Smelly Feet Records Is A Music Platform Which Showcases Both Established And Up & Coming Artists.
No Specific Genre, Just Real Underground Music.
Smelly Feet Records Is A Music Platform Which Showcases Both Established And Up & Coming Artists.
No Specific Genre, Just Real Underground Music.
Exclusive Mix & Interview
November 24th, 2019
Chikyu-u Records
Label Boss: Romain
City: Lausanne
Country: Switzerland
Genre: Electronic / House / Deep House
Romain - Introduce yourself and your label and tell us about the first record Chikyu- u Records ever pressed.
I’m Romain. I was born in 1994 In Switzerland. I’ve always listened to music as long as I could remember. My parents used to listen to some old French music all day long and my step-father introduced me to the vinyl world when I was 13 years old. I was putting his records on in the living room just sitting down in front of the speakers - Listening to Bob Marley, imitating the baseline intro of “Stir It Up (live)”. Also, some other stuff like Pink Floyd, Supertramp, Jethrotull ect. The classics.
Since that time, I never stopped exploring music. Being open to every genre. From Classical to Hardcore Techno. My relation to music is pretty intimate - anything that strikes me can seduce me and I’ll like it, no matter if it’s mainstream, old, cheesy or I don’t know what stupid words people use to define it.
I started the Label when I was traveling to Japan because I’ve had the time to do it and my friend pushed me a lot. No one wanted to release my music so I created my own label. That’s pretty much the main reason why people create their own label nowadays I think. The main genre is Deep House and House Music but I try sometimes to diversify a little.
The first record that was pressed is the Unknown Artist 01. The red one as people like to say. It was kind of legit that I pressed that due to the high demand. I’m pretty happy with it even though the tracks are not mixed that good because they were old and I’ve done them without much experience into music production - but the passion is in there so it’s worked out fine.
Tell us about your favorite aspects of the vinyl pressing process. Are there any stages that bring out any kind of emotion?
No surprise that the most exciting moment is when you receive the Test pressings and drop the needle on. Being able to see something that you created from nothing, and having it physically there in front of you and playing it on your turntable is wonderful.
When I receive the final record is a nice moment as well. Seeing the label and the logo of Chikyu-u Records is always rewarding. I put them on the wall with a nice frame.
"I always try not to be the “boss”. I give the artists as much freedom as I can for their music. I never change things in their music if they are happy with it."
Give us some insight on the current artists releasing on the label.
They are good producers with full of passion for House music and ready to give to people their awesome music. I always try not to be the “boss”. I give the artists as much freedom as I can for their music. I never change things in their music if they are happy with it. They have the whole world to share.
When it comes to signing music, is there anything specific you look for in an artist or their productions?
I don’t have specific requirements. It’s all about If the music strikes me and makes me feel something. I try to know more about the artist. When some producers come to me and it’s the same, I’ll tell them if I’m interested or not. Of course, at its minimum, it has to fit the label, however - I'm not opposed to something different - as told above.
As the creator of a Vinyl label, do you feel that there is a boundary between unauthorized distribution and the usage of tracks in a podcast?
Nowadays, anyone can get any track or rip any song. It’s sad, of course and I’m sorry for those people who are doing that but we have to be thankful to those that play fair and support our work. That’s the most important thing to keep in mind.
"I don’t have specific requirements. It’s all about If the music strikes me and makes me feel something."
Being part of a record label is like being part of a family. Tell us about yours. What really goes on beyond the screens?
Yes, honestly I’m alone to manage the label but maybe I’ll build a team in the future.
Tell us about your logo and the label’s artwork. Who is behind the design and how are the ideas conceptualized?
Ah, the logo. The famous one. These are Japanese Kanji’s, which basically mean “Planet Earth” (Chikyu-u). The idea was to bring something that reunites people from all around the world as I wanted to discover artists from everywhere and to simply put this name was kind of logical. Why in Japanese ? Because I was in Japan when I started and my friend did the proposition. She drew the Kanji’s on a vulgar piece of paper. I just shot it with my phone and added it to all artwork that I then personalised myself with my own pictures.
Give us some insight into the future of Chikyu-u Records. What can we expect?
I’ll have 3 future digital releases from wonderful artists and hopefully I’ll keep releasing records with Lobster Theremin. We’ll keep the Unknown Artist series and see how it goes. After those 3 digital releases, I decided that I will be taking the time to make music because I haven't released for a long time now and I miss it. So I’ll make some music in the near future. Some tracks are almost ready.
Romain, in a few sentences. Tell us about this mix you made for us. Where did you get your inspiration. Is there anything special you want the audience to know?
I tried to play some interesting tunes and some that are not so well known. However, I wanted to play more tracks but there are too many on the label now and it’s hard to choose. I added notably in the beginning and at the end, some unreleased and forthcoming releases that I hope you’ll enjoy. I did play with CDJs but hopefully one day I’ll be able to do a vinyl only Chikyu-u dj set.
