Wires Crossed – Hylé vs Haju
5.13.16 by Mike Haley

There is a legion of labels and weirdo jammers releasing cassette, with new names popping up every single day. With those staggering numbers it can be easy to mix em up, get confused, or form loose associations. Wires Crossed will take those Corey Haim/Corey Feldman and Oprah/Uma situations and figure out just how similar they are.

This inaugural Wires Crossed examines Hylé Tapes and Haju Tapes. Two fairly new, impressive labels that I can’t seem to keep straight.

 

Tell me a little bit about the name of your label. What does it mean, why did you choose it, and how do you pronounce it?

Hylé: In philosophy, hyle (/ˈhaɪliː/; from Ancient Greek: ὕλη) refers to matter or stuff. It can also be the material cause underlying a change in Aristotelian philosophy. The Greeks originally had no word for matter in general, as opposed to raw material suitable for some specific purpose or other, so Aristotle adapted the word for “wood” to this purpose. The idea that everything physical is made of the same basic substance holds up well under modern science, although it may be thought of more in terms of energy or matter/energy. I recorded a track called Hylé with my solo project Acid Fountain and I thought it could be a cool name for a tape label. It sounds kind of French to me with that letter “é”, but it is not.

Haju: Haju Tapes is named after one of my aunts (on my mom’s side of the family). Her full name is Hajra, but everyone calls her Haju. The reason I chose to name the label after her is because we were very close, when I was younger. Our personalities are very similar… both of us are total introverts, which is strange since everyone else in the family is an extrovert. Other than that, I just like the way it sounds. As for pronunciation, it’s Ha-Jew. It always cracks me up, whenever you guys try to pronounce it on the podcast.

What do you think Haju / Hylé means?

Hylé: “Dog” in Miwok?

Haju: “Hail” in French?

Where are you located?

Hylé: Paris, France.

Haju: Northern California, the Bay Area to be exact.

Do you get many orders from California / France?

Hylé: Oh yes, I have shipped tapes to San Mateo, San Francisco, Oakland, LA, … And I have made some tape trades with Ted James Butler (Head Dess, Norelco Mori) and Constellation Tatsu, both from California.

Haju: Not that often. I think we have gotten a couple.

When did you start the label and how many tapes have you released so far?

Hylé: I started in January 2015 and I have released 28 tapes.

Haju: The label officially launched during November 2015. That’s when we put out our first release (oddigtl – Solarium). We have four releases out so far and I just ordered the supplies for our fifth release (Spliff Jacksun – Memory Display).

Who designed your logo? Could you describe what it is?

Hylé: I made it myself. The kind of “blue mountain” you see on it is a modified picture of a piece of wood I have at home. From the bottom of the logo you can see a hexagon taking shape. We use this geometric shape when we talk about France : “L’Héxagone”. And the pink circle is there because it creates a good balance with the “blue mountain”.

Haju: I made the logo. It was made when I first started using Adobe Illustrator. Basically, it’s a square with a couple of strokes and “HAJU TAPES” written in a sans-serif typeface (forgot which typeface it was, to be honest). The strokes are supposed to be an abstract take on the bottom half of a woman’s face (since Haju is a woman’s name). Over time, I have made the stroke weight thicker and font size larger, so it shows up clearly on Jcards. Everyone I’ve shown it to has hated it. I don’t care though, I actually like how unrefined it looks. Kind of reflects the rough Hip-Hop beat stuff that we have been releasing. I also try to switch up the logo’s color scheme for every release.

You put out a tape with people floating on clouds. How does that imagery, if at all, reflect your label’s vibe/operations?

Hylé: For me it will reflect the fact I am a daydreamer, an outsider, and that Hylé Tapes tries to share the mysterious art of amazing musicians as Théodore Lüne, JUJU, African Ghost Valley, Jay Glass Dubs, or Forest Management with people. I try to link these original worlds to listeners.

Haju: I always try to incorporate the artists that we release in the art and/or design work. For the Lzu. release, it was a collage he made for the digital version of the album. I really liked it, so we decided to use it for the physical release as well. I think it really fits the whole vibe of that album. Listening to that tape is a really gentle, dreamy and soothing experience and the artwork embodies that.

In five words describe this cassette:

Hylé: Smooth, collage, dreamy, luminous, touching.

Haju: Sleepwalking, friendly, floating, vintage, self-aware.

All of the photos of your tapes on Bandcamp also have rocks in them. Why is that?

Hylé: When I was a child I used to love rocks and take them home after being at the sea or at the mountain. I still do that. Hehehe. I have stones from all over the World. They are treasures to me. There are some photos with plants and pieces of wood, I love that too!

