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03/24/10
Grimey's Talks Record Store Day
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Let's talk Record Store Day. It's Saturday, April 17th, and we're gearing up to bring you all the madness you love and remember from last year. We're talking all-day outdoor concert festival, Yazoo beer truck, tasty barbecue, sweet deals on super cheap vinyl and CDs, everything in the store on sale all day, booths and appearances by our fave local partners and United Record Pressing showing you how records are made. And then there are the exclusive releases. Well over 100 limited edition pieces on LP, 12", 7", CD and DVD. We're talking the Flaming Lips' cover of "Dark Side Of The Moon" on gatefold vinyl, Sonic Youth records that have been out of print for decades, 10"s from Bruce Springsteen & Fela Kuti, vinyl titles from Black Keys, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Beach House, Bon Iver, Budos Band... and that's just the B's. Click the link above or here for a relatively comprehensive list of titles. We've ordered heavily on everything cool but our numbers are likely to be allocated on the most limited pieces so in the interest of fair play, we will open at 10am on Record Store Day and everything will be first come, first served. Stay tuned for our announcement of the line-up of live performances, which will be coming within the next week or two, and make sure to put April 17 on your calendar to come celebrate Record Store Day with us! | |
03/18/10
The Gauntlet Has Been Thrown Down
Today I want to throw down the gauntlet to my fellow indie-retailers.
For this year's Record Store Day, our industry has really taken advantage of the special day we've put together for them. The best of our labels and distributors have stepped up to provide us with an amazing slate of exclusive and limited edition offerings. Like you, I'm having a difficult time figuring out how to buy all this awesome stuff, and how on earth am I going to take care of every single one of my customers? What a wonderful problem to have.
Buying for Record Store Day is your job. I can't tell you how to do that, but is it any different than what you do every single day? Of course it isn't. Find your trusted suppliers, follow the rules and do your best, your customers expect you to be your best, just as we expect our distributor friends to do their best.
Record Store Day is your chance to shine and you've been given the opportunity to do so. The tools have been created and are in place for you to take advantage of. I can't help but think of one retailer's response to my question, What are you doing for Record Store Day this year? "We're going to be open," he answered.
Wrong answer.
For RSD this year, Criminal Records has a trick up our sleeve. We set the bar pretty high for ourselves the first two years and we have only our customers to delight this year. In addition to all of our plans for this year (bands performing between 10AM and 10PM; local DJs between sets; all-day screenings of the Atlanta film, We Fun; and beer -- plenty of sudsy, delicious beer), we have a truly special guest star.
Light in the Attic recording artist Rodriguez will be performing in Atlanta for the first time at our store, backed by the Criminal Records Orchestra. We're producing a limited edition gold 7" single, a exclusive version of the LITA RSD single, which will act as the ticket to get into the after-hours show.
I know, right?
What I'd like to impress upon every record store is this: This awesome event that we've created for RSD has nothing to do with my being a co-founder of RSD. This is Criminal Records creating an opportunity that didn't exist. Simply, I looked up Rodriguez, bought him a plane ticket and a hotel room, and I'm going to give him the money made from the sale of the 7" single/ticket.
You can do this, too. You should.
Eric | |
03/18/10
The Gauntlet Has Been Thrown Down
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Today I want to throw down the gauntlet to my fellow indie-retailers.
For this year's Record Store Day, our industry has really taken advantage of the special day we've put together for them. The best of our labels and distributors have stepped up to provide us with an amazing slate of exclusive and limited edition offerings. Like you, I'm having a difficult time figuring out how to buy all this awesome stuff, and how on earth am I going to take care of every single one of my customers? What a wonderful problem to have.
Buying for Record Store Day is your job. I can't tell you how to do that, but is it any different than what you do every single day? Of course it isn't. Find your trusted suppliers, follow the rules and do your best, your customers expect you to be your best, just as we expect our distributor friends to do their best.
Record Store Day is your chance to shine and you've been given the opportunity to do so. The tools have been created and are in place for you to take advantage of. I can't help but think of one retailer's response to my question, What are you doing for Record Store Day this year? "We're going to be open," he answered.
Wrong answer.
For RSD this year, Criminal Records has a trick up our sleeve. We set the bar pretty high for ourselves the first two years and we have only our customers to delight this year. In addition to all of our plans for this year (bands performing between 10AM and 10PM; local DJs between sets; all-day screenings of the Atlanta film, We Fun; and beer -- plenty of sudsy, delicious beer), we have a truly special guest star.
Light in the Attic recording artist Rodriguez will be performing in Atlanta for the first time at our store, backed by the Criminal Records Orchestra. We're producing a limited edition gold 7" single, a exclusive version of the LITA RSD single, which will act as the ticket to get into the after-hours show.
I know, right?
What I'd like to impress upon every record store is this: This awesome event that we've created for RSD has nothing to do with my being a co-founder of RSD. This is Criminal Records creating an opportunity that didn't exist. Simply, I looked up Rodriguez, bought him a plane ticket and a hotel room, and I'm going to give him the money made from the sale of the 7" single/ticket.
You can do this, too. You should.
Eric | |
03/15/10
Where The Ladies At SXSW
Enter Wheretheladies.at, a gag on behalf of two Digg employees, Jeff Hodsdon and Danny Trinh. It's a SXSWi map mashup in the manner of Vicarious.ly, but it cuts right to the chase: It tells you where to find girls. The map aggregates public Foursquare check-ins at SXSWi from female users--Hodsdon said in a Twitter post that it guesses gender based on first name, so it's not totally accurate--and then ranks Austin venues by which ones have the most women checked in. Early on Sunday evening, it looks like it was the SXSWi Web Awards party that topped the list. (It thankfully doesn't veer into stalker territory: you can't see the names or Foursquare profiles of the women in question.)
Thrown together quickly, Wheretheladies.at isn't actually all that useful (many Foursquare check-ins are not public, after all), but that's not the point: it's about the message. Geolocation obsession, coupled with a way to address the perpetual "this party is a bunch of dudes!" complaint, is more or less the perfect app to poke fun at the hype machine that is SXSWi 2010. Thumbs up, guys.
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02/25/10
Fund Raiser For Ear X-Tacy
Alliance of Independent Media Stores "industry" news
Greetings, Everybody!
"As long as I'm alive, and as long as I'm rich, the New Beverly will be there, showing double features in 35mm," Quentin Tarantino said.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, and blog buzz auteur Quentin Tarantino has rescued the landmark Los Angeles theater The New Beverly.
It brings to mind the generous offer from My Morning Jacket's Jim James, a long-time friend of indie-retail and his hometown of Louisville. For last year's Record Store Day, the Jacket and ATO released a special live album recorded at Ear-X-Tacy, which is now being sold as a fund-raiser for $4.99 with proceeds going in support of the Save Ear-X-Tacy campaign.
I remember Amy Ray, Atlanta resident and Indigo Girl, once asked me if she could buy a PA for my store, Criminal Records. I was stunned by the gracious offer and politely demurred; charity, even with the best of intentions, didn't taste right to me.
Granted, this was in the 90's and, frankly, we didn't need a hand-out at that time. I'm not sure what I'd say to Amy today. A little charity right about now sounds delish.
I truly hope that Ear-X-Tacy receives the shot in the arm that will keep them around for decades to come, but what about the rest of us? Small business needs that shot in the arm, and we can't expect it from our government. Sadly, that ship has sailed.
AIMS members recently laughed at the pushy tactics of the NFIB, the lobbying group for "small" business, which member Stinkweeds pointed out "their official definition of small business is any company with fewer than 500 employees." I recall, during the health care "debate," that small business as voiced by the NFIB was against the reform. I was confused, as I've been desperately waiting for some kind of federal relief, as I try to choose between insuring my staff or paying my rent. The only call I've received from the NFIB was a sales call.
(Speaking of national institutions on opposite sides of the table, who can we talk to about the continued ASCAP harassment of record stores? Many AIMS members are experiencing an intense shakedown by ASCAP for playing records in their stores. For reals? This has got to stop. Can anybody help us out?)
Now is the time for some Quentin Tarantino style action. I have to assume that there are some folks out there on the other side of this economic downturn. Perhaps some of the winners are musicians themselves, producers, or account executives, I would have to assume everybody has a hometown record store that could use a little love.
The indie record store is more than just a warehouse of widgets. We incubate scenes; we employ the unemployable (insert drummer joke here); we release records; and we allow art to flourish. Supporting the roots of our industry makes fiscal sense, for what will the Targets and Best Buys sell in the future if we don't help create it today?
What would Criminal Records do with a bailout, besides the obvious? We would insure those drummers, so they can go on the road and perform, with a job available upon their return. This month alone saw three of our staffers go on tour with major artists, in the hopes that they would one day be major artists themselves. One of my guys was particularly (and needlessly) worried that his job wouldn't be safe upon his return. "Just go rock," I told him. "That's your job. Your work will be safe when you return."
I hope I didn't lie to him.
-- Eric
P.S.: Hey, Quentin, do you like record stores?
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11/12/09
That Time Of Year Again
From Adam at Criminal Records (Atlanta, GA)
It's that time of year again, ladies and gentlemen, when record labels are rolling out their best reissues and box sets. Ultimately, though, most are done under the guise of trying to get you to buy something (again) that you already own. I call this the "Malibu Stacy Syndrome" -- you already own the doll, but now it comes with a new hat. Sound familiar?
Well, a lot of these reissue, remasters, and what-have-you, really are worth your time and money. In newsletters past, I've said plenty about the Beatles (really, they do sound great) and I expounded at great length about the lasting power of Devo. But there are many other releases that are new-ish to the market.
Take the Jesus Lizard, for instance (they were amazing last weekend, by the way). I thought those records sounded great in the first place, but you can really hear the increased bottom-end thump as well as sharper mid-range and highs. At least from a linguistic perspective, it's not like there would be too much clarity in the way of David Yow's vocals. And why would you want that anyway? All remastered CDs and LPs come with beefed-up audio, liner notes, pictures and bonus tracks. It's a fitting upgrade for such a bludgeoning and visceral, yet technical band.
There's also a great 40th anniversary edition of Get Yer Ya Ya's Out by the Rolling Stones. There are two different versions available, both with tons of never before released extras. I think the mega-super-deluxe one is the coolest with 3 LPs, 3 CDs, and a DVD -- talk about getting a lot of bang for your buck. And there's a neat Stones bag containing a guitar pick and temporary tattoos that comes free with purchase too.
If you're a Nirvana fan, then you must be in, well, nirvana this month. Both the 20th anniversary of Bleach and their legendary live performance from the 1992 Reading Festival have both hit the shelves (the initial run of Bleach comes on 180-gram white vinyl). The 1990 live performance that accompanies Bleach is particularly good and highlights what a great band they were before Smells Like Teen Spirit became so uber-popular that every housewife in America knew it. Each release comes with a crazy oversized lithograph to boot.
In the realm of box sets, there's another exhaustive Hank Williams collection. However, this one contains 50 previously unreleased recordings. Three complete radio shows are contained therein and all have surprisingly clean and clear sound quality. Hank really does seem timeless, as his music never goes out of style. You do have to wonder, though, how much more material could be left from his rather short recording career.
And lastly, as a personal favorite, the most recent Nuggets box set, Where The Action Is: Los Angeles 1965-1968 is just spectacular. Each of the four discs highlights a different aspect of the "scene" and the bands that made it unique. Well-known artists like The Byrds, Doors, and Monkees fit perfectly along with more cult-status bands such as Sons of Adam, London Phogg, and Limey & The Yanks. The liner notes are pretty meticulous and are accompanied by wonderful (many never-before-seen) photographs. There's also a handy timeline that will help you put all of the songs into context along with accompanying socio-political and entertainment milestones.
So come on down to the store soon and check out all the neat, new, hip and happening stuff. You can get some early holiday shopping done while you pick up something cool for yourself.
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09/17/09
A Crazy Beatles Story
09/16/09
Record Store Myths
From Adam at Criminal Records (Atlanta, GA)
What I would like most to take away from last week's flurry of sales: The dispelling of a few myths...
(1) Myth: The record store is an outdated business model -- an antiquity, if you will.
Reality: The record store is still very much a viable retail entity. The joy and exuberance that I saw on behalf of customers last Wednesday was real and tangible. People of all ages were downright ecstatic to get their hands on Sgt. Pepper or Rubber Soul. As they were browsing, many folks wanted to share stories of when and where they bought their first Beatles record and how much it meant to them. I saw 60-year olds acting like 5-year olds. I also saw 5-year olds acting, like, you know, 5-year olds. Being able to offer up free lithographs and apples to people was a treat too as they seemed genuinely appreciative. You can't download an emotion or a piece of fruit. Take that, Amazon!
(2) Myth: The compact disc is a superior way to listen to music and will replace the "long player."
Reality: The advent of the CD did not kill the LP. However, the Buggles were correct in that video did, in fact, kill the radio star. Not only did we have a banner week for LP sales, but so many people kept asking "When are the Beatles remasters coming out on vinyl?" The word on the streets is that it will be another year. Regardless, vinyl sales continue to increase and it seems to be the question that we're asked most -- "Do you guys have this so-and-so on vinyl?" A couple of weeks ago we added a new "Dad Rock" section in the back of the store (started by resident wisenheimer, Shannon Mulvaney). It was partly in-joke, partly marketing. We were wondering how best to display all of the great 70's rock, FM radio-staples we'd just gotten in. Well, it worked like gangbusters. We sold more Rick Derringer, Chicago, Foghat, Steppenwolf, Grand Funk, etc. than we ever would have otherwise. And most of it sold to younger customers who are trying to build up a record (i.e., vinyl or "vinyls") collection. Viva La Vinyl!
(3) Myth: Now that I can download MP3's directly into my computer, I no longer have to purchase any physical music at all.
Reality: Yes, that it correct. In fact you can get everything you need through your computer and you don't ever have to interact with another person again. Meals can be delivered to your door. Facebook will keep you updated on the status of your "friends." You can get the nourishment that sunlight provides in pill form. The measurements for your State-regulated unitard can be scanned using the UPC on your forehead... (sorry, I just had an Aldous Huxley flashback). You can take that approach if you don't care about how music sounds and want to listen to it in all of its binary, compressed glory through awful sounding "earbuds" or through a series of filters, add-ons, and upgrades attempting to give your file-shared version of an album "warmth." It is no coincidence that Apple computers last week unveiled their new iTunes "digital album," which gives users access to artwork, liner notes, pictures, etc., meant to mimic the way records were originally sold.
Hey, we've got tons of the real thing and a lot of 'em are way cheaper than paying for a download. Long live petroleum, cardboard, and superior sounding audio!
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09/16/09
Beatles Rock The Indie Charts
09/09/09
The Beatles 09.09.09 Grimeys - Midnight sale
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09/09/09
Wake Up To Indie Store Radio
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09/02/09
Top 50 AIMS vinyl sales for August 31st, 2009
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Artist - Title (Label)
1. WILCO Summerteeth Nonesuch
2. ARCTIC MONKEYS Humbug Domino
3. FLAMING LIPS Soft Bulletin Warner Bros.
4. REIGNING SOUND Love & Curses In The Red
5. DESTROYER Bay Of Pigs Merge
6. YAMES,YIM Tribute To ATO
7. MEW No More Stories Are Columbia
8. SMITHS Queen Is Dead Rhino
9. WILCO Wilco (The Album) Nonesuch
10. GRIZZLY BEAR Veckatimest Warp Records
11. BENSON,BRENDAN My Old Familiar Friend ATO
12. ANTLERS Hospice French Kiss Records
13. MODEST MOUSE No One's First & You're Next Epic
14. PISSED JEANS King Of Jeans Sub Pop
15. BOX ELDERS Alice & Friends Goner Records
16. SMITHS Strangeways Here We Come Rhino
17. CAVE SINGERS Welcome Joy Matador
18. REATARD,JAY Watch Me Fall Matador
19. DEAD WEATHER Horehound Warner Bros.
20. PEARL JAM Fixer Artist
21. SIC ALPS L Mansion Slumberland
22. HOGE,WILL Wreckage Ryko
23. FRUIT BATS Ruminant Band Sub Pop
24. BON IVER For Emma Forever Ago Jagjaguwar
25. SPOON Got Nuffin Merge
26. MGMT Oracular Spectacular Columbia
27. TIDWELL,CORTNEY Boys PID
28. GAINSBOURG,SERGE Bonnie & Clyde 4 Men With Beards
29. KILLERS Spaceman/Four Winds Island
30. THORR'S HAMMER Dommedasgnatt Southern Lord
31. WARD,M. Hold Time Merge
32. FLEET FOXES Mykonos Sub Pop
33. DEPARTMENT OF EAGLES In Ear Park 4AD
34. VELVET UNDERGROUND & NICO Velvet Underground & Nico 4 Men With Beards
35. GAINSBOURG,SERGE Histoire De Melody Nelson Light In The Attic
36. SMITHS Meat Is Murder Rhino
37. YACHT See Mystery Lights DFA
38. MUSE Black Holes & Revelations Warner Bros.
39. FLEET FOXES Fleet Foxes Sub Pop
40. SIC ALPS Long Way Round To A Shortcut Drag City
41. WAITS,TOM Swordfishtrombones Island
42. RADIOHEAD In Rainbows ATO
43. SEGALL,TY Lemons Goner Records
44. THROW ME THE STATUE Creaturesque Secretly Canadian
45. BAND OF HORSES Cease To Begin Sub Pop
46. SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE Luminous Night Drag City
47. WARD,M. End Of Amnesia Future Farmer Recordings
48. PHOENIX Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix Glassnote
49. AUERBACH,DAN Keep It Hid Nonesuch
50. DEERHUNTER Microcastle Kranky
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08/25/09
It's Happening @ Grimey's In Nashville
We'd like to announce that we've confirmed our in-store with former Pedro The Lion mainman David Bazan for Saturday, October 10th, at 3PM. Bazan's new album is out next Tuesday, September 1st. It's called Curse Your Branches and Filter magazine says it's the best music of his career. Paste Magazine called him a Dostoevsky for our all-at-once world and one of the 100 Best Living Songwriters alongside indie-rock stalwarts like Iron and Wine's Sam Beam, Mountain Goats' John Darnielle, and Bright Eyes' Conor Oberst, and legends like Nick Cave, Merle Haggard, Sly Stone, Dolly Parton, Kris Kristofferson, and John Prine, and that's not even listing any of their Top 20. So I guess what I'm saying is this will be very special. The new album is out next Tuesday and you will need to purchase it here at Grimey's to gain entrance to the live performance. Stop in next week to pick it up and make sure you're on the list. It's like buying a ticket that plays glorious music!
