Our friends over at Tag Team in Beijing have come up with a novel way of beating the piracy blues. Resuscitate an old format (tape) and sell it to people that you hope still have cassette machines. Or hope that people like the packaging so much that they go out and buy an 80’s retro ghetto blaster.
Without further ado, we give you the Reverse Polarity press release:
REVERSE<<<Polarity FAQ:
Why a cassette series?
Let’s face it, if you run an indie label in China, and you manufacture physical product, you do so as a labor of love. Despite what one may believe, this statement pertains to every active indie label in the PRC. There are very, very few exceptions and there is little or no crossover potential for Chinese bands at present, both domestically and abroad. Trust us on this one. In a nutshell, the ‘break even’ scenario with physical product, CDs in the case of our particular region, is most likely best case and we are all going into debt in order to put our bands’ music into the hands, not hard drives, of a very small margin of generally young, enthusiastic Chinese consumers with virtually no disposable income. Of course, everybody’s also trying to get their music out there digitally, but that’s a whole other can of worms we’d rather not get into at present.
That said, let’s boil things down even further: 90% of all physical product issued behind the Bamboo Curtain is essentially a ‘collectors item’ and like all things collectable, a must have for a certain, niche group of people who probably also either play in bands or book shows or aspire to start a label if they aren’t involved with one already.
Also, aside from virtually nonexistent profit margins, here’s the thing about putting out albums/EPs in China (legally) on CD: it’s a lengthy, often frustrating proposition, which in the end proves quite expensive. Yes, it is a little cheaper to manufacture quality, international standard product in China than in the west, but only marginally so. Plus, in order to get ISBN/ISRC codes necessary to legally release/distribute a CD, one must run all music, lyrics and packaging through the Ministry of Culture, which costs real money, time, and in some cases, nerves. Couple that with the fact that one must manufacture a minimum of 2000 copies of a said release in order to have it ‘pressed’ + drive unit prices down to something realistic, that whole-sellers or even individual ‘mom and pops’ will work with, and things start to add up. It’s not so cheap at all in the end, especially since you’re basically looking at a product you’re going to struggle to distribute in a capacity which makes sense sales wise. And yes, before you get all huffy, of course bands tour in China and there are new venues opening up all over the country. But, unfortunately, merch booths are often lonely, baron places outside of Beijing. Recently, one of our bands did a 17-date Chinese tour and sold a collective 250 CDs. This is not uncommon and is no reflection on that particular band’s live set. It just is what it is. Ask anybody in the industry and they’ll pretty much tell you the same thing.
So, when we at Tag Team were looking at 2010, in addition to several planned CD releases, we were trying to come up with a way to physically release a lot of quality, original music as cheaply and professionally as possible, in an altogether different format. After careful consideration, our solution was: REVERSE<<<POLARITY, a monthly, limited edition, DIY cassette Ep series! I mean, as mentioned above, if all physical product issued in this region is essentially a collectors item, then why not embrace that notion and do something retro-futuristic and moreover, cool.
Seriously, come on people, you remember tapes, right? Of course you do. Maybe you just need a refresher course: Tapes sound all warm and fuzzy, they cost very little money when purchased in bulk, they’re truly hands-on and there’s nothing cooler in our book than resurrecting antiquated technology and putting it to good use!
With the initial REVERSE<<<POLARITY concept in place, we started reaching out to artists both within and outside the Tag Team roster. We were pretty blown away with the responses we got. Not only were musicians willing to participate, they were as excited about the series as we at the label were. As this is a home-spun, DIY project, we asked that all submissions be home recorded and to be honest, we expected bands/artists to hand in either demos, outtakes or even 60 minutes of dripping water in the case of some of our more experimental friends. But, to our welcome surprise, everyone (thus far) has turned in seriously quality, home-baked recordings that in some respects are better representative of them as artists than previously released material. Somehow, all the music we’ve ok’d thus far is of a very lovingly crafted nature, either very warm or appropriately cold, depending on the nature of the artist in question. We’re pretty sure that the bar is set quite high by now for artists currently working on or piecing together their tapes and expect more aural goodness to come for the latter half of the 12-month series.
Once we decided to start making actually tapes, we ran all over Beijing searching for high-end 80’s tape components. We got lucky with a few gems that required little more than dusting and we found ourselves with several fat, high-quality stereo component tape deck systems with which to create the masters and subsequently dub the final product. Experimental artist jrg_one, whose ‘slim charles vs. carl sagan’ Ep is the first REVERSE<<<POLARITY release, was kind enough to help source equipment + sit around with us in the office and run various sonic experiments in order to ensure that the digital-to-audio transfers came off as high quality as possible. Once we had a master tape for each deck, we were off to races and dubbing began in earnest, which, though quite time consuming, was and continues to be a whole lot of fun! There’s a certain sense of nostalgia hearing the loud “thump” of tape heads locking in to rewind and play a tape. Somehow, the whole tactile process of making ‘sonic crafts’ is both comforting and cathartic, sort of like washing a lot of dishes, but more meaningful. Sounds strange. We know.
It should also be noted that we’re also taking great care with REVERSE<<<POLARITY packaging. Our cassettes will to not only sound good, they’re going to look good! Each monthly release features two-panel cover art inspired by the music in question and is hand drawn by our favorite punk rock artist, Pupi, who also happens to be the lead singer of Beijing disco-punk stalwarts, Bigger Bang. All other elements of the packaging, beyond logos, are hand drawn by the musicians themselves and each limited-edition copy is hand-numbered. Everything is printed on high-quality, recycled paper and each release is color-coded and will look great sitting alongside other volumes in the series. So, yeah, we’re not messing around when it comes to packaging.
