We here at Tone Deaf love nothing more than reporting on everything that is music, however sometimes there might be a little bit too much focus on just the artists, and the myriad of work that goes on behind closed doors is forgotten. Therefore, each fortnight we will now focus on important sectors within the industry, speaking with leaders in their field as they detail their role within the whacky world that is the music industry.

Local label I Oh You have been kicking major goals for almost six years now. Born out of both necessity and accident the label/ website/ party throwing/ tour promotion company spearheaded by Johann Ponniah has been responsible for supporting and breaking acts like Violent Soho, DMA’s and City Calm Down.

We chatted to Ponniah recently about the birth and growth of I Oh You, how an inability to pay rent and gas became a bonafide business, and what’s in store with the I Oh You crew in 2015 (and trust us there’s a lot). For more info on I Oh You, visit iohyou.com.

The Birth Of I Oh You

“I was living in a share house in Richmond (Melbourne) and we had a bunch of overdue utility bills so in order to make up the money my housemates and I began throwing house parties and charged a “donation” entry, from there we started throwing warehouse parties and I guess just naturally started putting out records for our friends’ bands (and also some bands I was managing) for a bit of fun.

It was never really supposed to become a full time job but I’m glad it did.”

Before I Oh You

“My first ever job in the music industry was working in management, in hindsight I probably wasn’t a very good manager… but I was also 19 so give me a break hey?”

First Ever Release

“The first proper release on I Oh You was the debut EP from Howl (not Hunting Grounds), I was managing the band at the time and we couldn’t convince anyone to sign them so we just decided to drop the EP on I Oh You – I guess it went pretty well.”

Label Inspirations

“Growing up I was extremely inspired by two Sydney based labels in Below Par Records and Modular Recordings. Right now I’m super into True Panther… and always follow what XL are doing.”

Favourite I Oh You Releases

“They all hold a place close to my heart for different reasons. I love the DMA’S guys because of how they carry themselves and the songs they write.

Violent Soho and DZ Deathrays consistently inspire me by their work ethic and constant will to achieve what they want.

Personally I find Montgomery so interesting because she’s so keen to do things a different way to the norm (a 21 year old girl wanting to release music while no one knowing who she is is quite rare!).

I have a great admiration for City Calm Down because of their patience and commitment to their art, we spent three and a half years making their debut LP and I truly believe that it is one of the best releases I OH YOU has ever had the privilege of working with.

I can’t wait for people to hear it. Our newest signing Green Buzzard are penning some of the best new guitar tunes I’ve heard come out of Australia in ages.”

Proudest Moments

“I think the proudest moment for me was when I realised that this hobby had become a full time job and I could now just work for our artists 100% of the time instead of having to do a different job to support the label.

Awards and accolades are fantastic and very much appreciated when they come around but that’s not the reason we run I Oh You.”

The Future Of Niche Labels

“I think some of the world’s most inspiring and innovative music is coming from indie/niche labels and because of that, we’re as strong as ever.”

What’s On The Cards For The Rest Of 2015

“City Calm Down will be releasing their debut LP ‘In A Restless House’, we’ve just announced our newest signing in ‘Green Buzzard’ – they’ll be dropping some great tunes this year.

DMA’S, Violent Soho and DZ Deathrays are all fine tuning their next albums which will be out in 2016. Montgomery is working away on some great new collaborations and singles. We’ve also got a bunch of tours on the cards for this summer which should be a bit of fun too.”

Johann will be speaking at Bigsound 2015, more info here

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