Juggernaut Music Group

I've known the wonderful man behind ever since I first started writing at Brutal Resonance. And, well, eventually, as I continued to write for this magazine, his management group became a record label. Having reviewed all the releases off his label as of this far, I thought it was high time to interview the man and have a little chit chat about the inner workings of his label.

Well, obviously this isn't a question I need to personally ask because I already know you, but for the readers, tell us about yourself, a little biography.

Nick - "Well, for starts, my name's obviously Nick Quarm, the owner of Juggernaut Music Group. Twenty nine years old, so possibly one of the younger label owners out there. I've been in the industrial scene since 2001/2002, so I would've been sixteen or seventeen years old. So, I fell into it rather quickly. In 2006 I was writing in my first magazine, and in 2007 I was running my second magazine. And, then in 2010 I discovered Brutal Resonance. Which, at the time, was literally me, Patrik, and Fredrik Croona from Cynical Existence. So, it was a two person project and it was predominantly Swedish at the time. I got involved in that quite quickly, with writing several articles a week and then the rest of the story sort of explains itself. As you know, I became co-editor, the magazine became quite famous quite quickly, and somewhere in 2012 I launched Juggernaut Services. And, you know what happened after that."

So, tell us the start of Juggernaut Services. When did it become tangible?

Nick - "I formed it on 20 of July in 2012, and I've been thinking about it since summer 2011. And the reason I did it, really, was because I interviewed, reviewed, and heard several artists that I thought were really good that were off the radar completely. And if you Googled their name, nothing came up. And I thought that that wasn't right, these guys are really good. But they've been forgotten. So, I decided to just go with it, see if I could find my way pushing and trying, turn things around a bit make things interesting."

Was it because of these bands that you got influenced to start the label?

Nick - "Yea, after a year or so reviewing bands that I thought were shit hot, I said to myself it's not right, there;s something fundamentally wrong here. There's all these artists that either can't promote themselves or the labels don't want to know. And why is that happening? So, I talked to a few friends of mine about it and they said, 'Well, look, you've got contacts and experience, why don't you do something about it, promote it.' And I thought about it for a year, and I thought it was a big risk. I didn't think anyone would want to be promoted in such a small group of music. But, it actually worked out really well."

When did you actually decide to switch over the management service to a label?

Nick - "I'll be strictly honest here, it started out good and it came to its pinnacle distance in March 2013. People started to buy stuff, people started to get well known, but I had two problems. And, problem one was, despite the fact that I had a legitimate company and people knew what I was doing, the bands were still being considered unsigned bands. And the magazines weren't particularly keen to talk to all these unsigned bands. Even having the Services tag above their heads, if you will, they were still being neglected and treated as unsigned for a reason. The other reason was the business model I had for services, although it worked well, in the end, I was getting nothing out of it. I was actually giving back more than I was getting in. And I started to lose that passion, started to lose that zest to continue doing it. And the only option was to find a new way to continue in the music business, to continue what I'm doing without burning myself out was to run it as a label."

Did you have any controversy or problems when switching over to a label?

Nick - "No, I kept the general idea quite secret, quite private, because there are a lot of naysayers out there, a lot of competition, a lot of vultures. All bands on services knew about my plan beforehand. We have a closed FaceBook group that everyone's a part of. And I told everyone what my intentions were and I said 'Look, if you're on Services, and you wanna be on the label, then I can switch you over without a problem.' There were no objections. There were a few artists who didn't want to switch to a label, who wanted to stay independent. They still work with me on the Services level. The Service is still going on for people that were already under the Services banner just because I want to honor they're contracts. But, I talked to everyone and told them that, 'This is what I want to do.' And, the support was overwhelming and some of the guys wanted to sign up straight away. Most of them left on good terms. There were two bands that really didn't like the idea and really didn't want to know. But their contracts ended so there were no real losses."

Which artists from the management program decided to move with you into the label?

Nick - "I had thirty six artists on the Services banner when we moved over. And, I think about seventeen or eighteen joined up with the label or talked about joining up with the label. I think the most well known ones that jumped over were System:FX, Garten der Asche, and FutureFrenetic. Obviously there was Tactical Module who was the first official label release. But, it was just yesterday, in fact, that I opened a booklet for Foundations and had a look at the roster in the credits roll. And, seventy five percent of the people on it are no longer with us."

You have a lot of releases coming out this year. How do you balance it all out?

Nick - "I ask myself this everyday. Honestly it's a temporary thing. The first year is the hardest year. I think the first twelve months is when you have to make yourself known because if you don't do it in the first twelve months then you're not gonna do it. So, I'm throwing everything I've got at it for now. But, the main reason I'm pushing it so hard is because in April I'm trading at Resistanz Festival and in May we've got the iVardensphere headlining gig with System:FX, Ruinizer, CeDigest, Tapewyrm, and Cease2Xist supporting. and, obviously, those are some of my guys and I'm gonna have a stall. I think it's really important to have a good selection of CDs out to get the name across quicker and really give people something that they won't forget."

