Don’t call it a record label says Patrik North the co-founder of Acéphale, as you’re about to find out how 2 guys accomplished what usually takes a team to achieve. From signing some of the hotly tipped independent artists to merchandising and throwing euphoric DJ sets, this label found itself a place among the big sharks and by the looks of what they have planned for the future, it’s one to be taken seriously.

Who and what is Acéphale Records?

Acéphale isn’t really only a record label, there’s a lot more involved as we are branching out into other forms of media at the moment. I (Patrik North) do the curating, Rory Johnstone handles the design.

What was the main motive to start a record label?

To release the SALEM EP. I was finishing up as an A&R at another label and found them and knew it was time to start my own thing. Then I asked Rory to join me as I have always loved his work. I just get very passionate about music that moves me, and of course it’s nice to share that passion with others, I think.

You have a number of big releases from high profile bands and labels released on Acéphale, how do you manage to secure such releases?

I think it’s a combination of being early and decisive about who I want to work with and being consistent in the quality of what we do.

What do you base your choice of releases on?

The music has to make me feel, and has to be fundamentally progressive. I’m not interested in capitalizing on scenes or sounds, it’s mainly about what’s next.

Is Acéphale self funded?

100%

You’ve built quite a reputation and a name for Acéphale among other similar labels, What strategy did you adopt to achieve such success?

There wasn’t really a strategy, to be honest. We do mostly everything on instinct and I think that’s the most important thing about what we do, it all comes from the heart.

Did you come across any difficulties in the early stages of conceiving the label?

It was hard working from Vancouver, despite the advantages of the internet, It’s still good to work from the heart of a major city. But other than relative geographic isolation, not really.

While most independent labels are taking the digital route you still firmly believe in the consumers interest in physical?

We do both physical and digital releases. I will always want to release on vinyl because physical releases feel more like documents to me. Digital only releases feel so transitory, and I like a sense of permanence.

What about your promos, how do you service them?

Pretty much all the promo we do is with mp3s, direct to bloggers and journalists.

Do you think without the internet, labels like yours could’ve reached the same level of success?

Yes and no. I suppose that because Acéphale’s roster is not really ties to a ‘place’ or ’scene’ and all our acts are so international it would be hard for it to exist without the internet. But you find other ways of finding music I think, or I hope.

What tools do you use online to aid you with the label needs?

We’re a little slack at this I’m afraid. We use all the usual suspects like Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, but it seems like such a boring scheme that it’s often hard to keep up the effort.

Do you think a site like Fairtilizer can help a label get recognized by a wider range of listeners? (How?)

Absolutely, any embeddable tools that are clean and simple to use offer great advantages. And purely from a promo tool perspective, it’s much more effective than a hosted mp3.

What’s on your itinerary for the coming months?

Next up is the Sail A Whale EP and then some more singles and EP of new artists, leading into a few special LPs in the fall. We’ll also be doing some more shirts and some other unique items.

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