The Monster is on our back… !
INTERVIEW de PHILIPPE GILARD à propos de PRAIRIE DOGS MUSIC
« Courant septembre, je rendais visite à Philippe Gilard pour parler du nouveau label Prairie Dogs Music et de beaucoup d’autres choses passionnantes… ! » par Fernand Naudin @ MONSTER ON YOUR BACK 
https://monsteronyourback.blogspot.com/…/monster…
« NOTE : For our English-speaking followers — this first interview with PHILIPPE GILARD, president of PRAIRIE DOGS MUSIC and co-founder of the label, is published in French, as it appeared today on a French blog. HERE IS THE AMERICAN VERSION :
« In September, I visited Philippe Gilard to talk about the new label Pairie Dogs Music and many other exciting things… !
Interview with a true enthusiast. »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : Where did the idea of starting a label come from?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « The idea took root after Bruce Joyner passed away… We had released Bruce Joyner’s last two studio albums on Closer, and I was dreaming of an acoustic, unplugged album — something never done before in the ‘Nightingale of Atlanta’s’ discography. On his last album, he had already played two songs in an acoustic setting, using a twelve-string guitar. It was wonderful. Just him and Tom Byars. I thought: Why not do an entirely acoustic album? Especially since, toward the end, his voice had changed — less powerful, but more subtle, more moving.
Tom Byars and I had started working on the idea, and Bruce was excited. He had written a few new texts (beautiful ones!), we had a project… and sadly, just a few weeks after the release of compilation Eyes On You Vol. III (Closer Records), he left us.
From there, Tom and I talked and agreed that it shouldn’t end there… We gathered all the material we had: unreleased tracks, live recordings, and much more. The goal was clear: make a beautiful tribute.
Tom got in touch with Don Fleming, producer for Hole and Sonic Youth, who had played with Bruce in The Stroke Band back in 1978 (they had an album together). They organized a ‘Tribute’ event on Bruce’s birthday, August 9, in Atlanta. Many artists attended: bands played, groups Bruce had been involved with performed, and the guitarist from The Unknowns was there!
But we felt a second tribute was needed — in another form. The initial plan was to make a double album with rare or unreleased material. This ambitious project requires much research, restoration work, and time, so it will come later.
Instead, we decided to launch a series dedicated to Bruce, probably titled The Lost Tapes. The first volume will focus on Out Of The Fire, Tom Byars’ band in which Bruce Joyner sang. This was a group responsible for one single album, active over roughly twenty years with many line-up changes, and now regarded as cult.
This first volume is in fact the band’s unreleased second album, with Bruce on keyboards and vocals! Alain Feydri — well known to aficionados — will be in charge of writing the biographical text featured on the Out Of The Fire album cover.
The tracks were recorded in 1991 by John Keane in Athens, Georgia, assisted by David Barbe, bassist of Sugar, with Peter Buck from R.E.M. as artistic producer! Mastering them was a pleasure for me because the sound is exceptional. Among the guests, there’s Mitch Easter (the producer of R.E.M.’s early records), who added some gorgeous guitar parts and backing vocals… This record is a true gem never before released — fans will love it!
So, we inherited all of this. We also have a sixteen-track live set from Out Of The Fire, plenty of Bruce Joyner’s unreleased tracks, quality live recordings, and even an unreleased track by The Unknowns… but that’s for later.
Right after, we’ll produce the first album by LemonMNM, Tom Byars’ new band. In terms of production, I want to specify that most of the albums we plan to release will be records which, even if not all recorded, mixed, arranged, and mastered directly by us at JWSM Studio, will still receive the label’s own treatment (artwork, liner notes, concepts, etc.). We have more projects in the pipeline… We love Bad Wheels, the band of our Toronto-based graphic artist Franco Caré, and The Miners of Muzo. It’s also possible we’ll release the second album by my own band, John Wayne Supermarket. We’re already receiving plenty of interesting proposals from well-established bands… But for now, we’ll start with the first one — Out Of The Fire! »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : Where does the name Prairie Dogs Music come from?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « The title Prairie Dog comes from Bruce Joyner’s album The Devil Is Beating His Wife. We pushed the tribute far enough to choose the title of one of his songs as the name of the label… But to give you a clearer idea: a prairie dog is a small plains mammal — lively, alert, always watching, ready to pop out of its burrow to explore new horizons — which perfectly sums up our philosophy. »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : I’m not familiar with that album…
PHILIPPE GILARD : « Here, I’ll give it to you! I’ve got two copies. If I damage the only one I have left, you can make me a cassette… (laughs! He hands me the LP. Thanks Philippe!!!) »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : Do you consider yourselves a Dordogne-based label?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « I’m the president of the Prairie Dogs Music association, and I live in Dordogne, so geographically yes, you could say that… (laughs) But it remains an international project with members based in the U.S. and Canada. I’m surrounded by a high-level team of ‘mercenaries’!
