CITYist

Elliot Aronow is the type of music wunderkind that will inevitably change the face of the recording industry. He has worked with more bands than most people can name, held stints at numerous print and online magazines, and currently serves as Creative Director for online site rcrd lbl (www.rcrdlbl.com). At 28 years old he has carved out a career that most are unable to achieve in a lifetime. Today, however, he faces a very different task —  finding someone to hang up his bedroom blinds.

Aronow tells us of this dilemma as he welcomes us in to his downtown apartment. Dressed in a crisp Trovata jacket and APC jeans, it would appear his upbringing had been across the Atlantic rather than the Hudson. Born and raised in New Jersey however, he attended Rutgers University before coming to New York City at the age of 22. An English and Political Science major, music might not seem to be the most obvious profession, but to hear him tell it makes it clear there was no better path.

Like a majority of college students, Aronow was rather unsure what he planned to do following his departure from higher learning. His big turning point came at 21 when he read Stoned, the memoir of Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham that detailed the band’s early days. Oldham became an immediate influence for Elliot. “Here was this mod dude in London making something out of his life and I was incredibly romanced by this idea. And this was right around the big near-vintage New York rock revival with bands like The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and The Walkmen.”

Determined to work with The Strokes following his graduation, Aronow forwent just sending a simple resume and cover letter and decided to woo the band’s PR firm, Big Hassle. “I thought I was good at talking so I thought I would be a good publicist,” he explains. “I bugged Big Hassle everyday for months and wrote about their clients in Rutgers newspaper to ingratiate myself to their staff.” This unique tactic landed the then 22-year-old with an internship at the company, which in turn landed him an editorial position at noted music mag The Fader.

It was at The Fader that Elliot began to establish himself as an arbiter of up and coming musical acts, something easy to identify after spending just a few moments with him. When asked to name some of his current favorites, he goes on for minutes dropping names such as White Rabbits, Acrylics, Restless People, Yacht, and countless others before almost seeming flustered that he has forgotten to include every act he follows. After two years at The Fader he went on to draft album biographies for both the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Kanye West and became the head of online marketing for Gnarls Barkley. Then, in 2007, he took on his current role as creative director for rcrd lbl.

A punk fan as a teenager, Aronow and his friends began attending concerts in New York City once their drivers’ licenses were issued. Even years later, his musical giddiness is palpable as he describes these first experiences attending live shows. This physical community, he explains, is what drew him to blogging. “Kids were just doing stuff for the love and creating their own culture. [Blogging] is still 99 percent people doing it for the love at the end of the day.” It is this attitude that is key to rcrd lbl’s success.

There is no shortage of online music sites in this day and age. MySpace, which began as a social networking site, quickly proved to be a way for singers to gain a fan base and in some cases, most notably Brit pop star Lily Allen, land a record deal. On the opposite end of the spectrum, anyone can head over to YouTube and stream the video of their choice. What rcrd lbl does is carefully curate a selection of daily songs readers can stream that are legally downloadable. They work closely with labels and singers and, as a result of online advertisements, everyone wins in the end. Free promotion for the artists and a profit for the site. Each member of the staff, which numbers less than 10, is selected for their own specific tastes and their co-workers do not edit selections or posts. With more than 10 songs going up some days however, and numerous blog posts, it is a wonder a crew so small can handle the workload.

It would seem this endeavor alone would be more than enough to keep any music lover busy and content, but not Aronow. The self-proclaimed foodie (he recommended the site of the interview, Roots & Vine in the Lower East Side, for their Banh Mi) has begun a food blog, Food Gold, while also pursuing opportunities as a television host. The later he claims is his ultimate goal, though his noted admiration for chef Anthony Bourdain seems to combine the two nicely.

Back in Aronow’s apartment, a small cardboard cutout of Bob Dylan sits on his dresser. Aronow at one point speaks of his admiration for the musical legend and how Sony’s granting of one of his songs to the site was a personal high point. Mr. Dylan once said a man is a success if he gets up in the morning and goes to bed at night and in between does what he wants to do. It would appear that Elliot Aronow is certainly making his idols proud.