reprinted from an interview with The MIC Mag
Pool Halls, Punk, and a Dog With a Grudge: Inside the World of Knifetwister Records with Raph Copeland
by Ava Brescia
Raph has never been in a band, can't play an instrument, and once negotiated bongo privileges into a music video deal, only to be completely forgotten about. None of that has stopped him from building Knifetwister Records into a thriving independent music publication and label that champions small bands, amplifies underrepresented voices, and puts out benefit compilations for worthy causes, all while managing a thrash metal band, playing competitive pool, and wrangling a dog who won't stop posting about her wrongful termination. We sat down with the Westchester-based music lifer to talk about what drives him, where Knifetwister is headed, and if Central Jersey exists.
Q: Your biography section on the knifetwister site is pretty impressive, with so many passions, career moves, and accolades. Since everything is connected, how does your work or hobbying outside of knifetwister (and music in general) influence how you run a music site and work with artists?
A: Music is my life, but I also play a lot of pool. If that sounds like a simple answer, I went through a major life change a few years ago, and I needed something to occupy myself and process what had happened. Focusing on the table shut out a lot of the noise, and ultimately helped me focus as best I could with a brain that is constantly thinking about 30 different things at once. It helps me recharge and avoid too much burnout, but it also hones problem-solving skills – if I watch footage of myself doing drills and identify a weakness, I come back the next day and work on that. That’s what drives me to improve, but it’s also applicable to the magazine and releases and other things we do – analyze what you’re doing, see what could be better, and implement it. Linear, systematic approaches are how you improve, really, in most aspects of life, I think.
Q: What prompted you to start a music publication?
A: Ideas pop into my head all day long - I can’t go to the bathroom without taking a pen and a piece of paper. That’s just how I’m wired. I could probably try meditating or pouring alcohol onto my brain, but it’s not going to stop. To be fair, a lot of my ideas are absolutely terrible and leave me wondering if there are some wires crossed somewhere, but this was an idea that popped into my head, and I made sure to get the wheels in motion before I could second-guess myself. Around the same time, I won a big 9-ball tournament and walked out with a roll of fifties and hundreds in my sock, and it just kinda seemed a little like fate. I sunk that money into the website, got a P. O. box, created an LLC, and printed up t-shirts. If a different idea had popped into my head that day, maybe I’d have pursued one of my other dreams, like writing a really long, unhinged manifesto or starting a counterfeiting ring, but I’m glad it was this idea that came along, because it honestly makes me really happy to do this, and there’s far less chance of me ending up behind bars.
Q: To go hand-in-hand with that, where does the name “knifetwister” come from?
A: I initially looked for something a little more vanilla, but realized the list of 40 or so names was all taken, because there are tons of record labels. Many are defunct, but I’m not going to take someone else’s name. Ultimately, I wound up going with an old IRC (Internet Relay Chat) nickname that I used. Maybe not such a hot idea – people have long memories, and I did some stuff online back in the day that I’m not exactly proud of, but I feel like it worked out. So, yeah – that’s the story.
Q: Knifetwister, along with being a magazine, offers label services too. In an age of extreme marketing, AI, and inauthenticity, how do you guide artists and help promote them while also staying true to their individuality?
A: Know your lane, and learn to defer to people who know better than you do. If I wanted to, let’s say, learn to speak Bulgarian and go for lessons, I’d shut up and listen to the teacher. I work in tech, so if someone asks me for my advice on something tech-related, I’m not going to clean up a mess for them after they don’t listen. I’m not a songwriter – I leave that to those who know how to do it and don’t interfere; it would be silly for me to say “that bass line could be better if you downtune it a little”, that’s not my area. I will tell a band – look, I’ve been a web designer for 25 years – here’s the rule of thumb: have a good website, or don’t have one at all; a dogshit website doesn’t benefit you in any way. I think that’s a fair balance.
Q: As an NYC native, are there any underrated local venues you frequent? Any hidden gems?
A: I’m in Westchester, so I prefer venues local to me where I don’t have to go over a bridge. I’d say Yonkers Brewing Company for larger shows and Saw Mill Tavern for smaller ones. We probably have twice as many golf courses as music venues here. Unfortunately, it’s not tremendously fertile ground, but the city is so close, so it’s not a huge deal. Plus, there are great venues in Nassau County, over in Morristown, across the bridge in Nyack – the New York metro area is just great on so many levels.
Q: What is something you wish you knew when you were starting knifetwister?