The secretary and head of promotion is Jack Menant, based in Marseille — a former New Rose Records member I worked with at Closer. Fred Mosrite, who lives in Cahors, is the treasurer. Fred is an outstanding salesman and public relations expert, with a strong artistic instinct. He attends every concert and festival and is a devoted record collector.
The label also counts François from the magazine Buzz On Web, based in Brittany — a dear friend whose non-elitist, popular view of music I greatly appreciate. In Canada we have Franco Caré from Bad Wheels, already mentioned — not only a master of Power-Pop but also an unbeatable graphic artist who creates all Prairie Dogs visuals. We’ve known and worked together for about fifteen years.
And in the U.S., of course, there’s Tom Byars in Atlanta, Bruce Joyner’s faithful guitarist for decades, and Randy Cooksey, drummer for Out Of The Fire, living in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
Beyond this core team, we have other friends offering their support: Pierre Chaissac handles online repertoire publication, and Alain Feydri contributes editorial and writing work, to name just a couple… Prairie Dogs Music is more than just a label — it’s a constellation of individuals pooling their skills to serve their shared passion for rock. »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : Had you already managed a label before this?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « Yes — ColorSounds Records (ColorSounds in one word), in Toulouse in the mid-90s, with Pascal, bassist of Indian Ghost. It’s the name of a fuzz pedal I liked. We released split singles and several albums, publishing Indian Ghost, Explosive Coolies, Moe (an industrial band from Pau), Otis Wood, Mr Spaceman, Shee Loves… I had to stop when I moved to the Caribbean, and the label closed later. I was also involved in Closer Records’ second generation. »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : Does everyone in your team have label experience?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been involved since 2013 in reactivating Closer, and I still help Philippe Debris today with mixing, mastering, artwork, videos, etc. Some of us do have label experience. Jack worked at New Rose, Media 7, and other record companies. We met when he joined me at Closer. Fred, also from Closer, is more of a field man — he organized the first major blues festival in France, based in Cahors, and had set up a production company called L’Etroit Tours, which brought bluesmen from the U.S. to tour across Europe.
There’s also one woman in the team — we mustn’t forget her! Gladys, also from Cahors, is an accountant and assists Fred as treasurer (though Fred can’t count, laughs).
François from Buzz On Web, more on the editorial side, will handle crowdfunding with Jack.
As for Franco, Randy, and Tom representing Prairie Dogs overseas, they haven’t had direct label experience to my knowledge, but their long careers are packed with notable collaborations and rich in skills and connections. Everyone has their own strengths and responsibilities, though the label’s cardinal rule is versatility. »
Monster On Your Back: Does Prairie Dogs Music follow a specific musical direction, like some labels focused on 50s Rock’n’Roll, Garage, etc.? Or will you go by instinct and encounters?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « Prairie Dogs isn’t meant to be a ‘garage’ label! Only Fred is purely ‘garage’ (laughs) — and a specialist in Rock from the Antipodes — and even then, not entirely, because beneath his tough exterior and tiger-tooth necklace, he listens to all sorts of things… Jack leans more toward Punk-Rock or Noise, and both are on the front lines of what’s happening now.
We’ll operate more on instinct, friendship, and respect for the bands — a sort of collective thing, almost hippie-like (laughs). Our American friends are hippies (laughs) — well, mainly Tom… and me too, deep down. Still, that doesn’t mean we’ll release flower-power music!
When it comes to a guiding principle, you’ll find it more in our method and ethics than in a specific music style. I sincerely want us to respond when bands reach out, to stay humble and respectful toward everyone — no egos, no gatekeeping. Of course, there’s an internal charter, like in any association, establishing simple and essential rules.
As for the label’s musical range, it’ll be fairly broad — from Pop to Rock, through Psychedelia and Folk… As long as we like it, we’ll take it! If someone offered us previously unheard recordings by Robert Johnson, we’d release them (we’ve got a specialist among us). Between us all, our tastes are so diverse that anything’s possible. The rule for releases is simple: they must be approved unanimously — pure democracy. »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : How many copies will you press for each release, and in what formats?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « LP and CD, in quantities varying between three hundred and five hundred copies, depending on the title and demand. We’re in a niche market — we can’t forget that. »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : Short formats or long ones — or both?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « We’re not planning to release 7-inch singles — except in digital format, at least for now, because it’s simply too expensive. That said, some labels handle it very well — like Jean-Marc Varlet of Disques Rogue, for instance — a wonderful guy we greatly appreciate. Jean-Marc runs his singles and EPs label very skillfully, and his neo-sixties productions are distributed all over Europe. »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : Do you plan to collaborate with other labels in the future?
PHILIPPE GILARD : « That’s definitely in the air… For now, we’re leaning toward a fully DIY approach, mostly due to our self-produced releases. But we’re open to future collaborations and opportunities that may arise. »
MONSTER ON YOUR BACK : Thank you, Philippe!
PHILIPPE GILARD : « Thank you — for the interest you’re showing in our new venture! »