So, the next Institubes record is not coming soon. And I can’t tell you how much it pains me to write these words. We’ve released many records in our (almost) eight years of existence and managed to introduce a number of excellent artists to the world. Good times were had and accolades garnered. I’m not so conceited nor high on my own supply that I’d try and talk up our “legacy” but I don’t think that in five, ten or twenty years I’ll look at our discography and cringe. Now I get to tell you, Institubes fans, friends and allies, that we have to wrap it up. Party’s over.

I could write ten pages about the realities and difficulties of the music business but you’ll only get about two paragraphs and not much whining. We never lived those halcyon days some industry elders tend to rave about. We always moved through a post-apocalyptic, terminally pauperized landscape, complete with irradiated A&R zombies and mutated eyeless bloggers. It’s always been a bit of an uphill battle. But it got worse and worse. At first it was fun to figure out ways to get people to check out our music. But once that’s done and you have something resembling an audience, it becomes apparent that this is not really your job. Your job is to reconcile the public with the very idea of buying records. All the power to you if you can bear it. 

We’re closing shop because the operation is losing too much money, this much is clear. Most of what we could have done to prevent or delay this outcome reside in two words: lifestyle and branding. Investing in t-shirts and co-branding, scoring “collaborations” or sponsorship deals with deep-pocketed companies. I have but a regret: we actually did it sometimes. We should have said no more often. Bands struggling to get together with brands, artists and audience deriving more validity from corporate interest than from anything else, bands happy to learn that in the future they would have to “take charge of their own promotion”: this wasn’t for us. In other words, on our small scale, we should have been able to carve a non-capitalist niche within the larger corporate world. I thought, being young and naive when we started, that “underground” meant just that. 

The fact that ours is a struggling industry, where 90% of your time is spent “staying afloat”, obscures an important fact: we are still playing by the rules that got us fucked in the first place. The way we do business is defective: our values are defective, our contracts are defective, our post-Napster economy itself is defective. I just read an article by a label owner who states that “anything we can do to stay afloat should be condoned”. I don’t think so, no. Staying afloat by any means necessary is a meaningless pursuit. The only honest way for a record label to make money is by selling records. We’ve always been uneasy about selling anything else. 

And our current cultural economy isn’t healthy either. Consumer practices are fucked. You don’t need me to tell you that music is devalued. Not only because we no longer sell shit (and even when you do, it’s hard to shake the feeling that you’re selling free shit), but also because tracks are peaking faster than tumblr memes. In our historical moment, music is everywhere but second or third or tenth to many other interests and areas of culture. Fashion, Apple, video games, “devices”, social media, etc. And that’s cool, I guess. But I don’t want to have to be a function of fashion. Nor do I want to urge an artist to publish half-baked tracks every month in order to stay “relevant”. Depleted accounts is one thing, but depleted attentions? 

I don’t really have a conclusion to this weird press release. So let’s end with two things I’m very proud of: 

1. It’s nice to end on such a great year. In 2010 we have released two EPs by Surkin, two by Bobmo, two by Chateau Marmont, two by Rob, singles from Jean Nipon, Crystal, Das Glow, High Powered Boys, plus Bart B More, Para One, and Teki Latex EPs via Sound Pellegrino. 

2. The label is gone but the artists are in top form: 
Bobmo, Para One and Surkin just announced the birth of their new label called MARBLE, home to their (many) upcoming singles. 
After the extremely successful release of the chart-topping “Calcium” single he produced with Strip Steve for Boysnoize Records, Das Glow has a new EP coming on Marble very soon. 
Teki Latex and Orgasmic are now operating SOUND PELLEGRINO as an independent entity which has released the new High Powered Boys EP “Udon / Work” and a double compilation called “Les Jeunes Années” this week.
Jean Nipon has released his new EP “International Meek” a few weeks ago. 
Cuizinier has recently launched his website and store lapizzachaude.com where he’s slowly unveiling pieces of his (great) upcoming debut album. 
Para One’s album under the name “Slice & Soda” with San Serac is ready and coming.
Tacteel’s solo album under his legal name Jerôme Echenoz is in the can. Him and Para One have also recorded many tracks together in the last few months, expect to hear them very soon. 
Chateau Marmont are in the studio recording their debut album. What we’ve heard so far is extremely exciting and totally pushing their craft to a whole new level.
The original soundtrack to the beautiful French independent movie “Belle Epine” composed by Rob has been released this winter. 
Surkin’s album is finally done. 
Crystal are recording their debut album and… well, you get the idea: everyone is very busy in the studio. 

Looking at all the Institubes artists, I see the most talented, diverse, curious, self-challenging, smart, progressive and forward-thinking group of people we ever had the chance to know. They’re the best. Anyone disputing that is either misinformed or a liar. 
Please keep supporting them. 

Lastly, a closing event (= a massive party) is going to be announced very soon. 
Keep checking www.institubes.com for updates. 
Also visit www.soundpellegrino.net and www.marble.fm to stay in touch with the gang. 