Speaking of in-stores, the calendar is starting to really heat up. This week we announce live performances in the record store from Bows And Arrows (next Tuesday, Sept. 1), The Dynamites featuring Charles Walker (Tuesday, September 15) and Radney Foster (Wednesday, September 16). Now there's some rock, soul and Americana for ya!
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08/20/09
Pre-Order Bealtes Mono set now!!!!
08/14/09
Portugal at T&S Denver
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07/13/09
Dead Weather - News - Vidieo - Party Today in Tampa
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(From Vinyl Fever in Tampa)
Dead Weather Listening Party
Will There Be Enough Water?
The Dead Weather came together almost by accident. The Raconteurs- Jack White's other side project- were touring near the end of 2008, supported by The Kills. Because White was ailing, he asked The Kills' Alison Mosshart if she would help out on vocals at some of the shows. This onstage collaboration led to White and Mosshart, along with Raconteurs bassist Jack Lawrence and Queens of the Stone Age member Dean Fertita, deciding to record an album together. Mosshart would be the lead singer, while White would drum and provide backing vocals.
The Dead Weather's album "Horehound" is out this week and we've wrangled some nice promos to give away with purchase. We'll be playing it TONIGHT (Monday) at 7pm and have posters, stickers, pizza and an ALBUM copy (VINYL!) to give, so stop on by - bring your ears.
Dead Weather Listening Party
Will There Be Enough Water?
The Dead Weather came together almost by accident. The Raconteurs- Jack White's other side project- were touring near the end of 2008, supported by The Kills. Because White was ailing, he asked The Kills' Alison Mosshart if she would help out on vocals at some of the shows. This onstage collaboration led to White and Mosshart, along with Raconteurs bassist Jack Lawrence and Queens of the Stone Age member Dean Fertita, deciding to record an album together. Mosshart would be the lead singer, while White would drum and provide backing vocals.
The Dead Weather's album "Horehound" is out this week and we've wrangled some nice promos to give away with purchase. We'll be playing it TONIGHT (Monday) at 7pm and have posters, stickers, pizza and an ALBUM copy (VINYL!) to give, so stop on by - bring your ears.
Indie Store Radio will be adding Dead Weather's album to our playlist this Tuesday. In the meantime click the link to check out this video.
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06/12/09
Vinyl Saturdays!!!!
One of the best things about RECORD STORE DAY was the limited items that were released especially for that day (stores across the country had fans lined up in the wee hours of the morning to get at 'em!). So, rather than making you wait another year, the Record Store Day folks (us amongst them) have arranged for some very special items to drop on one special Saturday each month! The first "VINYL SATURDAY" will be Saturday, 6/20 and will feature:
WILCO: This is a special 7" single being released 10 days before new album (WILCO, the album) comes out on 6/3)! Limited to a run of 3,800, the 7" includes the tracks "You Never Know" b/w "Unlikely Japan" (an early 2003 version of the track "Impossible Germany," previously unreleased).
GREEN DAY: The vinyl version of the CD Single "Know Your Enemy" will be available here on 6/20. This vinyl is limited to 5000 pieces, and is NUMBERED. The b-side is an unreleased studio track called "Hearts Collide".
MODEST MOUSE: Second in a series of 7" singles being released (the first of which we had last week). This second piece is entitled "Autumn Beds" and the b-side is "Whale Song".
PETE YORN/SCARLETT JOHANSSEN: These two are releasing an album in September through Rhino (not to be confused with the Pete Yorn release on 6/23 through Sony), and we'll have an advance 7" with a duet from both of them AND a Pete Yorn demo on the other side.
ALSO, the following artists have vinyl scheduled for a street date of 6/23, but us indie retailer participants are getting them EARLY, so we can sell them to you on 6/20-
Al Green (classic reissues) - Those Darlins - Wolves In The Throne Room - Wino - Patterson Hood - Earth - Woggles - Chesterfield Kings - Cocktail Slippers and more. Wicked cool, eh?!
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06/03/09
It's Snowing At Grimey's
05/12/09
320KB Downloads @ On Line Indie Stores
05/07/09
News From Horizon Records
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Greetings Good People,
This is a time of year I love. The south goes lush green again. After several refreshing, pollen washing rains its magic beautiful, awe inspiring green all lit up with blooming colors of life on earth. Equally as refreshing and as full of life affirming colors is the newest re-issue in the rebirth of the long overlooked artist Rodriguez (no, not our favorite, the lovely Texan Carrie Rodriguez, nor to be confused with the supa bad guy from Mars Volta, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez). No, I’m talking about Sixto Rodriguez and his 1971 classic Coming From Reality. A masterpiece and a complete eye-opener just as his 1969 debut classic Cold Fact is and was when re-issued last year making it readily available for the first time in decades. Imagine Dylan, Ritchie Havens, Tim Buckley all stirred into a mellow yet startling folk-funk and occasionally psychedelic audio novel, or was or is it a sonic sixties news report? Either way it’s 35+ years old and killing it as much as anything I’ve heard so far this year.- Gene (Horizon Records, Greenville, SC) | |
04/23/09
Post Record Store Day
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From Eric at Criminal Records/AIMS
Greetings, everybody.
As we all bask in the Record Store Day afterglow, there's an unreasonable effort to measure the success, mostly centered around the almighty dollar.
Streetpulse reports an increase of 21.7 % for overall sales, and a whopping 222.5% increase in vinyl sales alone. Soundscan had some interesting figures in yesterday's report, but with the majority of participating stores not represented by Soundscan and most of the produced exclusive items not carrying registered sku's, the numbers seem even more mythical than usual.
I can report, anecdotally, that all stores are reporting, "best sales day in our history," my own Criminal Records included.
But aren't pictures worth thousands of words? Here's a few from the AIMS group that sum up Record Store Day 2009, I'll blog more in the future, after I've more fully recovered.
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04/13/09
List Of Record Store Day Exclusives!
03/16/09
Cool New Release & Record Store Day
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RECORD STORE DAY IS SATURDAY, APRIL 18th, 2009!
Save the date!
Record Store Day will be here before we know it, and we're already jumpin' out of our boots with joy! April 18th, 2009 will be filled with a ginormous number of the cool indie exclusives. We're rockin' a Go Listen Boise bake sale, tons of sweet freebies, celebrity guest DJs spinning vinyl all day long, and a special live show with Le Fleur and LA Knots that night to celebrate the release of "Rotating Tongues 2"! So get out of your crib and come on down to support indie record stores worldwide on April 18th!
The organizers of Record Store Day have been happily overwhelmed by a steady flurry of support and activity from artists, record labels and retailers wishing to participate in the annual event in salutation of the independent music store. This year Record Store Day is set to feature a number of exciting new products made especially for the event from such well-known artists as Radiohead, Wilco, Tom Waits and Lucinda Williams and the Flight of the Conchords, just to name a few.
Wilco plan to release their upcoming DVD as an exclusive release to indie stores and on the band’s website on Record Store Day. The group’s Jeff Tweedy told Billboard Magazine in a recent interview, “Even if I wasn't in a band, I'd still support Record Store Day. It's a great thing and I'm glad we could do something special with them for our DVD."
The Decemberists will release a Record Store Day 7" as well. The band’s Colin Meloy adds, “I don’t know what I would do without indie record stores. Growing up in a town without them, I can tell you that it’s no fun to shop for indie records at chain box stores.”
You can also expect a slew of vinyl releases from Radiohead and My Morning Jacket who will release a CD as well as limited run double 10" vinyl recorded live in Louisville at record store Ear X-tacy.
Also expected are classic split 7” releases from Tom Waits and Lucinda Williams who will issue a double 7” of live tracks from Atlanta and Edinburgh, as well as Sonic Youth exclusive Record Store Day split singles with Beck and Jay Reatard.
Other indie rock elder statesmen the Jesus Lizard will release a special package to include nine 7” singles and Guided By Voices will re-release their Hold On Hope LP, with three bonus tracks.
And in the “legends” category, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen will all release RSD exclusive 7” singles. Def Jam also plans to release a 4 LP gatefold history of the label, the physical version of which will be for indies only.
Fans can expect more unique Record Store Day pieces from a diverse array of artists such as Metric, Slipknot, Jane’s Addiction, The Smiths, the Stooges, MC5, Modest Mouse, Slayer, Rivers Cuomo, the Black Kids, Brandi Carlile, Taking Back Sunday, among many others.
See you on the April 18th!
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03/10/09
Take A Tour Of Twist & Shouts New Store Layout
03/06/09
Indie Store Fact
03/04/09
Indie Store Top 50
1. WARD,M. Hold Time (Merge)
2. DARK WAS THE NIGHT Dark Was The Night (4AD)
3. BEIRUT March Of The Zapotec (Pompeii Record)
4. EARLE,JUSTIN TOWNES Midnight At The Movies (Bloodshot)
5. ANIMAL COLLECTIVE Merriweather Post Pavilion (Domino)
6. BLACK LIPS 200 Million Thousand (Vice Records)
7. TRUCKS,DEREK BAND Already Free (Rca Victor)
8. SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE Soundtrack (Interscope)
9. AUERBACH,DAN Keep It Hid (Nonesuch)
10. HEARTLESS BASTARDS Mountain (Fat Possum)
11. BIRD,ANDREW Noble Beast (Mega Force)
12. FLEET FOXES Fleet Foxes (Sub Pop)
13. ANTONY & THE JOHNSONS Crying Light (Secretly Canadian)
14. KINGS OF LEON Only By The Night (Rca)
15. LAMB OF GOD Wrath (Epic)
16. VETIVER Tight Knit (Sub Pop)
17. BON IVER For Emma Forever Ago (Jagjaguwar )
18. FRANZ FERDINAND Tonight: Franz Ferdinand (pic)
19. BYRNE/ENO Everything That Happens Will H (Todomundo/Opal)
20. MORRISON,VAN Astral Weeks Live ( Manhattan Records )
21. PHOSPHORESCENT To Willie (Dead Oceans)
22. DEERHUNTER Microcastle (Kranky)
23. CALE,J.J. Roll On (Rounder)
24. ISBELL,JASON Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit (Lightning Rod Records)
25. WHITMORE,WILLIAM ELLIOT Animals In The Dark (Anti/Epitaph)
26. CLEM SNIDE Hungry Bird (429 Records)
27. PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART Pains Of Being Pure At Heart (Slumberland)
28. ASOBI SEKSU Hush (Polyvinyl)
29. SHE & HIM Volume One (Merge)
30. KWELLER,BEN Changing Horses (ATO)
31. MGMT Oracular Spectacular (Columbia)
32. K'NAAN Troubadour (A&M/Octone)
33. NEWMAN,A.C. Get Guilty ( Matador )
34. SPRINGSTEEN,BRUCE Working On A Dream (Columbia)
35. HITCHCOCK,ROBYN Goodnight Oslo (Yep Roc)
36. PLANT/KRAUSS Raising Sand (Rounder)
37. HANNIGAN,LISA Sea Sew (ATO)
38. BEASTIE BOYS Paul's Boutique-20th Anniversa ( Capitol )
39. ZERO BOYS Vicious Circle (Secretly Canadian)
40. HERE WE GO MAGIC Here We Go Magic (Wide Hive)
41. MATT & KIM Grand (One Label)
42. N.A.S.A Spirit Of Apollo (Anti/Epitaph
43. INDIA.ARIE Vol. 2-Testimony: Love & Polit (Universal Records)
44. TV ON THE RADIO Dear Science (Interscope)
45. WILSON,CHARLIE Uncle Charlie (Zomba Label Group)
46. MORRISSEY Years Of Refusal (Lost Highway)
47. ALLEN,LILY It's Not Me It's You (Capitol)
48. NELSON,WILLIE/ASLEEP AT THE WH Willie & The Wheel (Bismeaux)
49. ADELE 19 ( Columbia )
50. DUTCHESS & THE DUKE She's The Dutchess He's The Du (Hardly Art)
The A.I.M.S. vinyl chart is compiled from the collective piece counts of all A.I.M.S.members. | |
03/03/09
Digital Downloads Come to Inide Stores!!!!!!!
03/02/09
Record Store Day Is Coming
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Record Store Day April 18, 2009
The original idea for Record Store Day was conceived by Chris Brown, and was founded in 2007 by Eric Levin, Michael Kurtz, Carrie Colliton, Amy Dorfman, Don Van Cleave and Brian Poehner as a celebration of the unique culture surrounding over 700 independently owned record stores in the USA, and hundreds of similar stores internationally.
This is the one day that all of the independently owned record stores come together with artists to celebrate the art of music. Special vinyl and CD releases and various promotional products are made exclusively for the day and hundreds of artists in the United States and in various countries across the globe make special appearances and performances. Festivities include performances, cook-outs, body painting, meet & greets with artists, parades, djs spinning records and on and on. Metallica officially kicked off Record Store Day at Rasputin Music in San Franscisco on April 19, 2008 and Record Store Day is now celebrated the second Saturday every April. | |
02/13/09
Friday 13th - Feel The Love
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Taken from the today's Vinyl Fever (Tampa) Newsletter
It's always nice when something GOOD actually takes the prize! We were featuring that Adele CD since it first came out and have played the Plant/Krauss into the ground this past year +. Between Radiohead's performance and McCartney with Dave Grohl, (personally, my heart went boom), I'd say that there was probably twice as much worth tuning into on Grammy night than in many previous years (granted, that means 20 minutes instead of the usual 10, but still).
Speaking of Robert Plant, he made a recent appearance, shopping at our friends' record store in Nashville- Grimey's! The report we got was that he was as kind and personable as could be, made fun of their *Titans of Rock* section (where, of course, Led Zep was prominently displayed), bought a bunch of blues and old R&B and told of how he and Page tried to buy Chess Records and, when that deal didn't work out was when they founded Swan Song instead! It's always so nice to get to put a human face on artists who have seemed so beyond that. As Gabe remarked, "he gave our friends at Grimey's a Whole Lotta Love!"
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02/09/09
First Americana Album to win Album of the Year
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February 9, 2009, Nashville, TN: Raising Sand, the 2008 Americana Album of the Year, by Alison Krauss and Robert Plant, produced by T-Bone Burnett and released by Rounder Records, swept the 51st Annual Grammy® Awards last night winning the coveted trophy in each of the categories in which they were nominated; Record Of The Year, Album Of The Year, Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals, Best Country Collaboration With Vocals, and Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album.
“This album is a triumph for Alison, Robert and T-Bone and congratulations are in order to everyone involved with the project” said Jed Hilly Executive Director of the Americana Music Association. Hilly added, “It’s also a victory for Americana and all artists and fans who appreciate great music with integrity.”
Raising Sand won its first award of the day during the pre telecast of the Grammy’s® with the win for Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album, the category in which the album was registered. That the project was also nominated for the the overall Album of the Year marked the first time the term Americana could be tagged to this prestigious award.
A win of this magnitude highlights the emergence of the Americana genre in the ever-changing music business landscape. Additionally, Rounder Records becomes only the second independent record label to have won both the Album of the Year and Record of the Year categories.
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01/28/09
King Records Museum
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Greetings, everybody.
I was very excited to read this past Sunday's New York Times article on the King Records Museum. For years, I'd been hearing from Darren Blase, founding member of AIMS and owner of Shake It Records in Cincinnati about his efforts to bring attention to King Records and his hometown's place in history.
He casually mentioned his friendship with Bootsy Collins (!!!!!) and their working relationship to preserve the legacy of King, which includes the earliest recordings of James Brown (with a very young Bootsy on bass), not to mention Nina Simone and Charlie Feathers, among hundreds of other artists.
Darren's store, Shake It, hosted our 2006 AIMS convention in Cincinnati. At the convention he brought Bootsy Collins (OMG!) to talk to us about what music REALLY is about ("music is US") and how it's up to us to carry on a tradition that independent stores are the keepers of culture. "Your stores are like libraries that folks can walk into and explore," Bootsy said. Preaching to the choir, he continued, "you can't find out who the drummer was from an MP3, we need you guys to survive or our culture will be lost."
