Concept: Discnardo
Resistance to states and social systems. Music has long possessed a value that goes beyond mere entertainment, serving as a medium through which ideas and beliefs are embodied. Reflecting on that meaning is the core concept of “Discnardo.” From jazz in the Prohibition era to the Stonewall uprising in the disco age, ordinary people have chosen music as one means of liberating themselves from the constraints of nations and regimes, and have forged solidarity with one another through music.
At the same time, we cannot ignore the many forms of “darkness” concealed on the “back side” of the glamorous “front” of the entertainment world, including music. The more dazzling the surface becomes, the more starkly the darkness behind it stands out. In particular, the depth of the shadows unconsciously generated by state power during Prohibition serves as a powerful reminder, in human history, of just how precious it is for societies to guarantee cultural freedom.
Historically, music is thought to have arisen as a tool for magic and religious ritual, but over time it became popularized, and ever greater numbers of ordinary people came to stand at the center of musical performance. This brought enormous capitalist profits into the realm of music and expanded its commercial aspect, but it also deepened and intensified the “darkness” that emerged alongside it. The fact that, over the course of the 20th century, as new musical styles appeared with each passing era, musicians’ life spans became ever shorter, seems to symbolize something essential about contemporary music.
“Discnardo” is a label that focuses on this very “darkness” and “shadow” within music. Like a Caravaggio painting, in which the presence of shadow makes the beauty of the light all the more striking, the label seeks to explore the depth and abyss of music, and the forms of value that arise from them.
At the same time, we cannot ignore the many forms of “darkness” concealed on the “back side” of the glamorous “front” of the entertainment world, including music. The more dazzling the surface becomes, the more starkly the darkness behind it stands out. In particular, the depth of the shadows unconsciously generated by state power during Prohibition serves as a powerful reminder, in human history, of just how precious it is for societies to guarantee cultural freedom.
Historically, music is thought to have arisen as a tool for magic and religious ritual, but over time it became popularized, and ever greater numbers of ordinary people came to stand at the center of musical performance. This brought enormous capitalist profits into the realm of music and expanded its commercial aspect, but it also deepened and intensified the “darkness” that emerged alongside it. The fact that, over the course of the 20th century, as new musical styles appeared with each passing era, musicians’ life spans became ever shorter, seems to symbolize something essential about contemporary music.
“Discnardo” is a label that focuses on this very “darkness” and “shadow” within music. Like a Caravaggio painting, in which the presence of shadow makes the beauty of the light all the more striking, the label seeks to explore the depth and abyss of music, and the forms of value that arise from them.