Pretty much every mailbox we ever had is clogged so we’ve just set up this new e-mail: byebye@institubes.com 

Please use this for all correspondence from now on. 

— Jean-René Etienne & Emile Shahidi

HIGH POWERED BOYS ‘Udon / Work’ now available on Beatport!
 Reblogged from Sound Pellegrino

soundpellegrino:

That’s right! The highly anticipated new EP by Surkin & Bobmo is now available on Beatport! http://beatport.com/s/r1se7t 

Already played & supported by A-Trak, Crookers, Sinden, Annie Mac, Round Table Knights, Das Glow, Felix Cartal, Radioclit, Tony Senghore, Renaissance Man, Don Rimini, Acid Jacks, Dan Haaksman, Marc Roberts, Camel, Homework… and played on the radio by Annie Mac (Radio 1, UK), Jaymo & Andy George (Radio 1, UK), Laura Leishman (Le Mouv, FR), NXTLVL (Indie 103.1, L.A.)!

Beatport release: March 14th — iTunes and all other music stores: March 28th.

HIGH POWERED BOYS ‘Udon / Work’ EP preview by soundpellegrino

When they first hit the scene as High Powered Boys, all Sawtooth Surkin & Cool Spinnin’ Bobmo had was an inflatable smiley-face-character avatar and a strong addiction to Trax and Dancemania releases fueled by compulsive Soulseek-digging. Back when everybody in the French scene was obsessed with biker looks and heavy metal sounds, complicated turbine symphonies and sounding as dramatic as one could, High Powered Boys were two young A.D.D. nerds focused on hitting the streets with the simplest most efficient ghetto house bombs via Ableton with no respect for musical rules, yet immense fascination for their elders, delivering he rawest and nerdiest Chicago-inspired grooves with the dirtiest kicks and systematic use of the words “up” and “down”.

Read More

Jean Nipon “Cairo” (video edit)
Taken from the upcoming “INTERNATIONAL MEEK” ep, coming January 10th on Beatport

Join Jean Nipon’s fan page on facebook: http://facebook.com/​JEANNIPONofficial

And don’t miss the official release party next Saturday January 15th in Paris - le Point Ephémère with Jean Nipon, Teki Latex, Bobmo, French Fries, Bambounou…
More info here: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=174402955934004

Video: Cuts and edit by Bertrand Doudet

After one year as art director of the historical Régine’s club in Paris, two years touring (including two residency runs at the lovely Baron de Tokyo), producing and remixing (French Fries and Lee Mortimer among others), Jean Nipon is back.

This new EP marks Jean Nipon’s stepping into the very exciting field of tech house dominated by insanely talented friends of the label such as Style Of Eye.

The main track « Cairo » starts like a joyous martial affair before being totally corrupted into a very sexual thing, driven by a super catchy riff overarching the whole tune and playful edits.

INTERNATIONAL MEEK release party
Samedi 15 Janvier / Saturday January 15th 2011
Le Point Ephémère

JEAN NIPON + TEKI LATEX + BOBMO + FRENCH FRIES + BAMBOUNOU and more…
infos here: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=174402955934004

BIOGRAPHY

We don’t expect you to know who Jean Nipon is because, frankly, neither do we. And yet, he’s one of the Institubes originals, he was behind our third record ever, under the name Teamtendo. And yet, he is a fixture of the Paris club scene, building bridges between all the various, dysfunctional crews. He’s even roommates with one of us, but let me tell you: snoring patterns, however entertaining and quirky, say very little of the heart of a man. Nipon is a fractious, peculiar creature. He agrees to no rules and no higher power, and under the veil of unassailable coolness, remains an enigma.

Jean Nipon started out as a drummer in Hardcore bands and got into DJing circa 97. At first it was a cheap ploy to get more in touch with his fellow humans (read: get girls). Then it became something of an art form, and many a reveler remembers his seven-hour sets at Paris Paris where, as a resident, he would play the latest bangers in custom- edited form, plus Prince, Minor Threat, Aphex Twin and the Beastie Boys, Dinosaur Jr and Lio, Pink Floyd and Shellac, My Bloody Valentine and KRS One. What he does with those CD decks… Nobody can touch him. We’ve also seen him funcrush a couple of yuppie parties that didn’t deserve to dance: he’s a man of principles.

Let’s rewind it back: hardcore drummer, DJ, designer, lives in Japan for a year, designs a Coke bottle, sells records for two years in Paris at Katapult where he meets DJ Wet with whom he starts I.Y.M. (a 12” on Wwwilco) and Teamtendo. Teamtendo was a duo of giant plushies who played 8-bit-gabber- electro on tricked-out Gameboys (a 12” through Institubes and one via Deco). Does some remixes for TTC, Ark, Micronauts, Cosmo Vitelli, Lesbians On Ecstasy, Adam Kesher, David Rubato. Directed three volumes of the DJ-oriented «Eurogirls» vinyl project for Arcade Mode with Orgasmic.

