatest and worst evolution of the past 10 years.
What music are you excited about right now? I love Feist (OK, she’s on Polydor but I don’t do her press!). Her performance of Sea Lion Woman on Later With Jools Holland convinced me she is a very special woman – it bowled me over. She has the most incredible voice. Fleet Foxes, Band Of Horses, Bon Iver, Phosphorescent, Vetiver, the new Conor Oberst album (I can see a trend there), Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan, Alela Diane, Elbow, Les Savy Fav, Neon Neon, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Black Kids. Oh, loads of stuff! Looking forward to new albums from Archie Bronson Outfit, The Cure and Mogwai.
How would you rate your knowledge of the current Scottish music scene? Have any new Scottish acts caught your eye recently? I’ve got some pretty clued up friends based in Glasgow and I sit in the Fiction office along with the A&R people here which is helpful as far as hearing good new bands from all over the UK goes. But I wouldn’t say I had a specific knowledge of the current Scottish music scene – that would be a lie. I know Glasvegas are an obvious mention but I love the singer’s voice and his heart-on-his-sleeve lyrics and those fuzzy guitars are just lovely. And Errors are ace.
Anything else you’d like to add… Now I know how it feels to be interviewed!