It was there that both Bootsy and Darren shared a little of their vision of what they had in store for King Records and the music history of Cincinnati -- a museum that showcased not only the great music that was produced there but reflected the neighborhood and city that it was located in. The company was not only breaking the molds musically, but also racially and along gender lines as African-American, Japanese, and women held significant managerial positions as early the mid 1940's. It's been about two and half years, and Darren, Bootsy, and their Cincinnati Music Heritage Foundation have been moving along to secure the vision to preserve the legacy of King Records, not only for Cincinnati, but for the country and the world.
At times, Darren admits it's slow going but, when you're building a museum from the ground up, that's the way it goes. But as Darren told me previously, "This is a community effort involving arts organizations, Xavier University, the City of Cincinnati, private businesses and organizations. It takes time, but that's how it should be. It's a communal effort."
When I asked Darren about all this and Shake It's role in the preservation of King Records, he said, "That's what our stores are, intricate little parts of our communities like King; not where people just buy music but where folks gather to talk about current happenings and share opinions, post community events on the board, giving space to a local band, asking if there are any apartments for rent in the 'hood, bringing leftovers from a birthday party, getting engaged at the shop (like 2 regulars did just the other night), and who knows what else?"
He continues, "All the little things that add up to community that aren't found at a Target, Best Buy, or Walmart. Honestly that's all we got at the end of the day -- but it's the most important thing we got, our communities. If it wasn't, we wouldn't be trying to preserve it 50 years later."
Indeed.
Eric (Criminal Records/AIMS)
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01/28/09
Top 20
01/23/09
Great Deals on Used CDs @ Criminal Record...
01/23/09
Working on a Magnificent Animal
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From Twist & Shout in Denver
Hey all
Things are starting to really gear up in the new releases department's new Springsteen this Tuesday, new Fray album at the beginning of February and a new U2 album due March 3rd. It's bound to be a big couple months for the music industry and for music fans everywhere. And as a special treat for our Twisted Spork Club Card members, we've got a special sneak peek of the new Springsteen's a link to a video preview of his new record Working on a Dream. If you haven't yet signed up, we're gonna give you a chance to get in on this deal's sign up for our Club Card any time before 2 PM tomorrow and we'll send you the link tomorrow afternoon. You must be a Twisted Spork Club Card member to get the deal, so make sure you sign up now if you haven't already.
Our big winner in a good week of releases for the store has been the new album by Animal Collective, Merriweather Post Pavilion. It's been a big hit amongst staff and customers alike and in a perhaps surprising turn of events, we've sold more copies on vinyl than on CD so far! You can check out Paul's review on our blog here Other great new releases this week have been the latest albums by Umphrey's McGee, Antony and the Johnsons, Andrew Bird, and the new EP by Bon Iver. It's certainly a refreshing start to the year to see so many releases that we've been excited about.
Personally I'm also eager to pick up the new Criterion release of Douglas Sirk's great film Magnificent Obsession, another of his classic melodramas of the 50's. In it Rock Hudson plays an irresponsible playboy who's responsible for blinding a woman (Jane Wyman) and decides to give up his philandering ways to become a surgeon and restore her sight. Preposterous? Sure, but it still puts the focus squarely on Wyman and her troubles while Hudson's character aspires to sainthood. As a plot, it's reminiscent of Sirk's excellent earlier film A Scandal in Paris though this one's set in contemporary times and also shot in color, always a strength of Sirk's. If you've never seen one of his 50's classics, this is as good a place as any to start. Proceed directly from here to All That Heaven Allows for another terrific teaming of Sirk with Wyman and Hudson (and also, it should be noted, the brilliant cinematographer Russell Metty, who was also responsible for such masterworks as Spartacus and Touch of Evil). Forget the totally safe and predictable Oscar nominee choices and stick to the classics.
As always, you can read more about our thoughts and what we've got going on here: http://twistedspork.blogspot.com/. (click the link below)
Until next time,
Patrick | |
01/19/09
Shake It Says.....
(A quick note from Shake It Record in Cincinnati, OH)
The restock keeps rolling in... and just like last week, the amount of new & used vinyl hitting the shelves is staggering. Lots of new soul, funk & jazz on vinyl... cool prog-ish reissues on the Mainstream label, lots of Bo Diddley.... all kinds of stuff with alot more on theway. In the next couple of weeks we'll be building up the Hip Hop vinyl section so look for those bins to start filling up, too.
There's lots of great New Releases this week from Andrew Bird, Animal Coolective, Bon Iver, Bob Pollard, Matt & Kim, A.C. Newman, and many more.... we're are finally hitting our stride again with new releases. Click thru to get full descriptions.
This week Billy shares his Best Of's for 2008 & Joe highlights the Fiction sections as we continue our spotlightin' of different sections. Also new Kidrobot figures on the shelves this week, too.
On our pop-up jukebox this week we have NOBLE BEAST , the latest from ANDREW BIRD! You can also sample tracks from UMPHREY'S McGEE, (INTERNATIONAL) NOISE CONSPIRACY,
LATE OF THE PIER, ANIMAL COLLECTIVE, IRAN, THE BIRD & THE BEE, ANYA MARINA, GLASVEGAS, K'NAAN, THE DEREK TRUCKS BAND & TROUBLE ANDREW! All at Shake It.
For the full story click the link below | |
01/15/09
2008 In Review
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So, how was 2008?
Personally, for Criminal Records, it was a banner year. The success of last year's inaugural Record Store Day started the year off with a bang, followed quickly by our winning the "Best Small Retailer" award at NARM, which was awesome. Paste Magazine named us one of the 19 Coolest Record Stores in the Country, we relaunched our website, and, towards the end of the year, we expanded from 2,100 sq. feet to over 5,500 sq.
For AIMS, we continued to perfect our programs and move forward, adding seven new stores to our ranks and lowering the prices of our programming. We also added interactive kiosks to each outlet, providing even more marketing opportunities for our label partners.
Good times, good times.
What about the holiday sales season? Although many AIMS members reported sales growth for the month, and for the year, December 2008 hit pretty hard. I would be hard pressed to select the right shade of lipstick for this pork chop.
Smart retailers (like those who didn't blow all their savings moving into a new 5,500 sq. foot location in October) had an easier go of it. One put it like this:
"For the year we ended up about 3.1% down from 2007, but the amount of music we sold was actually up 2.9%. A lot of that can be attributed to folks buying the $10.99 LP instead of the $13.99 CD, etc. Also the amount of killer budget stuff that's out there right now, like the WEA and Sony stuff is pretty staggering. What used to be $11.99 is now $7.99 or less, 100's/1000's of those add up to a dip in sales, but ultimately more in actual pieces going out the door."
Of course, the LP revolution helped many of us beat all expectations, but this has been a boon for most of us for the past five years. Ancillary items, like record cleaning supplies, turntables, and, of course, decades of used vinyl, reinforced the bottom line for most of us. Other non-music (read: high margin) related items like Buddha Boxes, 33 1/3 books, Uglydolls and T-shirts made many a retailer's drop in sales a profit-earning opportunity.
A savvy AIMS member summed it up nicely, and it's worth repeating:
"Vinyl is up -- and even expensive vinyl is up -- $30 to $50 dollar collector vinyl we can sell, but $18.99 list priced CDs are dead dead dead. Might as well put a big ass red sticker on it that says 'Buy it cheaper on Amazon,' unless it has a value added CD, DVD, or deluxe packaging."
The CD has lots of years left in it, at the right price. Consumers are smart enough to recognize that a $9.99 CD, with an infinite life-span, the power of choice in digital files and the opportunity for re-sale trumps the $9.99 download.
There I go, up on my soapbox again.
-- e
(Eric - Criminal Records/AIMS
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01/13/09
Greetings from Horizon Records
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Greetings Music Lovers Everywhere,
Well Elvis Presley's birthday came and went yesterday -- sad to say no sightings or Elvis look-a-likes were known to have occurred in this area. Although I did have an uncontrollable urge to play Burning Love over and over. Maybe it was just the full moon. Our other start of the year tradition is the annual posting of the WNCW.org's Top CDs of 2008. So come and get some (if you haven't already). Avett Brothers snagged number 1, followed by Bob Dylan, Old Crow Medicine Show, Drive-By Truckers, Wood Brothers, Lucinda Williams, James McMurtry, Alejandro Escovedo, Fleet Foxes, and Abigail Washburn. We have set the top 40 of these CDs on display (plus some of them that are on LP) in that spot just near the Café door just where the top CDs of 2007 were. Happily it's exciting to note that 18 of these amazing artists of the Top 100 have played here in The Bohemian Café for our in-store series in recent times! That of course, sets me up to remind everybody about our next wave of FREE in-store CONCERTS: The GOURDS Tues. Jan 20, 6pm, and then FREE PLANET RADIO Sat. Jan 24 -3pm, and JASON ISBELL Thurs. Feb 19, 5pm. Not bad. More announcing shortly he said with a mysterious grin. | |
01/09/09
Old, Borrowed & Blue, Too
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This story comes from the folks at Vinyl Fever in Tampa and is a great example of why you should get to know the folks at your local indie sore.
It seems that a lot of New Year's resolutions have folks doing their spring cleaning early, and that's good for you and us, as we've been buying CDs and records by the hundreds! Last year we bought an impeccable collection of ~ 2,500 CDs and the same gentleman is now selling us his records (~3,500 of them)! We've just begun to get them out- last night we priced, among other things, more than 15 Hendrix albums, a dozen or so classic Springsteen bootlegs, some Eno LPs rarely seen these days, and the most extensive selection of Echo & The Bunnymen import 12"ers seen this side of 1983. We're re-doing our walls to properly show off these wonderful works of art, because we'd rather give you, our loyal customers, a shot at them rather than sending to the highest bidder in Norway. You'll have reason to be coming in EVERY DAY just to see what comes out of the back room next!
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01/05/09
Icon Collectibles Fine Art Photography
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Twist and Shout is excited to announce that we will have an exclusive regional showing of the Icon Collectibles Fine Art Photography exhibition. Showcasing fine art prints of rare images of musical legends including Bob Dylan, Miles Davis, Jaco Pastorius, Thelonious Monk, Billie Holiday and many others. This exhibition gives fans a chance to see and buy classic images of important musical figures.
Until now, Sony BMG Music Entertainment’s vast archive of never- before-seen artist images has been viewed by only a privileged few. Now, for the first time ever, ICON Collectibles is bringing these rare images of music’s most iconic artists to the world, as fine art photographs. Using only the highest quality archival inks and paper, these exceptional museum-quality photographs will be available in a variety of sizes, with or without a black wood archival frame. And best of all, most of these prized images will be offered as Limited Editions, numbered and signed by the photographer.
Photograph features:
- Signed & Numbered by Photographer
- Limited Edition
- Letter of Authenticity
- Printed on archival paper
- Museum quality fine art print
- Photograph Sizes 11x14, 16x20, 20x24
- Frame and mat (optional)
- Prices start at $299.00
For more info click the link below. | |
01/02/09
Criminal Records - Stuff Your Face
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12/04/08
New Indie Exclusives
12/03/08
2008 Employee Picks At Twist & Shout
12/01/08
Indie Store Rock Black Friday
Although Black Friday isn't an indie-store event, I'm pleased to report that the AIMS stores saw a 35.8% increase in sales of new music according to Streetpulse.
No surprise there, really, considering the stellar release schedule as exemplified by our sales chart. Granted, I'm not talking about the has-beens and whores spreading their legs for the widest margins along the supermarket aisles, either.
We're currently selling the future superstars, bands like Deerhunter, Of Montreal, Kings of Leon, Fleet Foxes, who won't need to give it away on the corner, as their pimps will all be dead.
I mean, really, I know I'll still be selling comfort for the soul the next time Guns & Roses put out a new record, and I won't give a crap then either.
The downside, we were down 12% in video sales, which, at street level wasn't much of a surprise. Stores of our ilk really aren't able to participate in blockbuster movie releases, due to the continued loss-leadering of that product line at the Big Box retailers plus a complete absence of music related DVD's at this time of year.
Add to that, the utter confusion at the consumer level as to which format to purchase, traditional DVD or Blu-Ray.
I don't need to look any further than my own personal growing collection of Blu-Ray discs to understand the hesitance. Interesting titles continue to appear on DVD without Blu-Ray counterparts and I'm stuck at the register.
As much as I'd love to pick up the DVD set of Batman -- The Complete Animated Series (swoooooon!), why would I, knowing the Blu-Ray edition is forthcoming?
Of course, all you need to do is come on over to my house to see the Rolling Stones 'Shine a Light' Blu-Ray on the big-screen to become a convert. The same could be said (should be said) about playing a nice record on my bitchin' stereo. I'm not boasting, it's an invite. Drop on by. Call first.
Of all the calls and emails I've received, hoping for some news about Black Friday sales, nobody bothered to ask if we were profitable.
Why, yes, thanks for asking.
Click the link below to vist Criminal Records.
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10/07/08
5 STAR VIDEOS from Twist & Shout (Denver)
10/03/08
Everything Absent or Distorted
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09/29/08
Crises? What Financial Crises?
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Cripes, what an insane time to be an American. There is so much of note going on in our world, that I feel compelled to at least encourage people to register to vote and exercise our most basic freedom. Find your way to www.rockthevote.com and register to vote. We really need to all be involved in the process if we are ever going to save the world as we know it. Enough preaching.
Tons of great new releases to crow about, starting with Old Crow Medicine Show. This fabulous band mixes the tradition and heart of Bluegrass with the energy of Rock and are gaining a huge reputation as one of the best live bands to see anywhere. Their new album Tennessee Pusher rocks hard and is sure to increase their already fanatical following. Sure would like to do an in-store with these guys. The other day while driving home I heard an NPR feature on TV on the Radio, and their new album Dear Science. Another excellent album by this thinking-man’s indie band. Their lyrical insight is pushed up to a new notch and their music remains indie-friendly melodic rock.
Rilo Kiley songbird Jenny Lewis releases Acid Tongue which makes her career even harder to pin down. It is all over the place - pop, countryish ballads, rock songs, and throughout her strong voice rises to the occasion. She is an artist of substance who keeps raising the bar on our expectations.
If you haven’t checked out David Gilmour Live In Gdansk yet, it is very worth your while. An incredibly tight band including the sadly departed Richard Wright and guitar expert Phil Manzanera languish their way through a superb program of Pink Floyd classics – “Shine On You Crazy Diamond,” “Astronomy Domine,” “Echoes,” “Fat Old Sun” – and choice newer material to produce the most satisfying post-Floyd offering in quite awhile. The guitar work is sublime and Gilmour’s vocals are still liquid mercury. If you ask me there is a good argument that the less ego-driven Gilmour is as responsible as Roger Waters for Pink Floyd’s greatness. This album helps make that argument. If you are really feeling randy, there is a five LP limited edition version of the release with an entire LP of songs (Echoes acoustic!) and unreleased jams.
Graham Nash - Songs For Beginners Deluxe Edition
This album, released in the spring of 1971 really deserves the attention that Nash’s counterparts received in this heady era. Like Crosby’s If I Could Only Remember My Name the album is loaded with the cream of players from the scene; Jerry Garcia, Phil Lesh, David Crosby, Dave Mason, David Lindley, Rita Coolidge and many others deliver warm and memorable performances on a great batch of songs. Many of them stand up today as some of Nash’s best. “Military Madness,” “Chicago,” and “We Can Change The World” seem weirdly relevant to our current political situation, while “Better Days,” “Simple Man,” “There’s Only One” and especially the magnificent “I Used To Be A King” with a soaring pedal steel solo by Garcia are classic hippie fare.
The thing that really excited me about this reissue is the addition of a DVD with the entire album in a three-dimensional 5.1 mix. It is a completely different experience to step inside this album and have all the instruments cascading around in a circle. This technology has improved greatly and albums that have been properly produced for the medium are a rewarding experience indeed. I would suggest this album and Crosby’s Only Remember My Name… discs as the perfect albums to explore the world of surround sound. It truly is a step forward.
Make your plans now to attend the annual Rocky Mountain Audio Fest where you can drool over stereo equipment you’ll never be able to afford. It is THE place to learn about cutting edge sound.
Two great in-stores coming up. Everything Absent or Distorted, the Denver- area music collective that features a grip of people (several of whom worked here at one time or another) are October 3rd at 6pm. and then on November 10th at 6pm. our friend Brett Dennen will be making his second appearance here. We think this kid is going to be big -so see him while you can in an intimate setting.?
The latest issue of our music guide “Our Favorite Things” is in. Pick it up in the store or around town for lots of musical suggestions.
At my house in the foothills, the Elk are bugle-ing like crazy and the aspen are turning. Get up there with some great new music and enjoy.
See You In The Aisles,
Paul Epstein | |
09/23/08
Vinyl Revelution (Tons of new vinyl)
09/22/08
David Byrne @ Grimey's In Nashville
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Meet DAVID BYRNE at Grimey's! + Midnight Sale!
Holy Moly! Rock music's renaissance man, David Byrne, is in town this Monday, September 22nd for a show at The Ryman and we just got word moments ago that he wants to come by Grimey's and meet his fans at noon!!!
That's right...
