Label Focus – Fortunea Records | Juno Daily
Klaus Benedek is our Fortunea teller
WHAT’S THE NAME OF YOUR LABEL, AND WHO RUNS IT?
I am Klaus Benedek, the founder of Fortunea Records.
WHEN & WHY DID THE LABEL START?
I started the label originally only for my own output in Hune 2014. At that time I had a lot of tracks signed on digital labels. But it took way too long until they got released. In some cases I had to wait almost two years after signing the contract. A year prior I finished the track ‘Road To Infinity’ which got great response by the crowds at my gigs. I first pitched it to labels who also release vinyl. But no one responded to my demo. On New Year’s Day I made my decision to release this as well as two other tracks that I worked at the time by myself.
In 2015 the Janefondas, Jakobin & Peletronic approached me to bring out their music on Fortunea because even they had no luck getting signed on a label. When I heard their tracks I first couldn’t believe that they were rejected. The quality was so good! We released these records in 2016. And since then the label grew and grew and became a flagship for Austrian house and electronic music producers.
GIVE US A BRIEF SUMMARY OF WHAT YOU’VE RELEASED SINCE THEN….
Currently we have released 31 records. The majority by locals from Vienna and other regions. But there are also a few international artists signed. Moff & Tarkin is from Iceland and you might remember him from the Lagaffe Tales collective. He resides in the Austrian capitol and makes very eclectic music, ranging from deep house to breaks. And then there is Manuel Sahagun from Argentina who released last summer his EP‚ ‘A Daily Noise‘.
WHAT QUALITIES ARE YOU LOOKING FOR IN THE MUSIC YOU RELEASE?
The tenor is house music and its sub genres. But it shouldn’t be a monotone package. The release itself has to be rich in variety.
WHAT’S BEEN YOUR BIGGEST SELLING RELEASE TO DATE? TELL US A BIT ABOUT IT AND WHY YOU THINK IT WAS SO POPULAR.
That would be ‘French Love‘ by the Janefondas. A sort of tribute to the French house style of the late 90s. It was originally planned to come out in 2020. But then the pandemic happened. They couldn’t finish it because they live separated over 200 km from each other. Kristian Davidek from Radio FM4 played the demo version in his show during these lockdowns. Almost weekly! So for a year you could only hear this track on that show and when it finally was released we were flooded with orders.
The remixes which came out later were also succesful and went in different directions. Dzc. transformed the B-side track ‘Ode To David‘ into a sophisticated rave track, while Sam Irl reworked ‘French Love‘ totally and made a reggae dub version. And then Kristian Davidek’s remix got played on BBC Radio 1 and boosted the sales and streams even further.
NAME ONE RELEASE THAT YOU THINK DESERVED TO GET MORE ATTENTION THAN IT DID
An artist that should get more recognition — not only for this Fortunea release but also in general — is Peter Zack (formally known as Peter Czak). He is making music since the late 90s and in 2017 we released his Before The Rise EP. This record is still one of my favorites.
The title-track is a melancholic homage to Detroit techno and house, especially the productions Derrick May released during the mid 90s. It still gives me goosebumps. It also includes the track, ‘My Beat‘ on the B-side as well as remixes by Peletronic and myself.
IF YOU COULD SIGN ANY ARTIST, ALIVE OR DEAD, WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHY?
Definitely Soulphiction. Well, technically we already worked together. Over a year before his death we hired him for a remix of Peletronic’s track ‘About The Void’. That was exciting for us that he agreed doing this and that he liked our output. But an original production or collaboration with him would have been also something special.
He was an idol for us and who knows what would have happened when he didn’t passed away shortly after. His sound and production techniques were so unique and I think they will stand the test of time in the next decades or even centuries.
WHICH OTHER LABELS DO YOU ADMIRE AND WHY?
Locally I would say Luv Shack Records. Especially given them credit to kick off the as I like to call it, renaissance of Austrian electronic music“. Their sound was a breath of fresh air. And they started with perfect timing. Right when deep house made its comeback and disco and soul samples returned and pushed the annoying sawtooth sounds from the electro house craze away. And without the critical and commercial success of the first ten records there wouldn’t be Schönbrunner Perlen, Secret Crunch, Life Is For Living, Step Back Trax, Sama Recordings, Belly Dance Services, heimlich and definitely no Fortunea! They inspired me. Selling my own music on my own imprint. On vinyl! Having full control and not depending on the decision and heavy schedule of a digital label. And now it is like Luv Shack a catalyst for the Viennese house scene. Bringing out new music by local talents.
Internationally there are many labels which have a great output and still surprise me from time to time. Blaq Numbers, Freerange Records, Delusions of Grandeur, Toy Tonics, Chiwax/Rawax, Dobro, salin, Heist Recordings, Pont Neuf Records, etc. just to name a few.
WHAT CAN WE LOOK TO FROM YOUR LABEL NEXT?
There is a lot! Two records are scheduled for the first half of 2024 (Peletronic’s ‘Hazy Jane’ 12″ is available to pre-order here). Dzc.’s first vinyl EP with three original tracks and a remix by Peletronic will come out in february. In April we will release a record by two artists from Italy. And for the ten year anniversary of the label we will bring out a compilation during the summer. As for myself, I am working right now on an album which I plan to release in the second half of the year.