A: I really don’t like social media. I see it as a necessary evil, and generally avoid it, but there’s no way around having an Instagram account if you want to connect with bands. I have a pretty addictive personality, so after creating the knifetwister records account, I resurrected my old personal account. Then I created one for my dog Annika, who I had on the website as Senior Vice President of knifetwister records (I eventually took her off when Maya came aboard as staff writer), and now Annika constantly posts about her wrongful termination and how she’s suing us and generally just completely trashes the label. So, kinda wish I had set stricter limits on my usage. I don’t use it on my phone, and I have all notifications disabled, which I recommend to anyone just to preserve your mental health – I treat it much the same way you go down the driveway to check your mailbox during the day. However, it still gets in your head, and that dopamine rush when a post gets 15 likes right after you post is unfortunately pretty much unavoidable for most people, myself included.
Q: You’re, of course, very active in the music scene. Have you been in any bands or ever made any music yourself?
A: No, sadly. I have managed the NYC thrash metal band CHAKA for a while, so I’m kinda sorta in a band, although I don’t get all the groupies they get since I’m not on stage. I have a manager lanyard and everything, but as far as musical talent, zero. When I directed a video for the song Hold Tight by Butterbrain I negotiated that I’d get to come on stage for a song and play the bongos, but that kind of got forgotten. I do sit around and think about cool names for bands in case I ever did start one, but nobody is going to join a band called Pinky Tuscadero’s White Knuckle Ass Brigade.
Q: Knifetwister covers a lot of music that leans to the heavier side. What draws you to heavy music?
A: I like any music that has an edge to it. I can’t sit around and listen to Ariana Grande or whatever. Loud, fast, aggressive music fits nicely into that paradigm. That need for edginess extends to my life as well – my city is full of finance bros who have nothing going on, only talk about work, and don’t care about anything that doesn’t affect them personally. Who am I going to hang out with – them, or the guys at my pool hall who have great nicknames and wacky stories and work construction? Not even a question as to who I’d rather spend my time with.
Q: Any artists or genres you’re into that people would never expect from you?
A: That lazy dance music full of autotune and AI that’s everywhere now – I love it! No, I’d have to say I listen to most genres, but I’m totally a snob about it and like to think I only listen to the best stuff of each genre. I’m not a fan of rap, but I’ll listen to early Ice Cube, I’ll listen to some of the Delta Blues musicians, I went through a bluegrass phase some years ago, there’s some great early to mid 80’s pop I listen to, jazz fusion – I definitely lean toward punk, metal and ska, but I think every genre has it’s standouts.
Q: Knifetwister and you do a lot of work with charities. What led knifetwister to start making benefit compilation albums? How does the process of making these compilations work?
A: I started this for a couple of reasons, and the main one was to give back to a music scene that has given me so much over the years. We interview small bands that would never get exposure otherwise. We interview as many trans bands as possible, because we want their voices to be heard. And if bands are willing to donate their art for a compilation, the proceeds should go to a worthy cause, not anyone’s pocket. As for the compilations – it’s a lot of fucking work. I’m coordinating with 22 bands, the charity, two artists, the CD manufacturer, the credit card processing system, and PunkNews for the write-up. Everyone was pretty good at getting back to me, but there are always a couple of bands who just aren’t able to coordinate well, and you’re up against deadlines. Is it worth it? Yeah, ultimately, it is. After we did the first one, I said I’m never doing that again, but it’s a bit like childbirth - after the big day arrives, you forget all the cramps and morning sickness that I went through for all those months when I had my kids.
Q: Any cool up-and-coming artists you’d like to shout out? You must know some pretty cool ones.
A: Have really been getting into The Lousekateers lately, not only because they’re from my neck of the woods, but because they’re great musicians and cool as fuck. Also they had me on their podcast, although Zoom cut me off in the middle of a sentence so that’s going to require some creative editing. The RBNX is great, I listen to GIFTSHOP a lot. Actually, we’ve had 43 bands on our compilations; take your pick, I like them all. Ooh, 18fevers from South Korea, can’t forget them.
Q: What’s next for knifetwister? Anything exciting you’re working on?
A: We’re co-sponsoring a huge festival in June called Hardcore in the 914 Fest, going to be like 16 bands, merch tables, and all kinds of cool stuff. We’re putting out a release for a really big band, not sure exactly how that happened, but that’s going to be massive. But to be honest, part of the fun is not knowing what’s next.
Q: You mention being an NJ ex-pat, so we have to ask. Does Central Jersey exist?
A: Of course. Princeton? Freehold? What would you call them? Duh.