DAVID BYRNE will meet fans and sign autographs at NOON this Monday, September 22ndHaving already conquered the pop & rock music worlds with his wildly influential band Talking Heads (can you imagine the modern indie rock landscape without them?), David Byrne moved on to explore a variety of Brazilian and world musics (although he hates that term) through a long career of solo albums. He even started a label, Luaka Bop, to showcase musics from around the globe and lost psychedelic treasures from the likes of Shuggie Otis and Os Mutantes. He's an artist whose work has been shown in galleries and museums around the world, he participated in the Paul Simon retrospective series at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, turned a 99-year-old ferry terminal in Manhattan into a live music venue and concert facility, and composed the odd soundtrack ('Big Love', 'Last Emperor') along the way. Like I said, he's a true renaissance man. No less a band than Radiohead named themselves after a David Byrne song!
So it's with great pleasure that we have the man gracing our little corner of the world with an in-store appearance while touring behind his new collaboration with Brian Eno, their first in 25 years. The new album is called Everything That Happens Will Happen Today and at the Ryman show Byrne will be performing selections from it and other collaborations with Eno, including their groundbreaking album My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts which pioneered the use of sampling in studio production and pop music. Plenty of Talking Heads music will be in the set as well, concentrating on the groundbreaking albums produced by Eno - More Songs About Building And Food, Fear Of Music, and Remain In Light.
Reviews of the new Byrne/Eno album have been stellar and you can stream the album in its entirety at www.everythingthathappens.com. You can also purchase a download there and pre-order a CD and limited edition package, but you can't get the physical release until late November so take some time to check out the new record and bring your favorite David Byrne-related item and/or Talking Heads record down to Grimey's to get it signed! We'll also have a selection of Mr. Byrne's catalog that you can buy here and get signed, focusing particularly on the Byrne/Eno collaborations and productions. Byrne will be meeting fans and signing ONLY. If you want to see his amazing show, you NEED to get to the Ryman Monday night for this show, billed as David Byrne On Tour - Songs of David Byrne and Brian Eno.And finally, we'll also be giving away some tickets to the Ryman show at the in-store signing. Take a long lunch or skip a class and get down here Monday at Noon! This is a don't-miss opportunity if I've ever seen one! There are still tickets available to the Ryman show. Click here to purchase online or visit the Ryman box office to avoid Ticketbastard fees. I'll see you Monday!
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09/05/08
Hockey Mom/Pitbull or LSD invented the internet.
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This came to us from Twist & Shout in Denver...
Uh yeah. Whatever. Anybody else getting a little tired of this political season? Please let it be over soon, and please don’t let this country turn out as easily sold as I am starting to suspect. That’s all I’ve gotta say about that.
?If you wanna see a totally cool video-check out the new documentary-The Trips Festival. It is the only authoritative look at this extremely important event in American history. The film traces the entire evolution of the Acid Tests through the Be-In, Trips Festival, and through to the birth of the internet. After just a few minutes the viewer realizes that Stewart Brand was one of the most influential unknown people in modern history. An original Merry Prankster, he eventually published The Whole Earth Catalog, and then started The Well which became the first online community, clearing the way for the online explosion in the 90’s and beyond. He is front and center throughout, offering his down-to-earth and non-glorified account of what happened during those formative years. As the years pass it is harder and harder to understand the early experiments with LSD and live music, and how they set the template for all live music to come- especially the rave culture.The film has tons of great footage of Dead, Kesey, Cassidy etc, and includes a panel discussion at the end with Mountain Girl, Bob Weir, Stewart Brand and others. Highly thought provoking.
See you in the aisles,
Paul Epstein | |
08/28/08
Rev. Peyton @ Shake It
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08/20/08
Boo Boo Records Is An Oasis
08/17/08
Good New From Shake It (Power Back On)
08/11/08
Calexio @ Twist & Shout
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08/08/08
The ABC's Of Music
08/06/08
Amoebapalooza Hollywood
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07/31/08
Sunday Specials @ Vinyl Fever in Tampa
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Nobody likes working Sunday (well, except for John Gruden, maybe). So, in order to make Sundays more tolerable, the crew (Keith) asked if they (he) could make a theme party of it and I said, "uh, yeah, I guess- how much will it cost?" Here's what we came up with for this Sunday (August 2nd):
We will be spinning music from our Blues and (since it's Sunday) Gospel section ALL DAY LONG.;
ALL Blues and Gospel CDs, Records and DVDs will be 10% off;
your purchase will earn you a discount coupon for your next visit to Vinyl Fever.
BUTWAITTHATSNOTALL-
we have a half dozen CD giveaways* that you can win NOW!
* to win a CD, just write to us at contest@vinylfevertampa.com, put BLUE in the subject line, include your name and a phone number and tell us what you do when you get the blues. We'll choose six winners who will get to pick up their choice of any used blues or gospel CD from the store (priced at $9.99 or less) on Sunday. We'll give away two more CDs to the first two people who write in that can name the bluesman pictured above. Ok, since it's kind of fuzzy (which adds to it's bluesy authenticity, wouldn't you say?), here's a couple of hints: The Allman Brothers popularized one of his songs and Bob Dylan said that "no one can sing the blues like" him.
We're getting out the last couple of boxes of a massive, 30 box (2,500) used CD collection that was purchased recently, so there is a LOT to choose from.
Vinyl Fever is open from Noon until 7pm on Sunday. | |
07/23/08
Matt Nathanson Indie Store Exclusive In August
07/23/08
Tori Amos @ Amoeba
07/22/08
What's Hot This Week
07/18/08
A new look, SPORK @ Twist & Shout
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Hello all –
Twist & Shout is proud to announce the new look of our website and the launch of our blog, Spork.
With Spork, we hope to open up our world to you - the music lover- a little bit more. Inside Spork you will find opinions and reviews in the form of various blogs by Twisters like Sporkmeister (owner Paul Epstein), Nervenet (our manager Patrick Brown) and any other employee, local musician or scenester who has a real point of view. You will also have the ability to participate through a variety of forums on many musical, cultural and community subjects. We envision this growing and involving more and more people, increasingly reflecting our community. This will also dovetail with our upcoming download site: we are planning to sell downloads by year’s end, and we envision Spork as your entrée to that world as well.
Why Spork? Well, we thought long and hard about what to call this new function, and we thought we should come up with a word and an idea that suggested much and insisted on little. What can you do with a Spork? Not much, unless it is your only tool, then it is absolutely essential. It is equal parts genius innovation and silly whim. As we say around here:
“Soup or Steak, trust your Spork!”
Click the link below for your Spork.
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07/17/08
Tori Amos - Comic Book Signing
07/11/08
Raining In-Stores At Horizon In SC
07/11/08
Summer Discs DJs & Denver
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Well I guess there is no question that summer is here now. Some season was missing. I'm not sure if we never got spring, or if summer started late or what but now it feels like it is supposed to-hot. You�ll be glad to know we got our air conditioner serviced yesterday and it is frigidly comfortable at Twist. Lots going on. Starting on the 18th we are embarking on something we have talked about for a long time. Our Underground Sound Series will give the opportunity to local DJs to play live in our dance room. Colorado�s finest DJ's will spin from 6-8pm, playing everything from House to Hip-Hop on vinyl and CD (no MP3�s!). We are aiming to strengthen our connection with the Dance/Hip-Hop community and create a place where DJ's and customers alike can listen to some good music, make connections, know that they have a store that supports the local DJ community, and know that VINYL IS ALIVE and still here. We also have a bunch of sales going on this month. First we have the hilarious and provocative Eddie Izzard's work on sale in anticipation of his upcoming show on Monday. We are also having sales on two of our favorite labels: Anti and Sub Pop. Find scads of great albums on sale by artists like Devotchka, Neko Case, Tom Waits, Nick Cave, Band Of Horses, The Shins, Iron and Wine and much more. This is a great opportunity to fill in the gaps in some important artists� catalogs.
Also, the new album by Boulder band 3OH!3 is blowing up! I ran numbers today, and local rock and local rap are HUGE. Way bigger than they have ever been before for us. Nothing makes us feel like we are doing our job more than seeing some success in our local music sections. Thank you for that. Me? I'm still breathing heavy over the Stevie Wonder show recently. It lifted me off the ground about ten feet. Look for a longer review of the experience when we launch our blog next week-wow!
Have a great weekend and don�t forget the music.
See you in the aisles,
Paul Epstein | |
07/03/08
JULY 4th and 5th is VINYL FREEDOM FESTIVAL WEEKEND!
Horizon Records Greenville, SC
This means we are spinning nothing but good ole vinyl records all day Friday and Saturday. Yes we are OPEN JULY 4th. Feisty independent retailer that we are we will be here so you can come by and garb some tunes to make your holiday sound mo' better. Please stop by and show your solidarity with independent retail, take home some deals on used CDs, LPs, DVD movies, new releases, or just come by and check out what we drug out of the vintage vinyl stacks to spin.
YES we are open all day July 4th and 5th. Yes you can walk down or drive and park here and join the usual throngs that gather here each year on the corner to watch the fireworks downtown with out all the hassle of the mass crowds. Yes ALL OUR VARIOUS FREE CDs and some real nice FREEBIE VINYL items will be yours as a bonus with ANY PURCHASE. How good is that? Free stuff, air conditioning, all day vinyl noise, cheap movies, smiles and fireworks!
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07/02/08
Why Shop Local
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The Power of Choice (by Eric @ Criminal Records in Atlanta)
Every time you make a purchase, you're exercising power of choice.
The choice is yours. You have the power to strengthen and enrich your community.
Did You Know…
*For every two jobs national retailers bring to a community, three
jobs are lost as a result of local businesses closing down.
*When you shop locally-owned businesses, your money is re-circulated over and over and creates up to 75% more tax revenue to our community and state.
*Independent businesses raise the standard of living in your community because they take their profits and buy products and services from other local businesses, thus creating more and more tax revenues needed for the community to thrive.
*Millions of dollars of tax revenue subsidies handed to chains by financially-starved local governments drain even more tax revenue from our community and state.
*Blighted empty shopping areas are created in your community when chain stores re-locate to a more lucrative shopping center, or leave altogether. Literally hundreds of big stores are abandoned each year across the United States.
*Independent businesses are unique enterprises that contribute to the character of our community by offering a more diverse selections of goods and services.
*Independent businesses provide meaningful service with a personal touch. It matters to them that you are satisfied and will come back again.
*Carefully planned predatory pricing practices have allowed national chains to establish virtual monopolies as they drive local competition out of business. And then they raise their prices.
You can make a difference with a few simple steps
*Make a decision to find and patronize a locally-owned business, wherever possible.
*Dine at a local, independent restaurant and treat yourself to a unique and personal dining experience.
*When you shop online with out-of-state companies, it doesn't contribute a dime to the local economy. So check for locals who offer the same products, and some even deliver.
*Tell your associates, family, and friends what is happening and why. We all create our communities. Let's create strong and vibrant communities as a legacy for those who follow.
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07/01/08
TAKE THE PLEDGE...
06/30/08
Rose Hill Drive Rock Twist & Shout
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06/26/08
Vinyl Goodness
The following vinyl may be hard to find but it is worth knowing about and looking for!!!
Now available two new titles of the monumental new Blue Note one-sided 45rpm double 180gm reissue series from Music Matters. These must be the most painstakingly researched reissues ever, with no expense spared on mastering, artwork reproduction and both jacket and vinyl quality.
Let's start with the jackets - modeled after the most successful work from the Blue Note and Impulse! labels of the 50s and 60s. The Music Matters Definitive 45RPM Blue Note jackets are designed to last a lifetime, using ultra-durable extra thick cardboard stock and thick, luxurious lamination. In addition, Music Matters has obtained exclusive access to a treasure trove of over 30,000 original Blue Note session photos from Mosaic Images for use in this series. The gatefold opens to display these session photos in stunning high resolution - four times sharper than original Blue Note jacket photos. Many of these photos have never been seen by the public before, adding additional value to the package.
And now the sound - Mastered by Steve Hoffman, Kevin Gray and Ron Rambach from the original master tapes, these new releases sound as if, not just one, but several veils have been lifted from any previously available vinyl pressings, even the highly treasured deep groove mono originals, many of which were made (contrary to popular belief) , from stereo master tapes and summed to mono. Consequently they have more air, more detail and more sheer detail than the originals - they are truly revelatory.
These are limited worldwide to 2,500, and are exceptional in every way. Definitely worth the price of admission.
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06/24/08
THE MOTHERSHIP HAS LANDED!
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Yow-zer good people, all ye collectors of recorded music and Greenvillians this is a big week for of us in eclectic acoustic-rocking, NPR-sty-lee-WNCW-fm-listening land. I mean check the newness we got in from Ry Cooder, Big Blue Ball (Peter Gabriel's world wide pal sessions), Alejandro Escovedo, Amos Lee, G. Love, Sigur Ros, Greenville's own Edwin McCain gets his soul groove on, and a legendary 1973 Townes Van Zandt gem returns to print on CD. Oops, don't forget, how could I forget The Watson Twins debut on Vanguard Records. And yes we got a lot of all the good stuff on vinyl and speaking of vinyl we are prouder and of our sprawling vintage vinyl selection here. | |
06/24/08
West Seattle Says “Hello” to R.E.M.
Book Launch Party Celebrates Local Talent and Legendary Rock Band
West Seattle residents David Belisle and Corianton Hale will be joined by members of seminal rock band R.E.M. at Easy Street Records on Tuesday, June 24, to celebrate the release of their collaboration, “R.E.M.:HELLO” a new collection of photography published by Chronicle Books. R.E.M. co-founder and part-time Seattle resident Peter Buck will attend, along with touring band member Bill Rieflin.
R.E.M. has risen from cult college radio status to sell more than 100 million records worldwide and be inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Released to coincide with their world tour and new album, “R.E.M.; HELLO” is a gorgeous photo book that captures the band on- and offstage with rare and intimate access for the first time.
David Belisle has photographed and traveled with R.E.M. for the past seven years; his dynamic images and insider’s perspective capture the band's performances, recording and video sessions, but also reveal its members in personal spaces that only the band and their closest friends inhabit. Handwritten captions by the band and an introduction by frontman Michael Stipe add context and insight to a must-have document for fans.
Belisle’s connection to the band came through his friendship with Bob Whitaker, a bond formed in West Seattle in the 1980s through their mutual love of punk and new wave. Whitaker later became R.E.M.’s tour manager and introduced Belisle to the band in 2001 as a potential photographer/assistant. Seven years later, Belisle is still touring with the band around the world, taking photos and handling all manner of responsibilities on the road.
It was another important personal and professional relationship that led David to his book’s designer, Corianton Hale. The two worked together frequently throughout Corianton’s six-year tenure at Seattle’s influential alternative weekly, The Stranger. After winning multiple awards for his work as Art Director on the newspaper, Corianton set out to broaden his horizons under his independent venture Sleep Op Projects, launched in 2006 with a focus on web and print. “R.E.M.:HELLO” marks his first book design.
Chronicle Books, is one of the most admired and respected publishing companies in the U.S., with a reputation for award-winning, innovative books. The company “continues to challenge conventional publishing wisdom, setting trends in both subject and format,” with many titles focusing on fine art in design, art, architecture, and photography. | |
06/23/08
'Guitar Hero,' 'Rock Band' soon playing Beatles?
06/20/08
Summer Soul-stice Reviews from Twist & Shout
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Nothing I’m going to review is particularly soulful but this weekend is the solstice so I wanted to make use of the gag. Speaking of summer though - Dennis Wilson’s lovely, lost album Pacific Ocean Blue has finally been reissued in an incredible deluxe package that includes bonus tracks and an entire second (unreleased) album called Bambu. Kind of a Holy Grail item for Beach Boys fans, the original issue has been selling on ebay for hundreds of dollars until this much-welcomed reissue. It also has a Colorado connection being recorded at the legendary Caribou Ranch in the bad old days.
And now for something completely different: guitar genius and composer James Blackshaw has released another album on the great Tompkins Square label called Litany of Echoes. If you are a fan of the kind of contemplative, technically stunning work that John Fahey or Sandy Bull produced, this instrumental album is right up your alley. Blackshaw favors long, spacious compositions that are perfect for meditation, study or active guitar-fetish listening. It is another piece in the puzzle of this complex and important artist.
Speaking of guitar players, I finally got around to listening to John McLaughlin’s latest album Floating Point and couldn’t help but marvel at the energy and chops this veteran still shows in all his playing. Stylistically, it is all over the place; Shakti style here, psych rock style there, scientific note supplier, smooth jazzer(!?) , but through it all Mclaughlin’s playing is never less than awe-inspiring.
Grateful Dead watch. Volume 3 of the new Road Trips series is in and it’s a doozy. Recorded in the Summer of ’71 it is a wonderful recording that boasts some really strong performances of classics like “Bird Song,” “That’s It For The Other One,” “Sugaree,” “Dark Star” and “Uncle John’s Band.” Throughout Phil Lesh is booming, and proves again and again why he is a one-of-a-kind bass player. The bonus disc that comes with it for a limited time includes a newly unearthed soundboard of the greatest ever version of Pigpen’s “Hard To Handle” (Hollywood Palladium 8-6-71).