With his last EP «Wild At Heart» (2008) Jean Nipon stepped up on his own as a member of the Institubes family, with full privileges and key support from dj Mehdi, Ajax, Jojo De Freq, dj Neoteric, Jerry Bouthier, Franki Chan, Jonty Skrufff, Autokratz and many others.

After one year as art director of the historical Régine’s club in Paris, two years touring (including two residency runs at the lovely Baron de Tokyo), producing and remixing (French Fries and Lee Mortimer among others), Jean Nipon is back.

INTERNATIONAL MEEK ep

This new EP marks Jean Nipon’s stepping into the very exciting field of tech house dominated by insanely talented friends of the label such as Style Of Eye.

The main track « Cairo » starts like a joyous martial affair before being totally corrupted into a very sexual thing, driven by a super catchy riff overarching the whole tune and playful edits.

And we were fortunate enough to have it remixed by none other than Nipon’s favourite producer TONY SENGHORE. This irresistible hands-in-the-air rework features a VERY familiar melody whistled by Senghore himself while managing to keep the muscular parts of the original. Seriously expect this one to become a staple for the early months of 2011!

On the flip, « Stamina » reminds us of Nipon’s taste for labyrinthic structures and micro sinusoidal build ups tangled around each other like staircases in a MC Escher painting swarmed with wonky synths.

Remixing duties for this one goes to parisian talent FRENCH FRIES from the very promising Youngunz stable. The wonder kid takes the track into a great Kuduro rave visited by chopped up dancehall vocals and divided in the middle with a gorgeous bridge evoking the best of the forward-thinking contemporary UK scene.

The Sound Pellegrino Podcast is now available on iTunes!
It’s a new show hosted by Orgasmic & Teki Latex aka Sound Pellegrino Thermal Team during which they share their favourite tracks of the week, exclusives from the label and its huge extended family, interviews and surprises…
A new episode every Wednesday!
Subscribe for free on iTunes!

Le Podcast Sound Pellegrino est maintenant disponible sur iTunes !
Une nouvelle émission présentée par Orgasmic & Teki Latex aka Sound Pellegrino Thermal Team avec un mix live où ils partagent avec vous leurs tracks préférés de la semaine, exclus du label et de nos amis, interviews et surprises…
Un nouvel épisode chaque Mercredi !
Abonnez-vous gratuitement sur iTunes !
 

Teki Latex (in full pagan mode), Surkin, Bobmo, Das Glow, Chateau Marmont, Para one, Tacteel and many friends appear and/or contribute on TAHITI BOY’s second annual free xmas song, alongside Saul Williams, Jackson, Antoine from Jamaica, DVNO, an all-star cast of 3rd Side records artists, Alizée, Mike Ladd, dj Pone (yes, dj Pone) and many more…

And download the free MP3 here (new link). 

The remix companion to the Silver Island ep is now available on iTunes too!
Featuring reworks by Light Year, Cochise and Surkin himself!

Click here to buy!

Mais qu’est-ce qu’on fête, au juste ?

La sortie du premier ep de PANTEROS666 “Kegstand” sur Sound Pellegrino le 20 décembre. PARA ONE sort le même jour son nouveau single “Animal Style” sur BNR Trax, nous garantissant une journée riche en RTs trans-labels et d’une manière générale une célébration de l’amitié dans la techno. DAS GLOW finit d’affiner “Calcium”, la bombe produite avec son camarade Strip Steve et prévue pour le début de l’année prochaine. TEKI LATEX apparaît sur l’excellent single “Get Loose” de Funkin Matt pour son label Fjordin et vient de lancer l’hebdomadaire Sound Pellegrino Podcast. TAHITI BOY est en plein mixage de sa nouvelle chanson de Noël réunissant les plus grands talents de la pop indé et quelques surprises. ETIENNE MENU vient de lancer sa nouvelle émission L’Agence Tous Disques (ok les mecs on a dit quoi pour les titres-calembours déjà ?) sur Radio Campus Paris. Tout ça Chez Moune. 

Et comme c’est (pas du tout) Noël, CHATEAU MARMONT en dj set au Lautrec dès 22h, juste en face.

Plus d’infos ici : http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=179759775369667 

Great video from our buddy Genevan Heathen!
Watch out for Baconman…


And please make a stop at http://genevan.bigcartel.com and pick the CHARLIE SHEEN  EP a picture disc all mad vinyl collectors are going to add to their closet of rarities as it’s actually cut out in the shape of a real-size head of the aformentioned Sheen. Seriously.

“LA FIN DES COMÉDIES FRANÇAISES POPULAIRES” par Etienne Menu dans le nouveau numéro de Vice France.
Article illustré par KRSN et disponible ici :
http://www.viceland.com/fr/v4n11/htdocs/la-fin-des-comedies-554.php

Et merci de acheter/emprunter et lire ça si ce n’est déjà fait :
http://www.amazon.fr/Faces-Etienne-Menu-Jan-Krsn/dp/2356340122/