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Cartesian Philosophy
Cartesian Records is an exciting
new enterprise which aims to offer new and established Recording Artists the
option to release their work within an open, non-binding framework applicable
to the 21st Century.
Our priority is
the delivery of a quality independent service to the Artist, whilst offering a
very high degree of artistic freedom and control. People come to us who simply
want to make a well Engineered & Produced record, have it professionally
promoted in the media, have it distributed and sold in shops and hopefully see
a healthy return on it. If they then want to make another record with us,
great; but if they want to sign a multi-million pound contract with a major,
that's great too! Seven-album deals & mega advances aren't our thing.
We potentially
offer considerably higher Royalty rates than the industry standard. Record
companies usually offer a rate between 6.5% and 8.5% of the pre-VAT retail cost
of each record sold. Once our releases have 'broken even' (typically costs are
around £1.40 per CD all-in), our Artists receive 50% of all pre-tax profit
made. Additionally, the Artist(s) will (collectively) receive 150 free copies
of their CD (Albums and Singles) for them to sell at gigs, give to
friends, etc.
To enable this
relationship, Cartesian work a little differently; hopefully to the long-term
benefit of the Artist(s). Firstly, we do not finance the Studio costs for
recording the material. This initially sounds like a rough deal, but we do so
in order to preserve the Artists control over the recordings. Traditionally,
Companies who fund the Artists' recording sessions then retain ownership of
them (if not the songs themselves), and are free to use them in the future as
they see fit. This has often led to unestablished Artists finding their work
reproduced at a later date, receiving just standard Royalties while their
Record Companies wallow in the profits. As a truly independent label, Cartesian
see an Artists' recordings as morally theirs and theirs alone, and any
recordings for our releases are used under license from the Artist(s) on a
Project-by-Project basis.
Cartesian have an
arrangement with a well-established London Studio which provides reduced rates
for all our Artists. We offer the use of a highly respected Recording Engineer
and Producer at significantly lower costs than for comparable facilities
elsewhere. (Details available on request)
Secondly, as our
relationship with all our Artists is as temporary as they wish it to be, we
view Tours, arranging interviews, and advertising (above & beyond the
professional PR for Press & Radio which we provide) as the responsibility
of the Artists or their Management. Again, where this is required we can
greatly assist with by providing access to professional Graphic artists, etc.
Nationwide Marketing and Advertising is also available through our
Distributers, Cargo Records UK Ltd.
While these
conditions may be viewed by some as restrictive, we feel that by giving Artists
a 50% stake in the profits, a successful release would more than adequately
cover the additional costs, while maintaining true Artist independence.
We also have a
more open approach to publicity than many. For instance, it has been our common
practice to produce 60-second sample MP3s of our releases (with Artist consent)
for download from our website, to allow the public access to a Band's music
without giving away the full product. We believe this openness provides a 'try
before you buy' opportunity for potential fans, which in so doing discourages
piracy of complete songs.
Cartesian Records
is a Limited Company (Reg No. 04510922) registered in England and Wales, and
have an exclusive Distribution agreement covering the UK and Europe with Cargo
Records UK Ltd, 17 Heathmans Road, Parsons Green, London SW6 4TJ.
Staff:
Managing
Director / A & R Paul J Clare
Company
Secretary
Linda Davis
A &
R
Daniel
Saunders
Graphics and Design
Tedra
Clover
Production
Drew
Richards
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Cartesian Records Ltd, 2003.