Movie-wise, the bio-pic of Lon Chaney Sr. The Man Of A Thousand Faces starring the great James Cagney has finally been released on DVD. Probably not very accurate, and gussied up for Hollywood, the movie still made a huge impact on me as a youngster and set me off on a lifelong obsession with monster movies. I can’t wait to see it again. I also can’t wait to see Robert Plant and Alison Krauss at Red Rocks Saturday night. This should prove to be the show of the summer.
And don’t forget to come to see Rose Hill Drive next week as they celebrate the release of their new album (out the day before). They will play on Wednesday the 25th at 6pm. They are one of the most impressive, high- octane rock and roll bands to ever come out of Colorado.
See you in the aisles,
Paul Epstein
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06/18/08
Metallica @ Grimey's (Nashville)
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06/11/08
My Morning Jacket @ Ear X-tacy
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06/06/08
Walter Meego & Heineken?
06/04/08
A.I.M.S. Still Growing
Just got an e-mail from Eric Levin at A.I.M.S. coalition of independent stores, with good news as they grow their store base.
Here is part of the email.....
I'm very excited and proud to announce that we've just added six new members (with seven participating locations) to the AIMS roster.
In so doing, we're extremely proud of two main points. We've done more than simply invite these members to join our family, we've self-financed their participation. We've set aside enough money to purchase all the necessary hardware, from listening posts, video monitors, web-enabled kiosks, and point of sale software for Soundscan and Streetpulse reporting.
Step one was to empower the individual retailers, so that they can do what they're best at in their local markets, from releasing albums and promoting shows to hiring artists and musicians to bolster their local communities.
Step two directly addresses some of the troubles facing our own industry. We're very happy to announce that we will not be raising the price of our programs with the addition of these new stores, effectively driving down the co-op price per unit by a third.
As a group of independent businesses, we unanimously decided to make less money individually to empower a new wave of indie-retailers to succeed and grow in this struggling economy. Quite simply, five years on, every AIMS member is a better retailer and in a better position than before. We're honor-bound to share the wealth and experience.
We can think of no better way to put OUR money where our mouth is.
The new stores are:
52.5 Records in Charleston, SC
End of An Ear in Austin, TX
Guestroom Records in Norman and Oklahoma City, OK
Jack's Music Shoppe in Red Bank, NJ
Landlocked Music in Bloomington, IN
Slowtrain in Salt Lake City, UT
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05/28/08
Aimee Mann Web Cast from Amoeba
05/22/08
Park Ave Commercial (Very COOOOL)
05/21/08
Horizon Announces Economical Stimulus Program
05/17/08
Behind The Scenes: Streetlight Records (Zero Magazine)
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Behind the Scenes: Streetlight Records
by Jonny Manak
For many of us in the Bay Area, we grew up spending our lunch money at Streetlight Records, and for a lot of people that hasn’t changed. I remember the first time my brother took me to the old, smaller location in San Jose. It was packed with music enthusiasts much like Championship Records in the movie High Fidelity. I bought my first three records that day: A Kenny Logins Footloose 7” single, the first Suicidal Tendencies self-titled 12” and the Smurf Dance Rap 12” — a pretty eclectic mix for a kid in grade school. I remember flipping through all of the vinyl and cassettes (sorry kids, CDs didn’t exist yet) and thinking, “This is what I want to do for the rest of my life.”
Now, over 20 years later, I’m typing about it. Interviewing Paige Brodsky, who’s managed the store for close to two decades, gives me the same feeling of walking into Streetlight Records for the first time. Music is magical!
Zero Magazine: How long have you been at Streetlight Records?
Paige Brodsky: Over 18 years, now. I started out at the two Streetlight stores in San Francisco, then worked my way down to San Jose about 13 years ago.
ZM: Can you remember the first time you walked into an independent record store? Do you have any fond memories that come to mind?
PB: I think the first time I walked into an independent record store was while I was in college in Columbia, South Carolina. There was this little shop near the campus called Papa Jazz that specialized in jazz, but had all sorts of other records, too. I distinctly remember the aroma of old LPs. It’s like perfume to me.
ZM: What records did you buy that day?
PB: I can’t remember what I bought that day, but I do remember what I bought the first time I walked into Streetlight. It was 1989, and I had just moved to San Francisco, from South Carolina. I went into the store on Market St., bought a John Mellencamp LP (Scarecrow) and asked if they had any job openings. It was quite a pleasant surprise when they said yes! The rest is history. Well, my job history, anyway.
ZM: What got you interested in music?
PB: An interest in radio is what actually led me to music. My first year in college, I got involved in the college radio station. I thought it would be interesting to learn about that medium, and to be a DJ. What I didn’t expect was to be introduced to a whole world of music that I knew nothing about and had never heard on commercial radio. Velvet Underground? It seemed an odd name to me, but it was just the beginning to a whole new music world.
ZM: There are four Streetlight locations currently: San Jose, Santa Cruz and two in San Francisco. When did the locations open? What’s the history of Streetlight?
PB: The oldest location is on 24th Street in Noe Valley in San Francisco, which opened in the mid-1970s. It was originally a used stereo component shop that slowly moved in the direction of records and away from stereos. Next came the San Francisco store on Market Street, then the tiny little space on South Bascom in San Jose. In 1992, the San Jose store moved down the street into a 10,000 square-foot building, which was quite a change. I remember thinking, “How will we ever fill this space with records and CDs?” Now what I think is, “How can we make more space for all these CDs, all those LPs and all of the DVDs? And we need more space for the video games!” Quite a change. In 1997, we opened our Santa Cruz location on the Pacific Garden Mall. That store has done really well, it being a music-oriented town and a tourist spot. (click the link below for the entire interview)
ZM: Five questions in five seconds. Ready? Go!
ZM: CD or Vinyl?
PB: CD for portability, but vinyl for artwork.
ZM: iPod or Zune?
PB: iPod.
ZM: The Rutles or Spinal Tap?
PB: Spinal Tap. Love Christopher Guest.
ZM: TV or books?
PB: Books, all the way.
ZM: Colored vinyl or black vinyl?
PB: Black vinyl. Traditional, ya know?
For the complete interview click on the link below. | |
05/16/08
Lou's $1 Sale Memorial Day Weekend
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05/15/08
What's HOT At Indie Music Stores
05/14/08
Top 50 Vinyl Chart
TOP 50 VINYL CHART
1 PORTISHEAD THIRD
2 NO AGE NOUNS
3 COSTELLO,ELVIS MOMOFUKU
4 METALLICA RIDE THE LIGHTNING
5 FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS
6 METALLICA KILL'EM ALL
7 RADIOHEAD IN RAINBOWS
8 SPOON GIRLS CAN TELL
9 MATMOS SUPREME BALLOON
10 SPOON SERIES OF SNEAKS
11 DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE I WILL POSSESS YOUR HEART
12 BLACK KEYS ATTACK & RELEASE
13 GNARLS BARKLEY ODD COUPLE
14 RATATAT SHILLER
15 MGMT ORACULAR SPECTACULAR
16 VAMPIRE WEEKEND VAMPIRE WEEKEND
17 BLACK KEYS BIG COME UP
18 LAST SHADOW PUPPETS AGE OF THE UNDERSTATEMENT
19 RACONTEURS CONSOLERS OF THE LONELY
20 WHISKEYTOWN STRANGERS ALMANAC
21 BLACK KEYS STRANGE TIMES
22 MAGNETIC FIELDS CHARM OF THE HIGHWAY STRIP
23 MOUNTAIN GOATS SUNSET TREE
24 DON'T STOP: RECORDING TAP DON'T STOP: RECORDING TAP
25 JUNO SOUNDTRACK
26 R.E.M. SUPERNATURAL SUPERSERIOUS
27 SPACEMAN,J./SUN CITY GIRLS MUSIC FROM A FILM BY HARMONY K
28 MCCARTNEY,PAUL AMOEBA'S SECRET
29 ANIMAL COLLECTIVE STRAWBERRY JAM
30 BLACK MOUNTAIN IN THE FUTURE
31 MAN MAN RABBIT HABITS
32 FOUR TET RINGER
33 NOBODY PRESENTS BLANK BLUE VOL. 2-WESTERN WATER MUSIC
34 SWORD GODS OF THE EARTH
35 WINWOOD,STEVE NINE LIVES
36 SMITH,ELLIOTT XO
37 TOKYO POLICE CLUB ELEPHANT SHELL
38 BADU,ERYKAH NEW AMERYKAH PART ONE
39 MORRISSEY GREATEST HITS
40 BAND OF HORSES CEASE TO BEGIN
41 PORTISHEAD MACHINE GUN
42 JOHNSON,JACK SLEEP THROUGH THE STATIC
43 PANDA BEAR PERSON PITCH
44 JACKSON,MICHAEL THRILLER-25TH ANNIVERSARY EDIT
45 ADAMS,RYAN EASY TIGER
46 R.E.M. ACCELERATE
47 NATIONAL BOXER
48 KINGS OF LEON BECAUSE OF THE TIMES
49 ATMOSPHERE WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU A LEMON YO
50 CONSTANTINES KENSINGTON HEIGHTS
CIMS Top 50 Vinyl chart by StreetPulse, Inc All Rights Reserved | |
05/02/08
Vinyl Fever (Tampa) Scores Vinyl
04/29/08
Elvis Costello Vistis Grimey's (pics)
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04/25/08
JP In NJ At VV
04/23/08
Record Store Day Wrap-Up #1
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Howdy,
Everyone. I would like to thank everyone in the independent record store
community including stores, artists, coalitions, labels, managers, agents,
distributors, bloggers, journalist, publicists, and customers for making
Record Store Day such an amazing success last Saturday.
I did so many interviews that my right ear fell off but it really amazed me
now convinced many journalist were that we were all closing up for good at
any second. The negative spin on physical retail had just become accepted.
But, I was hearing a different story from my CIMS partners. Yeah, everyone
has been nervous but business is happening every day and we should remind
everyone of that simple fact. That was the thinking behind Record Store Day.
Celebrate our existence. And man did it ever work. Many retailers reported
their biggest day of the year. Several retailers reported their biggest
sales day EVER. Artists played far and wide. Customers lined up at the door
at opening. Grab bags for everyone. 700 participating stores. Crazy.
The really big lesson for me was if you let the media tell your story and
they get it wrong, you have to do something to set it right. We managed to
do that on April 19th and it felt good.
Wait til next year! We will top it.
Don VanCleave
Coalition of Independent Music Stores | |
04/23/08
Record Store Day Wrap-Up #2
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Record Store Day far exceeded all of my expectations, locally, nationally, and internationally. It was truly incredible to be a part of this event. To work so closely with the smartest people in the room (I'm talking about my partners in CIMS, MMN, Value Music Group, and Newbury Comics) was a true honor. Even when we disagreed and argued, they were fun disagreements and arguments.
Locally, the Criminal Records event was the most fun I've ever had at my own record store. From a financial perspective, we enjoyed our largest one-day sales, an unexpected but delightful occurrence.
But on a spiritual level, this day provided much needed good karma to fuel me towards next year's event. This incredible day was without flaw, problem or hiccup, I'm so proud of my amazing staff, which went above and beyond the pale.
We had fifteen bands, everyone started on time (or close to it) and no egos were bruised in the process. We gave away over 1,700 beers and all of our free goods plus enough pizza, weenies, and bottled water to feed an entire neighborhood of party-goers.
My hope is that the other record stores had as good a day. At final tally, we had over 700 participating stores from across the world. Hmm, seems like I read somewhere that the music industry was in trouble. Whatev.
Here's some juicy commentary from some of your AIMS friends and other Record Store Day participants:
Eric Levin (Criminal Records/CIMS) | |
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Shake It Records
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ End Of An Ear
"Record Store recap: Our sales were up 70% from the Saturday of last year, lots of new faces, and we were part of the Austin Record Store crawl which included 13 Austin record stores: Antone's, Backspin, Cheapo's, DJ Dojo, Encore, End of an Ear, Friends of Sound, Music Mania, Sound on Sound, Trailer Space, Waterloo and Whetstone Audio. We all joined forces for a full page ad in the Chronicle (see here). We had two in-stores: The Shackletons and Nic Armstrong.
Thanks for all the goodies that were all sent in which were all grabbed up! A special thanks to Merge for the Destroyer/Wye Oak splits 7" - they were a big hit, and to Kelli at Fontana for the pizzas which were all devoured in under 15 mins."
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04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Sonic Boom
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Jack's Music
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"Here is the recap from Record Store Day in conjunction to the pictures. Record Store Day was a huge success for Jack's Music. Throughout the entire day, people where coming in off the streets of Red Bank, stopping in and browsing around the store. With every purchase made, the front counter handed out Record Store Day bags that contained free goodies provided by different music vendors. Funk and Standard was gracious enough to give us about 100 bags to place the items in, along with other bags from different record companies. Zebu of Red Bank provided free coffee throughout the entire day to customers and employees. At 1pm, The Parlor Mob entered Jack's and began to set-up for their in-store performance. They turned the Sheet Music Department into a wonderful set...as they proceeded to get ready to perform, Jack's started to get packed with people: fans of the band, some of the band members family and just random people passing by outside; wanting to figure out what could be going on. By 2:30pm The Parlor Mob started playing. The amount of people was spectacular. Over 100 people had packed the aisles of the Sheet Music Department and crowded the stairway leading up to it. The Parlor Mob graced Jack's Music and their fans with 6 crowd pleasing songs. They played for a little over a half hour. Around 3:15pm their set ended, but people where STILL coming in off the streets to catch a glimpse of what was happening inside the store! Even after they broke down and started on their way out, customers kept asking employees who they where and what had just happened! The store remained pretty packed there-after! The Parlor Mob was invited back for Street Day on May 6th, and will be setting up for a signing of their album. All in all, Record Store Day was amazing and we're looking forward to doing it again next year!" | |
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Grimey's
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Galaxy CDs
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"Just a quick note on the day, it exceeded our wildest expectations. Turnout on Saturday was terrific, lots of new faces, and old friends we hadn't seen in a while that stopped in just to say congratulations on hangin' in there if nothing else. Freebies were gone with a lot of hours left in the day, and I had managed to grab enough stuff on my own to have probably 40 extra bags.
Sales wise it was kind of a mixed bag. Saturday itself was the 6th biggest day in our history, and second biggest non-December day, just behind Eminem's Curtain Call release day. Unfortunately it was sandwiched by the second worst Friday and third worst Sunday of 2008. Not completely unexpected I guess. The total weekend was up about 40% over normal. Haven't had a chance to figure out with the ad costs and discounting and free food if it was hella profitable or not, but the true test will be what the next few weeks and months hold. Was this a one time blast, or did we do enough for the people who came to see us to keep them coming? Time will tell.
I'll be curious to hear how other stores did, I'm guessing it will have been a smashing success. Thanks to everyone that put this together, and to the labels for stepping up with the goodies. Good show!" | |
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ 52.5 Records
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Slowtrain
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Sound Fix
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Criminal Records
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04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Boo Boo
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04/23/08
Record Store Day @ The Record Exchange
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Thank your RX Friends for making Record Store day a TREMENDOUS success!!! We look forward to next year's 2nd Annual RSDay.
Special thanks to Doug Martsch & Brett Netson, Kris Doty, Jeremiah James band, Soul Groovement break-dancers, DJ Kitsune, Curtis Stigers & Amy O'Brien, Big J and Nic of The X, Tim Johnstone and Ken Bass from The River, Amy Atkins, Carl Scheider, Travis & Ali Ward, Vinyl Preservation Society, Think Boise First, and Pie Hole Pizza! | |
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04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Disc Exchange
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Record Store Day Recap:
Wow. Thanks to everyone who came to the Disc Exchange last Saturday and made the first annual Record Store Day an overwhelming success!! I got the opportunity to talk to many of you, and enjoyed sharing your record store shopping experiences. The culture, and personal interaction is what makes the independent record store such a unique and irreplaceable experience. Many of us discussed the fact that you will NEVER be able to download events like last Saturday, or intimate live in-store performances, or conversations with fellow music enthusiasts, or friendly personal service from the music geek behind the counter. Amazon may have a computer program that tracks your purchases and give you "suggestions" about what you may like, but I'd rather take the advice of the guy/girl who really KNOWS what and to whom they're selling than big brother's impersonal marketing tools. Although the times and technology have changed, the experience and environment of the independent record store still lives here at the Disc Exchange. Seeing all of you this weekend proved just that. Thanks again to Matthew Ryan, Econopop, Dishwater Blonde, Medford's Black Record Collection, Quartjar, and Garage Deluxe for providing entertainment all day long, and EVERYONE who helped us celebrate an institution that we hope never dies, the local independent record store.
Keep it local,
Knathan Halliburton
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04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Vintage Vinyl NJ (Video)
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Vintage Vinyl NJ (Video 2)
04/23/08
Record Store Day @ Fingerprints
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Well, Record Store Day v.01 is in the can. Hopefully you were one of the many who were able to join us for this incredible day. We're gonna take a few minutes and run back through for those who were there (and hopefully it will work as inspiration for those of you who weren't able to make, to save a little room on your calendar next time we do it).
We kind of went into the day not knowing what it was going be like, but figuring it might be a good chance to bring some new/old folks into the store, and that's always a good thing; we were surprised at how much fun it all was - kind of like Christmas and your birthday, all rolled into one.
