Label Feature #1: Bonsound

Founded by Gourmet Délice, Jean-Christian Aubry and Yanick Masse, Montréal-based Bonsound has fast become one of Canada’s leading independent record labels, artist management company, booking agency, concert producer and promotion & publicity agency.

Towards the end of 2018 we caught up with Bonsound’s Gourmet Délice and Elizabeth Varvaro to learn more about how the label came to be, their early experiences in the industry and the story behind some of the most exciting vinyl projects they have released so far.

How did the Bonsound label come to be formed?

Bonsound started back in 2004 as an artist management company with the three founders. Since then it’s evolved into a record label, a booking agency, a concert producer, a publicity agency and, recently, a publishing company.

What were some of the challenges you faced in the early days of building the label?

The biggest challenge was, is and always will be adapting to the changes in the music industry, every minute. Our goal is always to reach an equilibrium between a lot of competing elements (budgets vs timelines vs the project’s potential vs the artists’ expectations, etc) in each project. And then, we also try to attain a similar equilibrium amongst all our projects. So building the label and keeping it relevant is an ongoing challenge. Our label is a constantly evolving beast, and so is that challenge.

Which five recent Bonsound vinyl projects stand out to you?

Safia Nolin – Reprises Vol. 1. The concept of this project was for Safia to cover Québec top-40 pop-rock hits in her stripped-down minimalist style, and the whole package came together beautifully. For the artwork we went with an low-fi “karaoke” vibe and even released a limited quantity of records pressed in coke-bottle-green. It’s definitely best heard on vinyl.

Dead Obies – Gesamtkunstwerk. The band named their sophomore album after the German word for “total work of art” so we had to follow through with the packaging. The music and artwork revolve around the continuous feedback loop between the public and the artist. Much of it was recorded in front of a live audience, and the artwork was based on photos from that recording. It’s an amazing record, and hearing it on vinyl adds to that “total” experience.

Pierre Kwenders – MAKANDA at the end of space, the beginning of time. Pierre’s fantastic sophomore record will give you all the feels! He’s an enigmatic artist & performer (just check out his recent performance at this year’s Polaris Music Prize gala) who builds so many layers and textures into his music, it was impossible not to release the album on vinyl. He went with a simple but striking pink & green art concept, and we pressed the record in pink.

Milk & Bone – Singles. While Milk & Bone was between albums, they released standalone singles that got a lot of streaming attention. We pressed a limited edition vinyl with these tracks with a really stripped down jacket design. The whole product is the perfect merch item for their fans.

Ponctuation – Mon herbier du monde entier. This psych-garage-rock band always has gorgeous album designs. To make the artwork, they pieced together cut outs from old National Geographic magazines, and the black & white exterior opens up to a very colourful interior. Plus, this kind of lo-fi garage rock music is made for vinyl.

The Bonsound label launched during a challenging time for the vinyl industry. How have vinyl consumer habits and your approach to physical releases changed over time?

Vinyl was very, very niche when the label first launched. We usually only produced a record on vinyl when there was an explicit demand. Over the last few years, vinyl has become an absolute must – it’s almost a cross between album and merch. We look at it as one (very important) part of the whole package around launching a new record. People often buy vinyl after having already heard the album, either at a show or via streaming, so its a product that sells kinda slow-but-steady over the course of an album’s lifespan. Now when you sell a vinyl, especially for a new artist, you know it’s going to someone who really loves the album.

What does 2019 hold for the label?

So many things! In fall of 2018 we put out a lot of vinyl, including records for Elisapie (The Ballad of the Runaway Girl), Les Louanges (La nuit est une panthère) and Safia Nolin (Dans le noir). All are completely unique, carefully crafted albums that will sound amazing on anyone’s turntable. Our schedule for next year (2019) is still in flux, but we will be launching some highly anticipated follow-up records alongside some very interesting debut albums.