All of the photos of your tapes on Bandcamp are taken outside (3 out of 4 in your hand). Why is that?

Haju: It’s convenient. No deeper meaning. As soon as I finish manufacturing the tapes, I go out to my deck and take photos for Bandcamp. Nothing fancy.

What tape labels got you interested in starting one of your own?

Hylé: Phinery and Opal Tapes.

Haju: SICKONASTY is a huge influence. It’s run by my buddies Mark Aubert and Bluezr. They release some really interesting stuff and everything from their tapes, stickers to patches are all DIY. Definitely check them out, if you haven’t already. G.O.A.T Beetz is another great label, run by Knablinz. He’s a producer based in Astoria, OR doing his own thing. Really interesting artwork. Nekubi Tapes, out of Greece is also very cool. The artwork, design and music are on point every single time. They used to only do twenty copies of each tape, but they’ve been doing fifty lately. Even with fifty copies, their releases go incredibly quick. Acorn Tapes is a great little UK based label, run by TMCT. Very dope imprint that consistently releases good beat based stuff. Humble Weight, El Sereno Records, Cindy’s Tapes, Colossal Tapes, Warm Gospel, Oligopolist Records, Modal Aspiration Records, Grand Garden, Paxico, Carpi, Spring Break Tapes!, NNA Tapes, Patient Sounds… Too many to name.

You use framed out images in squares and circles on your Jcards a lot. Is that a happy accident or done on purpose? Who does the majority of your artwork?

Hylé: For me it is a happy accident. The artists are completely free to use their artwork if they want, but I love doing artwork too. I have done more than half of Hylé Tapes’ artwork.

Haju: I handle the design work for the most part. The artwork is usually done by me or the artist. As for the circles and squares, I just like the way they look. Very understated in a way. I try to switch it up though, like for the upcoming Spliff Jacksun release, the collage takes up the entirety of the front panel of the j-card. Also, for the Lzu. release, the artwork takes up the whole j-card.

Do you home or pro dub your releases?

Hylé: Pro Dubbed at home by myself with a Sony CCP 2300.

Haju: I’ve been home dubbing everything so far. I think at some point, I’m going to start getting them pro dubbed. Even though there is a sense of satisfaction when you home dub tapes, it starts becoming somewhat tedious and overwhelming.

What was the last tape you bought?

Hylé: A second hand copy of “Arbos” by Arvö Part.

Haju: Ghost McGrady  – Groveland. I don’t know much about him, besides the fact that he’s from LA and makes good music. He has a very mysterious presence.

Beavis or Butthead?

Hylé: Don’t Know… uh huh huh huh huh huh

Haju: Beavis

If your label was a color, what color would it be?

Do you have an ideal tape length?

Hylé: I love C40’s, It is long enough but if the music is good you still want some more.

Haju: Around 20-30 minutes is ideal, as far as beat tapes go. 30-45 for Rock, Jazz, Rap, etc.

First words that comes to mind when you hear the following

Hylé:
Single Sided: Vinyl
Polycase: The “Tapes Series” from 36, a British tape label
Postage: Once a week
Download Codes: Gifts

Haju:
Single Sided: Simple
Polycase: Cheap
Postage: Expensive
Download Codes: Unnecessary

pick a number between 1 and 10

Who is your favorite Batman?

Hylé:  Michael Keaton

Haju: Adam West

How would you describe the sounds you release, and the fact that they are on cassette tape, to someone completely detached from that sort of thing?

Hylé: Empirical electronic music.

Haju: Gritty sample based Hip-Hop beats. Listen to them on cassette, because the tape hiss just adds to the music. Tapes are better than digital, because they are physical objects that you can hold in your hands. Vinyl is cool, but tapes are cheaper to manufacture. CDs aren’t very durable, so I would rather put out tapes.

Have you had to do that with a relative or friend?

Hylé: Yes, and I normally tell them Hylé Tapes is an experimental electronic music tape label with releases of Ambient, Drone, Techno, Improvised electronic music, etc.

Haju: Yeah, my aunt and uncle stopped by, around the time I was working on the motion. release. I was dubbing tapes and trimming/scoring Jcards. They were very confused, until I went on my whole, “why tapes are better” rant.

What is your favorite Star Wars film?

Hylé: The Empire Strikes Back

Haju: The Empire Strikes Back

How do you want people to feel when they look at and listen to the tapes you put out?

Hylé: Puzzled. And I want them to discover the rest of these artists discography on other labels.

Haju: I think it’s different for each release. Overall, I want them to feel satisfied. All of our tapes are around twenty minutes, which isn’t very long, but give me quality over quantity any day. I also want the art/design work to reflect the music. Like one cohesive object.