IO currently has three videos out. Did you help with that and do you plan on getting more of your acts to do videos?

Nick - "I'm glad someone's asked me that. All the videos are self produced, self created, and self funded. Fortunately, Chris Gurney is quite experienced in arts and graphics anyway. The only input I had in that, really, were which tracks to do the videos for and yaying or naying it. In terms of official videos, actually, it's not really a field I'm great in. Most of the properly done videos such as the Voicecoil and Garten der Asche the bands had gone ahead and done themselves. With me, I can either pay someone to do a promo video or do a still video, which I don't really praise, but on YouTube, the more you get out there, the more people are going to notice it. But, to answer your question for the most part, the guys do the videos themselves. And, if they're good at it I don't really feel the need to get involved."

You have several acts around the world. Does language difference ever hinder communication?

Nick - "Languages really aren't an issue. The majority of the guys outside the USA, UK, or Australia are fluent in English, anyway. The two guys that I have that really struggle with the language I generally use Google translate to bounce back and forth between us. We normally get there in the end, and if there is an issue, I have people on the roster who speak Italian, speak Spanish, speak German, so there's someone that can as a go between if needed."

I know I've reviewed several of your artists. Do reviews really mean that much to you?

Nick - "I think reviews are kind of like a double edged sword. They seem to have lost somewhat of their stature. I still find them essential because because ninety five percent of the promotions are gotten from magazines anyway. It's so fundamentally important as a musician and a manager, label owner to see what the professionals think, to where you're going wrong, to see what you're doing right. Because, really, we're sailing across the ocean without a paddle if we haven't a clue what we're doing well."

You keep your fans updated with Juggernaut often, including myself. Just this morning you directed me to the picture on your FaceBook page showing the physical version of Frozen. Do you strive to perfect fan connectivity?

Nick - "Quite honestly, if it wasn't for the fans, the customers, the people that support us, we wouldn't be doing it. I see no personal interest in you sitting in the dark, not knowing what's going on, not knowing what's coming next. For me, hype is a very important thing and I try to keep people interested in what we're doing. And I believe it's the best relationship possible."

Do you ever look at other labels to get ideas, or do you just form them on your own?

Nick - "It's fifty fifty. Some of the things that labels are doing I borrow and try and improve. Most of my ideas I've come up with by myself. Most of the time, being innovative is a big risk. I had to pull the initiative scheme because I couldn't apply the discount automatically. So, I had people who had to message me, asking for it. I had to generate a manual code. I had a couple of people who didn't ask, and then I had to issue refunds. And, it was all getting to be a bit of a headache. The people who purchased it are still eligible for the discount if they want it. But, it just fundamentally didn't work."

I know you had some trouble in the past with another label, but, do you work with any other labels in the field?

Nick - "Funny you say that. I was happy with Juggernaut being an independent scheme for quite a long time. But, I announced yesterday, and you may have seen this, that we're now in partnership with Negative Gain Productions. The reason being is that a large amount of our talent is based in the North America region, anyway. And I think it's so important for the American scene to have a big grasp on what we're doing. It's important to have somebody in the USA who's working with me over there. And, likewise, it's important for Negative Gain Productions to have someone representing them in this half of the world. I was recommended to them by the guy from Alter Der Ruine last year. And I'm proud to say I'm on very good terms with him. And the actual deal with NGP actually came about just based on how similar we are, how well we get along, and how well we work together. I probably wouldn't work with anybody else. It kind of just plays off really nicely."

I know you're releasing Beat:Cancer this year. What made you want to release it under your label?

Nick - "Well, I know the guy who created Beat:Cancer, Mark Haigh, and it's just a cause that means so much to so many people. Last year, we shared a trading stall at Resistanz and Beat:Cancer was released through Static Distortion, may they rest in peace, and it took off so well, did so much good; it was that popular. When Mark said he was renewing it this year, I jumped right in and said, 'Well, look, let me release it and let me promote it.' And I think it's safe to say most people know someone who has fallen to cancer, and it's just such an important thing to be aware of."

Are there any exclusive, first hand announcements that you can tell us?

Nick - "I think that I've been sitting on is now officially revealed. What I can tell you is that I got the master's back today for the next Electric Breathing album which I'm going to be putting out. It's actually one of his older releases that never really made it. It's been completely remastered, completely redone and I'm hoping to get it out in summer time. But, anybody who liked Sweet Violence, you'll probably be blown away. Because this goes back to his roots, this has more tradition, aggrotech, dark electro, a lot faster and harder. I'm really stoked about it and I really can't wait to drop that on you."

Any final thoughts or comments?

Nick - "I just wanna thank you for this opportunity and wanted to thank everyone who's reading this, and have supported us. And to continue supporting independent music. I feel like the scene is in a really good place right now, and it getting stronger. I urge you to continue helping it get stronger."