In less than seven years, the last four in Athens, Primordial Void has established itself as a boutique record label in the same spirit as legendary labels like ESP-Disk and even more recent examples Stones Throw, Palilalia and Ninja Tune. The label recently marked its own milestone of 50 releases with two whopping compilations: Primordial God and Primordial Energy. Founder and chief agitator Marcel Sletten—who is also a solo recording artist in his own right, as well as a member of Chairs and The Rishis—was kind enough to talk about the comps and the story behind them.
“I definitely knew I wanted to do something special for our 50th release, and the last time [the label] had done a various-artists compilation was our very first release, Primordial Chaos, back in 2018,” he says. “I had several people over the years ask me when I was going to do another one, so I wanted to give them something cool. Initially I was just going to compile around 20 tracks and release it on a single cassette like last time, but there were too many artists I wanted to include this time around, so that’s how it ended up being two separate releases and 48 tracks overall. I would’ve compiled exactly 50 tracks but there’s only so much room on a cassette tape!” As it stands God contains 26 tracks and Energy has 22.
While the two sister releases are most assuredly related, they’re also segregated to a reasonable degree so as to foster an ordered way to interact with the material. The label is known for releasing a wide swath of music, from jangle pop to inscrutable noise excursions. To this end, Primordial God is largely song- and melody-based, whereas Primordial Energy is more style-expansive and experimental.
“As much as I’m all for blending genres and styles, I wanted the compilation to be a cohesive listening experience, which is why I decided to make them two separate releases,” Sletten explains. “God largely contains work by our rock- and folk-oriented artists and friends, and Energy highlights the experimental electronic sound of the label.”
It’s difficult-to-impossible to parse all the music contained on these, but specific highlights of each include Reed Winckler, Magic Tuber String Band, Marshall Stacks and an Athens band that has enjoyed some recent recognition after many years in the dark, Banned 37, which can be found on Primordial God. And on Primordial Energy there are standout tracks from Bug Bus Piano, Yellow Swans, Dylan M. Howe, Sophia Rubin, Obe and Kentaro Minoura, among many others.
The sequencing of any album is an unsung, yet noticed if flawed, aspect of any record production. Working well within the deep underground and with artists who generally have very few matching edges, this can be a heavy task for labels like Primordial Void. But Sletten, who has sequenced all of the label’s releases since its founding, says, “I wanted the entire thing to sound like an album made by a bunch of friends, or like the Olivia Tremor Control’s Black Foliage where you had a different group of musicians on each track.” With respect to these two compilations in particular, he pretty much nailed that goal. Even though the artists represented are flung across the globe, it’s not at all difficult when listening to these collections to imagine that everyone involved is basically in the same peer group.
Nothing is accidental with Primordial Void, its aesthetic appeal to improvisation and spontaneity notwithstanding. So it’s no surprise to find the titles are both meaningful and significant to Sletten. He says, “Since the first compilation we did was called Primordial Chaos, I wanted to continue referencing Greek mythology with the titles. I also have a track I released in 2022 called “Primordial God,” so I was also referencing that when I was titling the rock-folk compilation. The significance of Chaos relates to the eclectic nature of the label, God relates to Him being a primary source of inspiration when it comes to curating the label, and Energy relates to channeling an inner primordial energy source, another source of inspiration for me.”
Sletten is also a live show promoter of some experience, and is adept at putting together curated events. These compilations, while officially released back in mid-March, will enjoy their own celebratory listening party and cassette tape release event at LowYoYo Stuff Records on Saturday, May 31 from 2–5 p.m. He said, “I think we’ll have a big foam board everyone can draw and/or paint on. It should be real fun; the cassettes turned out great.”
Running a record label at any level below the major label, or major indie for that matter, is necessarily a labor of love. But it also provides an opportunity to be on the sub-ground level of music discovery and elevate items of interest to a broader audience. And such is true of Sletten and Primordial Void. “The artists are either people I’ve known for years or started corresponding with over email just recently. The compilations include a mix of some of my oldest friends and collaborators, Athens chums, and artists and bands I simply admire.”
WHO: Primordial Void Listening Party
WHEN: Saturday, May 31, 2–5 p.m.
WHERE: LowYoYo Stuff Records
HOW MUCH: FREE!
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