Portishead Presale
The worst part of the day was having such a killer promotion and knowing from the start that we were going to leave people disappointed because of it. We had almost 100 people waiting for the presale to start and obviously the 40 tickets we had couldn't stretch nearly far enough. Fortunately, everyone seemed fairly understanding (it was only a 1 on the "angry email scale") and the folks who got tickets were well over the moon, so congratulations to those who got tickets and apologies to those who didn't; I hope it's a killer show. If you're thinking about needing this record, while they last we still have a value added etched promo 7" single and a very large subway poster with pre-order
Rob Halford Signing
This was the part of the day that had me the most stressed out. Rob was a key figure in my musical development, which always makes for a bit of nerves. But, since I'd never met him and I'd heard very little about how he was in person, there was a real fear that he would act like a "Metal God" (which is incidentally, the name of his record label). I'm happy to report that real "Metal Gods" don't act like it in real life. Rob was totally down to Earth and completely accommodating to the nearly 200 folks who showed to say hello (He even signed a motorized beer cooler!) Look for the four disc Fight box set coming in May and a new Judas Priest album and tour this summer.
Limbeck In-Store
This one was a piece of cake. We've known Robb and Pat as record shoppers for longer than we've known them as rock and roll stars and we've been lucky enough to have them in to play a couple of times and they are always awesome, so this was much more hanging out with friends than anything else. The performance was great and the "abbreviated" versions of "Ohio" and "Honk & Wave" were funny as hell and allowed the guys to satisfy the crowd and keep us on time.
Silversun Pickups
Many of you have talked about how great it was to see Brian of SSPU's solo show in December of '06, and while I've always agreed it was cool to see things stripped down to one voice and one guitar, after last night I have to say there is an incredible power to this band. When they are clicked in, acoustic or not, it is magical. Everyone was in great form, cracking jokes and having fun.
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04/21/08
One Of The Great Weekends In Twist and Shout History!
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This past weekend saw so many wonderful firsts it’s hard to know where to begin. Let’s start with the first National Record Store Day. As the ball started rolling on this event about a month ago, we started to see that this was going to be bigger than we thought. Well it was, and it was WAYYYYYY bigger than we ever dreamed. The labels bent over backwards to get us some really cool items to give away and sell, and amazingly, the word about this stuff really seems to have gotten out there to the end user-the consumer. When we opened the doors on Saturday morning, there was a rush of people who knew what they wanted. They wanted the exclusive Record Store Day items by bands and labels like Merge, The Black Keys, Panic At The Disco, Tompkins Square, Jason Isbell, Matador, SonyBmg etc, etc. It was special merchandise and people were treating it that way. There was a palpable feeling of reverence about this whole record store thing, and that is something we used to get a lot of. It felt good-really good. Also, during Record Store Day we had an absolutely peak experience with our Jackie Greene in-store. Our good friends at Neighborhood Flix allowed us to stage this special event in their 150 seat state-of-the-art movie theatre. Needless to say, everyone who was there (packed house of 150 people) will not soon forget this event. Jackie Greene played a sweet 5-song set of songs from his fabulous new album Giving Up The Ghost. We sold a ton of the album and gave out all the custom posters we made for the event. What a pleasure to see such a young guy absolutely slay a veteran rock & roll audience with his great songwriting and good vibes. Already a pro-I believe he has a long and exciting career in front of him. Thanks to everyone at WEA, Nonesuch and Neighborhood Flix for making this happen.
Finally, our 20th anniversary just happened to coincide exactly with National Record Store Day, and added an even brighter hue to an already glowing weekend. Thanks to our favorite public radio stations - KUVO, Radio 1190 & KGNU - for coming in and spinning some tunes. The amount of goodwill pouring our way from the customers was truly rewarding and, to be honest, unexpected. We really didn’t think people would mark this event in a personal way. We expected people to react to the 20% off used sale we were having, but it went way beyond that. Jill and I were personally gratified by the number of long-standing customers and ex-employees who came out of the woodwork to wish us well. It drove home to us the reality of what we have created. It is not just sales and product - it is community and home. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
Paul & Jill
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04/19/08
Two Old Farts @ Record Store Day
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04/18/08
Crimial Record Talks To CNN About RSDay
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04/16/08
Vinyl & Record Store Day
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Howdy everyone.
First of all, this Saturday is Record Store Day. We are all so excited at
how fast this rock is rolling. We have over 450 stores participating. We
have events happening not only all over the US but stores in Europe and
Australia are joining the party. Thanks to all of you for your support and
participation in this great event!
Last week I talked about how great WBR is doing with their vinyl releases.
About that time, I got a nice package from Lost Highway that included the
vinyl release by newcomer Hayes Carll. I already had a couple of copies on
CD in my "please listen to me" stack but, being basically lazy, I had
ignored them. Reg told me it was great. Waterloo predicted it would be
number one for them. But, I was not motivated. Then the vinyl showed up and,
hey, I can't deny that so I threw it on the turntable in my office and
returned to my zillion unopened emails.
Well, I have to tell you, I quit doing emails and moved over to my listening
chair within the first song. I have no clue who this guy is but he plays my
kind of alt country music. First of all, I bet he does not own a hat. Well,
at least not the kind George Strait and his type wears. Second of all, there
is the liberal use of steel guitar. Third, he has a Steve Earle way of
phrasing things without being a rip off. Fourth, he is funny.
There is a song that finishes the album called "She Left Me For Jesus". It
is one of those perfect country songs. It is written from the perspective of
the jilted boyfriend who's gal said she left him for Jesus. Trouble is, this
boyfriend does not know who Jesus is. The chorus:
She left me for Jesus
And that just ain't fair
She says, "That he's perfect."
How could I compare
She say, "I should find him"
And I'll know peace at last
But if I ever find Jesus
I'm kickin' his ass
Classic. Hayes Carll. Highly recommended on double gate fold vinyl at your
nearest independent record emporium.
Click the link below to order on-line from a great indie store.
Don VanCleave (Coalition of Independent Music Stores) | |
04/16/08
Record Store Day - This Saturday 04-19-08
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Greetings, everybody.
The response to Record Store Day has been unanimously awesome. Granted, some reporters have got to interject that negativity because that's what they've been told to do. Sunshine and Unicorns don't sell papers, after all.
I particularly love having to defend the success of the indie record store.
S'funny, my landlord has never asked me to "prove it" but whatev.
This Saturday's first annual Record Store Day will prove it even more.
I've had a wonderful time unpacking all the boxes of goodies to give out on Saturday; killer, killer treats for my customers. Thank you, one and all, for your generosity.
All of this audio and visual awesomeness will find good homes on Saturday, our folks will get turned on to your goodness, and we're all going to sell even more stuff.
Sweet!
Of all the amazingness, I've got to point out the killer package put together by Sony-BMG, a swank LP sampler with great tracks (Lou Reed's 'Perfect Day"--nice!, I get it. RUN DMC, Jeff Buckley, Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen) highlighting their vinyl catalog.
The inner sleeve, complete with pictures of indie retailers and Sony-BMG artists throughout the years (even me!) has a very nice quote. My thanks to whoever wrote it, it's very heartfelt and greatly appreciated.
Eric (Criminal Records/AIMS)
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04/15/08
Elvis Costell @ Grimeys
04/02/08
Vinyl Resurgence Story on CNN
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03/28/08
FIngerprints "Goes To The Movies"
Muse Film Screening - Vista Theater (Silverlake)
Tuesday, April 1st, 7:00pm
We are working with KROQ and Warner Bros. Records for a special event at the historic Vista Theater, on the corner of Sunset and Hollywood Blvd, to present a full theatrical showing of Muse's new CD/DVD release H.A.A.R.P. Live From Wembly. KROQ will giving away 106 free tickets (so stay by your phone), or if you don't feel like crossing your fingers, we will be offering a limited number of free tickets with pre-order here at the store, or with purchase at the event (1 ticket per purchase). For those who haven't experienced Muse yet, they make rock and roll with a very generous dose of both Rock and Roll (and a lot of alt-rock, proggy undertones) - They are considered to be one of the top bands in the UK, with last year's Black Holes & Revelations garnering a Mercury Prize Nomination and placing in the Top 3 of NME's albums of the year list, but more important than the accolades for their records, are the cheers they've received for their live show; they've been chosen "Best Live Band" by numerous publications/award shows including NME, Q Magazine, and the Vodafone Live Music Awards. With the live DVD release, H.A.A.R.P. Live From Wembly, you'll get the opportunity to see the band at the top of their game, playing in front of an adoring homecoming crowd, all in the comfort of a gorgeous old theater, loaded with lots of other fans, and boasting a decent snack bar. | |
03/27/08
News Of The Week - Horizon Records
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The mothership has landed. And inside it is an army of new CDs by Gnarls Barkley, Raconteurs, Elf Power (yo Athens!), Counting Crows, B-52’s (they’re back), Mike Oldfield (he’s back), my man, Jazz pianist-magician, modern music guru Brad Mehldau & his trio, for all us WNCW-fm types there’s the long awaited releases from Tim O’Brien, The Waybacks (featuring Warren Hood vocals, song writing and fiddle, oh yes!), Ricky Skaggs, and last but definitely not least the low key but deadly Bo Ramsey. Straight outta Iowa Bo drops his latest called Fragile. Bo writes most of ‘em (along with Pieta Brown), sings ‘em in his low down whispery blues voice and layers it all with killa guitar licks that have worked for Lucinda Williams, Greg Brown and a host of others. His last CD Stranger Blues is still getting play here every week. If Leonard Cohen, JJ Cale, Greg Brown or Mark Knopfler means anything to you then you should own both of these Bo Ramsey CDs.
Peter Cooper and Fayssoux Starling McLean play in-store here in The Bohemian Café Saturday at 3pm. They both have a new CD to share with us and they both bring some serious stories and remarkable history to draw upon. When Peter isn’t writing about music for the Nashville Tennessean or appearing on CMT he’s hanging out with or opening for or singing with Nanci Griffith, Todd Snider or Kris Kristofferson. Fayssoux has one of the loveliest voices in the business which is why Emmylou Harris used her on a great many of her classic LPs and on stage as well as Fayssoux participated in the musical doings surrounding Seldom Scene, Lowell George, Linda Ronstadt, and many others. So come on out and soak up some of their tunes and get a CD you won’t find anywhere else.
As for me? Well, I’m in the back office listening to that new Brad Mehldau Trio CD over and over while dreaming of mountain streams, world peace and pondering whether I should take another rare John Lee Hooker LP home. When I return to reality I’ll be out front looking to talk with you about any of the above stuff or perhaps discuss a Bob Dylan lyric or sort through that giant stack of used CDs I see coming in the front door.
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03/19/08
Way To Go (Horizon Records)
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03/18/08
How was Devotchka? Top Notchka!
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03/12/08
Fingerprints Double Header
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We get pretty excited about getting great musicians in to visit and play music for us, so on the rare occasion that we get lucky enough to host a double header we get just a little bit past giddy. Such is the case here; we've got a return visit from the gorgeously atmospheric Trespasser's William and the rarely-on-our-shores, sharp pop styling of French duo Herman Dune. Here's a little primer on these two fine bands:
Trespassers William will be freshly back from a handful of shows at Austin's SXSW festival and will be celebrating their new EP release, The Nobel House Sessions (which so far is a tour and Fingerprints only release). The band has been in the studio recording the final songs for their fourth full-length album, which is their first full-length since 2006's Dave Fridmann produced Having. Trespassers William vocalist Anna-Lynne Williams was featured on the Chemical Brothers' record Push the Button and the band has toured with some of our favorites, including Damien Rice, Explosions in the Sky, Aimee Mann, Tristeza, Morrissey and Azure Ray. Trespassers William, who called Naples home for awhile, will be freshly back from hitting a few shows at SXSW and are celebrating the release of their new EP, before heading back to Seattle to finish up the new album.
We've been hearing about Herman Dune for a couple of years now, and yet it took our friends at Everloving Records to sign them to get us off our butts and spend some time with their music - first impression: very nice, less quirky, Jonathan Richman inspired, near perfect pop. Second impression (and a quick trip to wikipedia): Herman Dune are enigmatic, quirky, prolific, they've played as the backing band for both Kimya Dawson (Moldy Peaches/Juno) and Julie Doiron (Eric's Trip/Solo), they're French, they acknowledge the Jonathan Richman thing, but prefer comparisons like Daniel Johnston, Lou Barlow, The Mountain Goats, Cat Power and The Silver Jews, and if you need a box to put them in, try Anti-Folk.
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03/11/08
COOL CONTEST @ PARK AVE.
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03/07/08
Gypsies, Hipsters, and Old Men
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Right now we’re playing the most recent album by Gogol Bordello – Super Taranta – and I find that I’m loving it just as much as I did all last year. They call themselves Gypsy Punks and though on this record they’ve expanded in a lot of directions, that’s still at the core of what they do – write songs that hit you loud, hard and fast, usually with a good deal of wit, and always with accordion and violin. They’re playing tonight at the Fillmore and if the other live shows of theirs that I’ve seen are any indication, it will be about as high energy as live concerts can get. Check out the band live if you’re still sorting out your Friday plans – you won’t be sorry. And if you can’t make the show, this album (and their others too) come highly recommended.
I’ve also been listening a lot to the new Stephen Malkmus album Real Emotional Trash and digging it. His previous solo efforts have struck me sometimes as clever as his work with Pavement but without quite the same oomph that made Pavement such a special band. Here he manages to reacquire a lot of that strength they had without aping the sound of the band. But he’s obviously privy to the secret of what made it go – guitars – and he delivers here more than anything he’s made in a while. Other stuff of note that’s come in recently: Shayna Ferm’s album Blonde – check out Paul’s review below – and the very curious and collectable vinyl box set Visionaire Sound, which you can also get a feel for by reading below, though I promise you that seeing it is the best way to experience it.
Next Tuesday sees the release of No Country For Old Men, the excellent Coen Brothers film that garnered a handful of Academy Awards. It’s well worth your time for the epic battle of man trying to escape his fate, which comes in the form of Javier Bardem.
And make sure that if you want to come to our Devothcka in-store that will be happening on Tuesday the 18th you check out the details below and pre-purchase the album to be guaranteed an entry to the event, which is likely to sell out.
Until next time,
Patrick - Twist & Shout | |
03/06/08
Guess Who's Turning 20?
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April 19 is a national holiday: Record Store Day.
On this day, independently owned record stores across the nation will simultaneously link and act as one with the purpose of celebrating the culture and unique place that they occupy both in their local communities and nationally. Twist & Shout will celebrate this first annual Record Store Day by turning 20! Expect fun things at Twist & Shout on April 19 & 20, including a special perormance by Jackie Greene (below), radio DJs, goodies, giveaways, food/drink and our happy shiny faces.
In celebration of Record Store Day, Twist & Shout will host a free live performance by Jackie Greene on Saturday, April 19 at 2 p.m.. This will be an exclusive event to be held in the Neighborhood Flix theater, which is just a hallway away from our back door. Pre-purchase Jackie Greene’s upcoming album Giving Up The Ghost (due out 4/1) and get a wristband that will secure your spot in this special and very intimate event!
Produced by Los Lobos’ Steve Berlin, Giving Up the Ghost is a distinctive and energetic showcase of folk, blues and rock that Greene has been perfecting and has taken to another level. In addition to showcasing the remarkable talents of Greene, the album features contributions by notable musical peers such as Larry Campbell (Bob Dylan), Mic Gillette (Tower of Power), Dave Hidalgo (Los Lobos), Phil Lesh (Grateful Dead), Pete Thomas (Elvis Costello) and others.
Dubbed “The Prince of Americana” by the New York Times, Greene is steeped in country, blues, jazz, rock and folk traditions, defying easy categorization. Raised in Cameron Park, California (near Placerville in the Northern part of the state), Jackie grew up idolizing Zeppelin and the Stones, Dylan and Waits, Leadbelly and Hank Williams. Performing live with a guitar and a harmonica rack, Greene seems to channel the classic influences that have helped to shape the musical perspective of the young progeny. At age 27, with four distinctive albums under his belt, Greene has accelerated past initial cries of “the new-Dylan” and other over-simplified comparisons and has managed to forge a unique musical vision. Currently he is the front man on rock legend Phil Lesh’s tour.
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03/05/08
"VINYL VS. IPOD," by Shelby Lynne
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"A Studer 2-inch tape machine is a huge cumbersome beast that takes up a lot of space and might need pampering and attention when you make records. It requires that you use big, heavy rolls of 2-inch tape that need changing when you record two or three songs on them. And hardly anyone produces or manufactures vinyl records anymore. And nobody has a turntable. But it's making a trendy comeback.
Just because something is easier doesn't make it better. It certainly doesn't make it sound better. I had a digital recording rig in my home studio for a month or two and got so depressed. I quit writing songs, my guitar collected dust and I thought my creative life had ended. So I jerked it all out of the wall and threw it in the garage and that's where it will stay.