Right, there you have it folks, that’s why we’ve started making tapes. We’re beyond excited about REVERSE<<<POLARITY and sincerely hope you are too!
Is Tag Team now a ‘tape label’?
No, although we think tape labels are incredibly interesting, REVERSE<<<POLARITY is just one of many projects we have planned for 2010. Despite the above rant, we’ve still got several CD releases coming out in 2010, including albums from Lonely China Day, Du Yun and Kodiak Island. Also, experimental artist jrg_one has just recently been officially added to the TTR roster and we’re planning 2010 releases from him on a couple of different, even more antiquated mediums! We’re also launching the TTR 2.0 website just in time for Chinese New Year and have been building content/mapping out whole new and interesting web-based projects that will see the light of day once the new site hits the interweb.
Why not go with a vinyl series?
If Tag Team were primarily concerned with US or European releases, we probably would have already done a 7” series, because we love wax, especially in a 7” format. But, as we are a label based in and focused on China at this point, a vinyl series is unfortunately not realistic. There is no precedent for vinyl culture here in the PRC. On the whole, the only people who seriously collect vinyl China-side are DJs. Most people just don’t have record players. As a matter of fact, we’re pretty sure that it’s quite difficult to pick up a reasonably priced turntable outside of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou and even if you do have one, finding vinyl that you would want to listen to for non-ironic reasons is nearly impossible. What Chinese folks do have en masse are tape players. If they don’t have one lying around, they can pick one up anywhere in China for around RMB50 or less! Tapes just seemed a better fit for the Chinese market and anyway, we wanted to do something hands on, that we could manufacture and control ourselves and cassettes were simply the best option.
Why would an artist be interested in participating in a limited edition cassette series?
Short answer, because most indie musicians are just into doing cool/interesting shit. We do however realize that handing over a whole Ep of original material for a limited-edition cassette series is a lot to ask. So, to sweeten the deal for the artists, they keep the rights to all of the material themselves, so they can re-release or re-record whatever is issued as a REVERSE<<<POLARITY release if they wish. Also, since REVERSE<<<POLARITY is essentially about Tag Team putting out a bunch of excellent music in a short space of time with very little overhead in an exclusive format, all profits after costs will go to the artist. We’re good like that, in this instance at least.
How can one purchase a REVERSE<<<POLARITY release?
*In China: all REVERSE<<<POLARITY releases will be available individually or as a series (see below) via the Tag Team Taobao page, which can be linked too via the Chinese and English language versions of www.tagteamrecords.com. Individual cassettes go for RMB 50, including shipping and handling.
*Outside China: all REVERSE<<<POLARITY releases will be available individually or as a series (see below) via the Online Store at the English language version of www.tagteamrecords.com. Individual cassettes go for $13, including shipping and handling.
*All REVERSE<<<POLARITY orders come with loads of freebies, like customized TTR chopsticks, stickers, etc. Every now and again, depending on availability and our mood, we may even throw in a CDR of live stuff or out-takes pertaining to TTR bands. Freebies will all be devised on a release to release basis.
Are there any physical shops where one can purchase a REVESE<<<POLARITY release?
Yes, but we’re keeping physical distribution quite minimal/exclusive. All REVERSE<<<POLARITY releases will be available in limited quantity at Bye Bye Disco (Beijing), Rock 0093 (Shanghai) and White Noise (Hong Kong). Addresses and telephone numbers for each of these shops will be posted on the Tag Team site. Retail prices for individual cassettes will vary depending on shop.
Will the REVERSE<<<POLARITY releases be available digitally?
Here’s where the forward-looking part of our retro-futuristic offering kicks in……everyone who buys a cassette will receive a digital copy of all the songs. This can be downloaded from exclusive download partner, Wawawa music store. (www.wa3.cn). Each cassette purchase, will be accompanied with a download card with an individual code to be redeemed at Wa3.cn to access the downloadable digital version, ready to go on iPods – though the tape Walkman is the first weapon of choice for maximum REVERSE<<<POLARITY aural pleasure.
Is there a subscription available for the entire series, so I don’t have to buy each release separately?
YES! YES!! YES!!!
In China: Preorder all 12 REVERSE<<<POLARITY releases via the Chinese and English language versions of www.tagteamrecords.com and receive each release (plus accompanying freebies) a few days before everyone else each month. And, as an added bonus, everyone who preorders the entire series receives a GOLDYiP GP-9904 Double Cassette Recorder & Player. That’s right, preorder the entire series and you get your very own old-school boombox FOR FREE! Yup, you can even do karaoke on that bad boy! RMB600 gets you the entire series + freebies before anyone else AND the GP-9904 boombox, which will arrive with your first cassette.
Outside China: Preorder all 12 REVERSE<<<POLARITY releases via the English language portion of www.tagteamrecords.com and receive each release (plus accompanying freebies) a few days before everyone else each month. AND, as an added bonus, everyone who preorders the entire series receives a *GOLDYiP GP-9904 Double Cassette Recorder & Player. That’s right, preorder the entire series and you get your very own old-school boombox FOR FREE! Yup, you can even do karaoke on that bad boy! $150 gets you the entire series (at a discounted price) + freebies before anyone else AND the GP-9904 boombox, which will arrive with your first cassette.
*Please note: The GOLGYiP GP-9904 is manufactured in China and is 230v. You may need a power converter, depending on the region in which you reside.
What’s the release schedule for the series? What artists are participating?
We can tell you now that the first three REVERSE<<<POLARITY Eps will be from jrg_one (January), Arrows Made of Desire (February) and Kodiak Island (March). The rest we’re keeping under wraps for the moment. Everything will be revealed in a timely fashion over at www.tagteamrecords.com. It’s just more fun that way, right?!