My new album, "Just A Little Lovin'" was made on a 2-inch tape machine. I demanded it. I like working with engineers and producers who love and appreciate tape. I love the sound, smell, and feel of tape. That's why I enlisted legendary record producer, Phil Ramone, and the brilliant recording engineer, Al Schmitt. They didn't mind my insistence. They put up with my hardheadedness. Hardly anyone uses tape anymore because they claim it's so expensive and it's just easier to use a computer. Most engineers can operate any computer rig in studios these days. But if you ask them to run a Studer and put on a reel of tape, they run down the hallway screaming for Mommy. I'm sorry, but I can't get turned on looking at a computer screen. First of all, it's not more expensive. By the time digital users spend the time and money to buy the software needed to put that "tape sound" on their digital record, they have spent more time and money than I have. While their downloading "tape sound" software, I'm kicking back on the houseboat drinking beer with a fishing pole in my hand listening to Django.
It's not for everybody. Tapes are not perfect like digital. If you want to sing the word "love" 40 different times and 40 different ways, then digital's for you. Tape requires attention. You can't just push the space bar and go to lunch. For example: When I put on my vinyl (yes vinyl) of Led Zeppelin's "Whole Lotta Love, " my favorite part is towards the end when you hear the "print through" of Robert's vocals. You know the part when he sings "Yeah, Yeah, Yeah, Yeah"? For years, before I made records I thought that what I was hearing was on there on purpose, for effect. But while making my new record the same thing happened. There is no reason, it's just a tape thing. Sometimes that happens. It's not as noticeable or as cool as Zeppelin but if you listen to my first track, "Just A Little Lovin'," towards the end you will hear my voice. I made a record with print through. Wow. Everybody wanted to fix it but I insisted on keeping it. This is a true testament to using tape. The "real" comes through. It makes me proud to be such a hard head.
I was born in '68. Mama and Daddy had albums. I grew up listening to their vinyl. I have discovered that having a vinyl collection is so much cooler than having an iPod. Now, I have an iPod and I admit they are genius especially for travel and convenience. But they aren't really any fun. I don't call up my friends and say "Hey why don't y'all come over and bring your computers and let's have a party"? Hell no! I say bring pot, wine and vinyl. That's sexy. It's really a great excuse to get together and listen to music. Everybody takes a turn looking through the collection and it's interesting to see what each person plays. The vinyl way is just me. I think if if we all listen to more music together, it really doesn't matter how we do it. Music will save us all just like it always has. We feed our souls with it. Vinyl just creates a little more discussion for us. You get to look at the covers, the liner notes, sometimes the lyrics are included. Plus you can roll a doobie on it. That's hard on an Ipod.
Times are tough. Concert tickets are high and records are, too. Hell, everything is high and nobody has any dough. With our economy and the way it's headed, my guess is that we'll all be staying home drinking bottles of Two Buck Chuck listening to music, however we choose to do it. Cheers, music lovin' fools!
Keeping the dinosaur way alive y'all..........
Rockingly yours, Shelby Lynne "
To see the original store click on the link below. | |
03/04/08
What's Up Waterloo SXSW
02/18/08
Black Lips Are Pros
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02/15/08
North Mississippi Allstars @ Twist & Shout
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02/07/08
I Love Record Stores
I love record stores. There, I've said it.
I usually get the stink-eye when I'm shopping my local competition. Not from the owners or staff, mind you, they know I'm going to drop some dollars on the register, but usually from my customers. I think they're embarrassed to be "caught" shopping with my friends.
"What are you doing here?" They'll say. "Same as you."
At least once every other week, I'm digging in the crates at the other stores, and when asked if I want a bag, "Of course I do," as I love walking around my neighborhood with another store's logo.
Whenever I travel, I don't check into the hotel first, I check into the record store. My whole life has been engaged in the pursuit. . I've missed flights while lost in the bins, ended friendships, and in my youth, I left my family sitting in a restaurant for an hour while I checked out the store down the block and got grounded. I also ended up getting a job at that store, so ultimately, I guess it was cool.
Thank goodness I ended up marrying a woman who's happy to start at "Z,", while I start at "A" and we meet in the middle to compare our stacks.
This is the point behind our Record Store Day on April 19th, 2008. If I wasn't working the register on that day, I'd be in my car trying to hit every store in the ATL. What a day this is going to be.
A week after announcement, the outpouring has been nothing short of extraordinary. Inherently, the labels and distributors are smart enough to seize this opportunity to showcase their releases to an audience that's invested in the art of music. Talk about a captive audience.
I'm hearing from labels and distributors asking what the others are doing, and there seems to be a game of one-upsmanship. Our goodie cups are going to be running over, from free seven inches to DVD's, to CD samplers and comic books. If your distributor hasn't contacted your label about their initiative yet, please e-mail me or Michael and we'll get to work on some brain-storming.
I've also heard from dozens of new record stores, which is awesome. "What are you doing?" S'funny, I haven't even worked on the Criminal Records day, as I've been so excited working on the big picture. Vintage Vinyl in St. Louis is having a day of guest dee-jays, Waterloo is spear-heading a receipt trade, sending customers across Austin on a discount treasure hunt, Breeder Kim Deal is guest-clerking at Gem City in Ohio and Harvest Records in Ashville NC is hosting a record swap.
I wish I could visit all these stores.
And your artists are answering the call as well, check out our artists quote page (click link below) for an amazing assortment of testimonials from the likes of Paul McCartney, Peter Gabriel, THE Michael Fremer, Dean Wareham, Wayne Coyne, Shelby Lynne and Butch Walker.
More are pouring in every minute.
Eric (Criminal Records/AIMS) | |
01/29/08
Let's Party!!! Record Store Day 4-19-2008
By Don VanCleave
Coalition of Independent Music Stores
The normal question is "So, exactly what is it that you do for a living?".
Well, I work with many of the great independent record stores in the
country! For years I got a resounding COOL. Now, people get uncomfortable
and look of concern. "Is everything ok?" they ask.
Well, it is definitely a tough environment for any small business these
days. The economy is in the shitter. People are losing their houses. A tank
of gas cost $50. No, everything is not OK.
Oh, you mean with the whole download thing? Well, it is true that many
people get their music free. Others have chosen to pay for downloads and are
totally fine with consuming music that way. There is no denying that. If you
believe the press, we are all gone by summer.
What is missing from the ongoing story is the type of customer that we
attract at independent record retail. We get the hyper fan and the
collector. These are a special breed of nerd that likes to possess and own.
Oh sure, some of them have thousands of digital files, just like me. But
they also have walls of vinyl and CDs. They like physical goods and like the
process of building a collection. Files alone leave them wanting more. Files
give them no tactile connection to the artist they worship.
People that buy from us also love the social interaction. We hire music
freaks that inspire customers to discuss and argue. Most music fans LOVE to
talk about music and be part of the club. You can't get that on message
boards the same way you can face to face.
Just look at the charts below. We have certified music FREAKS coming thru
our doors all day long seeking out the new and unusual. Whether it be for
the buzz bands like Vampire Weekend or reissue nerds looking for the deluxe
packaging on Beck, we get them. Where else will you find a top 5 like we had
yesterday?
To CELEBRATE who we are and what we do, we decided to throw a big party. The
first annual RECORD STORE DAY will be held on April 19th at hundreds of
stores across the land. We have built out this very cool website at
www.recordstoreday.com. You can read the full press release of this event. (Link below)
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01/24/08
What's New This WeeK
01/23/08
CDs Vinyl & Digital Downloads
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Unbelievable. I was working on a first sentence to kick off this editorial, and I just got a call from my dear friend at [MAJOR LABEL COMPANY]. He needed to get some numbers to help his company make the right decision to release [MAJOR LABEL RECORDING ARTIST]'s [MAJOR LABEL ALBUM] deluxe edition as an LP box set.
He needed pre-order numbers to go upstairs and get this project done. I couldn't contain my enthusiasm, as the next obvious step for the majors is to start plumbing their catalogs and re-releasing lovingly packaged and properly mastered LP box sets.
(A recent case in point is Vinyl Label's never-before-released issue of Cat Steven's Harold & Maude deluxe LP set. This release on Cameron Crowe's label is exquisite. I took one home, and the wife and I pored over it before we even put on the records. The packaging is outstanding, perhaps the most beautiful LP set I've ever seen. We kept pulling gifts out of the package: both records, 180-gram color swirl vinyl; not one, but two film posters, nice enough for framing; an exhaustive 40-page full color booklet, with lots of backstage action and anecdotes; a bonus white vinyl 7" single with different versions of songs from the film. All of this -- limited to 2,500 copies -- has already sold out, sad to say, but my own store was able to order enough to take care of the demand with a few left over. Every time my wife and I pulled another treat out of the never ending jacket of awesomeness, we laughed and shared each piece. It was truly a special night of music and fun at my house.)
The number that my [MAJOR LABEL FRIEND] had to meet was 2,500, and he was afraid they were going to have to pass on the project due to lack of company interest.
Within an industry that is failing, why has it become so difficult to identify what the customer wants and to deliver that to them?
Many of you might have read the article, " Vinyl Gets Its Groove Back" (click to read at bottom of this story), in Time Magazine last week and gotten a ray of hope for a struggling industry. The cynical amongst you would identify this article as a signifier that the vinyl "fad" is already over if a lumbering giant like Time can identify it as a trend.
Fads are hard to latch onto and, thankfully, we're not in the clothing or food business. We're in the music business, and the upswing in vinyl sales is so far beyond trend because it is a music-based shift. We've gotten new folks on board the LP train. I've witnessed tween girls arguing over Ornette Coleman vinyl reissues and fighting over limited copies of import seven inches, and we've turned older customers around, giving them access to deluxe re-issue titles of past favorites, like the lush Traveling Wilburys and Sonic Youth album-specific box sets.
Customers, who have felt cheated by the lack of fidelity from digital downloading, not to mention the absence of packaging and experience, are flocking to our vinyl sections like never before. Although for most of us, our vinyl sections have never been empty. Thank you. Shock of shocks, we feed a fad and it grows into a trend.
What separates the fad from the trend from the lifestyle from the tipping point from the long-tail, or whatever tagline you've got to define for your bosses in the hopes of weaning them off the digital titty, is a new word I heard in a NYC office of an unnamed major label company: "PHYGITAL." I'm not sure of the label's exact definition; my guess is Ringle or MusicPass. Regardless, I'm about to define it in a better way below.
Now that we know vinyl is a viable revenue stream, where do we go from here?
One expectation that the customer has is the digital opportunity with vinyl purchase, I'll call that the "PHYGITAL," but never out loud in my store because it's a dumb word, but it's the perfect amount of dumb for our industry.
As we head towards a time when the LP is released day-and-date with the CD release, we can really start to measure the impact of a PHYGITAL element. Currently, every customer expects to see a digital download card or coupon enclosed in the LP. This has gone beyond trend to expectation, as ubiquitous as wi-fi in a coffee shop. You simply have this as an option, or you go to the back of the line.
Now that the PHYGITAL is expected in the packaging (think back to the Harold & Maude soundtrack described above), it is time to elevate the customer experience with the physical CD placed in the jacket. We must look beyond the obvious and easy (digital download card) and head towards the luxury experience. It shouldn't be hard to think back to a time when opening up an LP was like opening up a gift box, filled with stickers and posters and tattoos and...a CD?
It must be hard sitting behind a desk to understand this basic concept, as it's been so long since our industry was in a "sales" position, but I experience this every day at Criminal Records.
I'll illustrate with a Wilco story. A customer of mine needed Wilco's Sky Blue Sky for his girlfriend's birthday and asked for the CD, I showed him the regular edition for $12.99, the deluxe edition for $17.99 (fancier booklet) and the LP edition for $22.99 (including two beautiful 180-gram platters, booklet at 12" size and full-length CD). He asked, "The CD is inside?" even though the sticker was clearly marked. He just wanted to repeat it out loud, to make it more real. "Are more labels going to do this?"
I answered as best I could: "We hope so." The customer bought two and signed up for our vinyl mailing list.
I have been told by many labels that including the CD is too expensive, and I would love some evidence that that is the case. As a producer myself (two releases from my store's in-house label, International Hits, streeted on the 22nd -- Anna Kramer & The Lost Cause and The Selmanaires, both distributed by RED), I can't make the math work in favor of the digital download card.
For our projects, I'm a bit of a hypocrite, as our vinyl will not be coming out until next month, but will include a full-length copy of the CD, in addition to a bonus CD of a live concert recording for each band. I still believe day-and-date CD and LP releases are tantamount to our success, but we just couldn't afford to print the vinyl and launch the CD's at the same time. I don't think that this same financial obstacle can be claimed as an excuse by most major record labels.
For us, the math was easy. A digital download card must be designed, produced and inserted at the factory for $0.15 or more, and a digital format must be decided upon and delivered from a website that must be created, or contracted with, for the lifetime of the project for X-amount of dollars.
A CD enclosed in a vinyl LP will cost $0.16 to make with a $0.02 insertion cost, or for a few pizzas and beers you throw an "insert party" and do it yourself. A simple over-run at the time of manufacturing is all you need for this scenario, as no packaging is required aside from a cheap paper sleeve.
With the digital download card, a customer is tied specifically to the format you give them. However, with a CD, they can choose to create the digital file of their choice, be it an iTunes file or a fat, juicy .flac file. The benefit of having a high-fidelity, archival master recording is infinitely better than a digital file. This practice will also breathe life into the CD as a perfectly acceptable delivery method, something we would all benefit from.
Of course, the luxury for the consumer is immeasurable. One customer may play the CD version in their car and put the vinyl on their collector's shelf. Another customer may file it in their hi-fi system, but nobody rushes home to take advantage of a digital download coupon. That's a yawn.
Eric (Criminal Records/A.I.M.S.) | |
01/22/08
Disc Exchange To Shut West Knoxville Store
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By Wayne Bledsoe
Knoxville News Sentinel, Friday, January 4, 2008
The Disc Exchange will close its West Knoxville store at 8420 Kingston Pike on Feb. 1 and consolidate its stock to its south Knoxville store at 2625 Chapman Highway. However, Disc Exchange CEO John Bevis said the move is more a reflection of the changes in the business of selling music overall than the health of Disc Exchange itself.
"I think, nationally, (CD) Christmas sales were predicted to be down 10 or more percent," said Bevis. "We're definitely doing better than that."
The Disc Exchange has been increasingly moving into online sales through its own Web site, www.discexchange.com, as well as selling through www.half.com and www.Amazon.com. He said online sales continue to increase.
The Disc Exchange also has begun selling more non-CD items. Bevis said that sales of vinyl albums actually have increased at the store, and the Disc Exchange recently began selling turntables.
The Disc Exchange opened on Chapman Highway in 1987 and expanded to a second location on Kingston Pike in 1993. The stores sell both new and used CDs and have been a source for hard-to-find music. The Disc Exchange also became one of the few spots where local musicians could sell their music.
Bevis said approximately half of the employees from the Kingston Pike location would be relocated to the Chapman Highway store and the rest would have to be laid off.
"That's the really regretful thing. We're like family. Most people who work here stay."
The Disc Exchange's lease on the Kingston Pike location ended this year, and Bevis said that it simply made more sense to operate out of the larger Chapman Highway location. Bevis said that money saved from closing the Kingston Pike store would allow the Chapman Highway store to have more employees to serve customers and make the store able to keep a larger inventory.
"We'll be able to hang on to things longer," said Bevis. "Pretty much anything you want you should be able to find."
He noted reports that larger retailers were planning on downsizing their CD departments, meaning older and non-hit CDs would be harder to find at large chain stores.
Bevis said that the company's sales base had become older since the advent of music downloading, both legal and otherwise.
"We sell a ton of older demographic titles," said Bevis. "The Alison Krauss/Robert Plant album, Levon Helm, the Eagles. … But we don't see college kids like we used to."
That has been a nationwide trend. Soundscan reported that CD sales were down 20 percent in the first quarter of 2007 from the same period in 2006. Young buyers traditionally drive the market.
Bevis said that the entire industry was having to adjust.
"I think in the long run this will be good for us. Our business has been strong. We're down, but we're viable."
Newspaper Link Below | |
01/15/08
What's Hot At Indie Stores?
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From the REG'S COFFEHOUSE BLOG
One of the most popular questions I am asked is “What is hot at indie retail these days?” Usually it is delivered in a slightly sarcastic, or even worse, apologetic tone as if the person asking the question is making fun of what I do for a living or feeling sorry for me.
For the past two or three years, the immediate answer I have given is “New Vinyl and turntables are the hottest items at indie retail.” I wish I had a picture of the reactions on the hundreds of faces at the exact moment those words left my mouth. They range from complete surprise to confusion to disbelief to excitement and then some. Their immediate reaction is that it is all audiophiles and old music heads living in the glory years so you can imagine how badly they are thrown off when I tell them that it is mostly kids buying this new vinyl. “Kids? Really?,” they ask. “Why?”
Some of the reasons are obvious and others might take a deeper look.
Sound quality is the most glaring reason. As crisp and clean as the music sounds digitally, there is no way to replicate the warmth and grace of music coming from vinyl. Many of these kids have never heard it any other way than through earbuds so imagine how good it must sound to them. They are discovering what all of us old farts have known for a long time, VINYL RULES!
Collectability is another obvious one. Wait a minute, there is ART associated with music? Gorgeous, memorable album covers, picture discs, liner notes that I can actually read because the font size is more than 2 point? What a freaking concept. Again, youth discovering what helped many of us fall in love with album after album growing up. It wasn’t just the sounds coming out of the speakers but the packaging and artwork that helped add to the value of that music.
These are just a couple of the more obvious reasons that pop out when wondering why anyone would care about vinyl in this day of portability, downloading and file sharing. There are many more that I don’t have time to touch on but I do want to comment on two of the less obvious reasons that exist.
Quality albums – Sure, folks are buying the classic records on vinyl right now for many times what I paid for them as a kid. I mean, until you hear “Rubber Soul,” “Dark Side Of The Moon,” “Back In Black,” “Pet Sounds,” “Kind Of Blue,” “”Born To Run,” “Catch A Fire,” …I could go on and on…on vinyl, you haven’t really heard them. What might surprise you is how much new vinyl from new artists is selling. More and more artists are jumping at the chance to offer their fans their music on vinyl. One reason fans are snatching it up is that these artists are making albums that you want to own. They aren’t just records with a couple of decent songs and a bunch or crap on them. They are albums that you want to listen to Side 1 and Side 2 of and you don’t want to lift the needle and skip around. Quality records beget a quality listening experience that few mediums like vinyl offer. It only makes sense that we are seeing a renewed interest in vinyl at the same time that artists are creating full albums again.
The other, and I think this might be the most obvious reason, is community. You know community, the term that is constantly used to describe how people communicate and share online. The difference is these communities actually involve people interacting, spending time face-to-face together, socializing and being human instead of nameless, faceless robots on the other end of a computer screen. After all, we humans are social primates at the end of the day. We need to see, be seen, hear, be heard, touch, be touched,…SOCIALIZE, you get the picture.
Listening to a classic album on vinyl is akin to sharing a good cabernet with a group of your friends. As much as I like to drink a bottle of wine by myself, I would much rather have a few of my close friends by to share in the experience and talk about how wonderful it tastes. It’s no different with music. I love sitting around listening to an album by myself but it pales in comparison to having a group of friends over and listening together. Come to think of it, sharing a great bottle of wine and a killer record on vinyl at the same time with a group of friends is even better than doing the two things separately.
Much like a bottle of wine, you can’t download vinyl. It is something you have to experience and share. To all of you who remember having your friends over to share in a listen to a great record on vinyl, I highly recommend dusting off that old turntable or picking up a new one (you can find them almost anywhere these days but I recommend your nearest indie record retailer) and having a vinyl party with your closest friends. For those of you who are too young to have ever experienced this or just haven’t gotten with the times (that’s right, the old adage “everything old is new again” seems to be proving itself one more time), I implore you to give it a try. It will open up a whole new world to you and help breathe life back into the music in your world.
The revolution has been reverberating through the underground for a while now but when it makes the pages of TIME Magazine, it has to be generating some serious heat.
Click on the link below for TIME Magazine Article.
The Vinyl Revolution is on people. It won’t save the music industry but it just might help change its direction and resurrect the art of music while teaching a whole new generation and reminding several past generations what music sounds like.
Reg
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01/09/08
Stoopid Quotes From Record Executive!!!
01/05/08
The Last Independent Record Store - Video
01/01/08
On Reflection-
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As the year comes to a close, we are forced to ponder the past and speculate on the future. The inclination in our society is to dwell on the negative and fear the future. Not here at Twist and Shout. We are finishing out our first full year at our Colfax location and could not be happier about the way things have turned out. While almost everyone in this business we call music is miserable, we are giddy. Many of the things we have tried to accomplish for our store have come to fruition. We now sell all formats of entertainment - CD, DVD, LP's, as well as all kinds of lifestyle products in impressive numbers. We have successfully created a concert venue in our store that has, so far, produced two great releases (John Butler and Ben Harper Live at Twist and Shout), and there are more to come. We have joined ourselves at the hip with other cool, successful independent entities (Tattered Cover, Neighborhood Flix) to create a sort of arts mecca here on Colfax, and, most amazingly, we are still relevant to anyone who cares about music. The technological and societal changes that have been wrought by the computer age are just beginning to manifest themselves clearly, but I do believe that the inherent flaws and losses are also starting to manifest. Bear with me here; the thing about art is; it’s NOT the idea, it is indeed the thing itself. For instance, nobody has probably ever been inspired by a description of the Mona Lisa. But countless people have been inspired by actually seeing it. And that’s the problem with music, books, movies (art in other words) on a tiny digital device. To anyone who knows better - it’s kind of like having nothing at all. It’s just one step from saying, I don’t need art in my life - the idea of art is enough for me. With that in mind, I wish all of you a happy and healthy new year filled with lots of meaningful stuff in your life.
See You In The Aisles,
Paul Epstein | |
01/01/08
Our Favorite Things Zine
Our new Zine, Our Favorite Things (These Are A Few Of), has arrived - including tons of staff reviews of great indie titles. Come down to the store and get your copy today!
A new world is upon us. Blogs, clogs, Google, Froogle, bits, bites and all sorts of other things that have nothing to do with art or culture are filling our minds and screens. Here on East Colfax though we are holding on to the values that got us all excited about the life of the mind in the first place: music, books, movies and food to feed the soul, heart and intellect. We all believe that this stuff matters and that it becomes more meaningful when we communicate about it.
With that in mind, you hold in your hand our attempt to create a physical blog (something seems backwards about that). In other words, here is something you can actually hold on to, that contains facts, theories, rants and opinions about the physical world.
Read, think, share!
- Paul Epstein
Store link below. | |
12/18/07
Genespeak for December 2007
Greetings,
Ok. It’s been frosty, finally. I had to scrap my windshield the last few mornings and we started our playing of Christmas CDs as well in-store last weekend. Mostly Blue Yule every year, over and over.yo.), Los Straitjackets ( so much fun even an IRS agent might smile ) , “Oh Santa” from YepRoc ( Featuring Rev. Horton Heat, Marah, The Moaners, Apples In Stereo etc) helps us through the gnarly moments and of course my old favorite “Jazz For Joy” mellow holiday Jazz compilation that starts us off many mornings. In between it’s all about the usual Horizon Favorites such as Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings (ouch yeah), Robert Plant/Allison Krauss, that amazing CD from Mike Farris who just stole the show up at Warren Haynes Winter Jam, and yes, I will be playing The Allman Brothers Live At The Fillmore East CD every day (not new but heck it still can’t be beat for setting the vibe).
Gene (Horizon Records, Greenville, SC)
Store Link Below
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12/06/07
Looney Tunes Is Back
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12/04/07
The Miracle Of Ben Harper.
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12/03/07
White Stripes USB - Great Gift Idea
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12/03/07
Holiday Comic
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11/30/07
Radiohead's "Jigsaw" Video (See It Here)
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11/30/07
Radiohead's "Bodysnatchers" Video (See It Here)
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11/22/07
Ben Harper Live At Twist & Shout DVD & CD (Indie Store Exclusive)
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11/21/07
Rock-A-Billy's Coordinates Donating CD Players for our Troops
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Rock-A-Billy's has been requesting and receiving CDs, DVDs, and T-shirts from some record labels and together with donations from Rock-A-Billy's sending them to our brave troops in Iraq and around the world. It's now come to our attention that some of our troops have been unable to participate in the relaxation, entertainment and inspiration music can provide because they do not have anything to play the donated CDs on. What Bill @ Rock-A-Billy's is asking is for some help from all of us - most importantly those with MP3 players that no longer use their portable "Walkman" type CD players. We will need players in working condition without headphones. Donated players should not be brought in with batteries or headphones, yet feel free to purchase new batteries/headphones to be shipped with the unit(s).
The next shipment will be going out by November 26, 2007, with only one more shipment before the end of the year. With the passing of Veteran's day on November 11, 2007, this would be a great way of getting involved and demonstrating your thanks to those who have done so much for us and those we love.
So please take a minute and look around your house to see if you have something that could bring so much joy, the joy of music, to people who work so diligently to protect us, our families and our freedom.
Donations should be sent to:
Rock-A-Billy's
attn: Bill O'Keefe
8411 Hall Rd
Utica MI 48317-5532
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11/08/07
Genespeak - News of the week from Horizon Records
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Howdy Music Fans,
It’s another week in this crazy, crazy year of 2007. Yes, Robert “I Used To Front Led Zeppelin” Plant and Allison “I’m a Fiddle Playing, Bluegrass Singing, Band leading Darling” Krauss rocked our world and yours these last two weeks as their Raising Sand CD posted huge sales and stronger numbers than Neil Young, Ryan Adams and even the Boss ole Brucie Springsteen. Oh well. It’s all good. This week we got Psychedelic prog-rock from Iceland with the latest from Sigur Ros in one corner and archival splendor from Stevie Ray Vaughan and Gram Parson’s in the other corner. Plus there’s also another David Byrne goodie “The Knee Plays” to go along with his recently released Live In Austin masterpiece. And, of course, we took the plunge and went Eagles free and man it feels so good (Sorry Joe Walsh). Not only are we Eagle-less but we got the “Tango Around The World” CD in stock today. Makes a nice statement: bye, bye Eagles, hello Tango compilation. Now that’s the Horizon way. Before I go on out front and put on Neil Young’s Chrome II and play the 18 minute opus “Ordinary People” really loud and wave my fists in the air, here are a few fun filled facts for you to ponder.
Yes it’s only 14 more days until Thanksgiving and pumpkin pie for me.
And yes, there are only 33 more shopping days until Christmas. So yes, we have started getting in our Holiday music. Just started, mind you.
Ain’t nothing like the real thing.
We don’t carry any bobo lifestyle gimmicky items but we have begun to offer quality used stereo components at nice prices.
Come see us
R.I.P. Porter Wagoner
Happy Birthday Gram Parsons.
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10/30/07
From Our Little Stage To Your Speakers
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| | On Stage @ Fingerprints | | | |
10/22/07
Where There's Smoke
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10/17/07
Looney Tunes Rebuilds
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10/10/07
Radiohead's Tip-Jar
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Everybody's asking me about Radiohead's "tip-jar" concept -- labels, distributors, pundits, bloggers and customers.
It got me thinking about high school. Okay. Bear with me. This comes around full circle to an actual point at the end.
In high school, I entered a science fair and, though I love science fiction, actual science wasn't really my bag. My bag was full of yearbook, band, and working at the mom-and-pop record store, all things that actually helped me further along in life, unlike, well...science.
Yearbook taught me about dealing with crowds, keeping appointments, designing, publishing, and basic all-around telling people what to do. Band...duh, it was band. And working at the record store certainly had repercussions on my life.
Of course, thinking about High School (OMG! Twenty year reunion coming up, only eight months to lose the pot belly, get muscles, grow my hair back, and become rich...no prob.) makes me think about my old man. I grew up in Daytona Beach and MTV came down for three months out of the year for spring break and they hosted the greatest dance parties ever. Of course, all the schools would empty out to see the bands, and my school had to tighten up and threaten to expel any student who was absent. My dad, bless his memory, was a bit of a rebel himself and came down to have a talking to my principal. He told him that it was far more important for me to have the opportunity to see James Brown perform than to sit still for a science lecture. How awesome that he was right.
It's always a thrill to see an old spring break video on VH1 Classics. My wife always rolls her eyes, saying, "Yeah yeah, you were there, I'm sure," but I was! Sadly, this was before Girls Went Wild, but I did get to see some amazing group.
If you're watching an 80's band and the ocean is rolling in the background and it looks like it was on a pool deck, chances are I was there. In fact, three of my top-five all-time favorite concert-going experiences were on the beach, courtesy of MTV. See if you can pick out the three from my list of beach concerts: The Romantics. 'Til Tuesday. Golden Earring. English Beat (with Jools Holland). REM. Madness. Robert Cray. Sugarcubes. A Flock of Seagulls. Edie Brickell & New Bohemians. Squeeze. Let's Active. Black Flag. Red Hot Chili Peppers. Fishbone. Heart. Big Country. The Producers. Meat Puppets. 10,000 Screaming Maniacs (yes, Screaming Maniacs). Echo & the Bunnymen.
Did I say freakin' Golden Earring? Yes, I did.
What was I talking about? Oh yes, high school science fair.
I was desperate not to do any science, so I conducted a social experiment. I created a moral conundrum and surveyed my senior class. Here's the gimmick: I offered everybody the choice between a $5 and a $20 bill -- cash money; but, if over 25% of those surveyed chose the $20, nobody would get anything. As a born cynic, I hypothesized that I wouldn't have to spend a penny, and, of course, I was right as 40% of those surveyed chose the $20.00.
Needless to say, I didn't place in the science fair.
So, I have to wonder how much Radiohead are going to bank on their social experiment, but really, who cares? The best news about the Radiohead announcement was the awesome-sounding box set, with LP's, CD's and a book. As an indie retailer, I don't hesitate to know that I'm going to have access to a physical good at some point and I'm going to sell the hell out of it. I hope retail only has access to the fancy LP version because I'm sure the the big box goons won't carry that and I'll sell even more.
......It was heartening to read this MTV.com article on Underworld as reported by our friend Glenn at Coolfer:
Interesting comments by Underworld about the statement a physical release makes to consumers. Although the group often releases digital music through its website -- for years it has sold its own downloads -- it can't ignore the value of a physical release. "We really like records, and a physical record is a calling card, and no matter how many downloads we did, until the perception changes significantly, they'd always be seen as the poor cousin to a real album." .......
I've often wondered about this digital-only devolution. Isn't the point of creating art, um, the POINT of creating art? What do you show your mom? Your iTunes earnings statement? Digital has its place, to be sure, but so do stereos and things, wonderful, shiny things to hold in your hand. I've often said that computers are for computing and stereos are for music, and, certainly, I'm playing the curmudgeonly role.
I have digital doo-hickeys. My Windows Media library wirelessly streams to my hi-fi, but I also have a Super-Audio and DVD-Audio player, and a turntable in three rooms of my house (one in the music room, one in the living room, and, yes, one hooked up to my computer to make my own .wav files).
Isn't that okay? Is it impossible to think that our customers might enjoy options?
I'm glad that Radiohead and Underworld understand that.
Do you? -- Eric (Criminal Records/A.I.M.S) | |
10/08/07
Cooling Down In Seattle
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09/26/07
Let Them Eat Cake - Really Good Cake
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 | | Simple Kid | Duff & Jeff | | |
I just returned from an inspiring couple of days with our friends from the Music Monitor Network. Michael Kurtz and Carrie Colliton deserve a thunderous round of applause for an amazing weekend.
They picked the perfect location for a bunch of drunken indie-record store folks to gather and carouse. Baltimore is a party town and we came to party. I really enjoyed my time at MMN member and host store, Sound Garden, Bryan and crew have curated an exciting selection, they pour a mean draught and they kind of suck at softball. On Saturday, Sound Garden and the cast and crew of Food Network's Ace of Cakes challenged the indie record stores to a serious game of softball. Simple Kid played at home base and Gabe from Vice lost his pants. Good times. Melanie Nipper from CIMS played, and scored a run, as did Larry Mansdorf from Newbury Comics. Myself? I stayed in the bleachers, horrible memories of tears and pee'd pants from my Little League days haunting me. I was very excited to meet Duff, Jeff and Mary Kate from Charm City Cakes, one of my favorite shows on tee-vee. Normally, when I meet a rock band, or the like, I lie through my teeth and tell them I've listened to their record and that I'll be at the show that night. Meeting Ace of Cakes, however, was a real star moment for me, I worship those cake nerds and they were as nice and fun as they appear on tee-vee. Check us all out sometime in October on the Food Network.
Duff promised to make a cake for next year's event, and I, for one, look forward to eating it. It's my goal to bring the entire A.I.M.S. crew to Baltimore next year for this fantastic event.
-- Eric. (Criminal Records/A.I.M.S.) | |
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 | | Looks To Good to Eat | I said LOOKS! | |
09/20/07
Criminal Records - Turning Japanese
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 | | Peelander-Z | The Captains | | |
08/30/07
Holy Cow Ben Harper at Twist and Shout
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 | | Ben And The Band | Ben With The Staff | | |
From Paul:
Last night we had one of the greatest instores of our nearly 20 year history. Starting at about 9 a.m. Ben Harper’s stage crew of 15 guys converted the space that usually holds Cat Stevens vinyl into a full-scale stage accommodating an upright piano, vibraphone, and everything six guys need to put on a real rock concert. And that’s exactly what they did. At shortly after six O’clock 300 very lucky people got to witness a truly once-in-a-lifetime event. Leaning heavily on his excellent new album Lifeline and some well chosen oddities (Bill Withers’ “Use Me” - sweet!) the band treated the adoring crowd to a gem-like hour and a half set that just rocked. Ben Harper’s career started just shortly after we began Twist & Shout, and he has meant a lot to us over the years. I feel he is an artist of heart and integrity, and it all came home at this wonderful event. If you missed it don’t despair, local film pros Music Link were there filming and recording the event for a potential CD and DVD release. Ben Harper and The Innocent Criminals live at Twist And Shout - imagine that. Stay tuned for that ( as well as our recent John Butler performance) in the 4th quarter.
Obviously, something this big didn’t happen in a vacuum. We had friends who helped. In addition to the band and their amazing team, I would like to thank Wayne Green of Everloving Records, Jackie Kilmer, John Bowen, and Nicole Ford of EMM & Capitol, and Virgin Records for being so patient and kind to us . Also, Flying Dog
(www.flyingdogales.com) for the beer, Chipotle for the great grub and Debbie Clapper for the awesome poster - (www.gneural.com). Both Flying Dog and Chipotle have been consistent supporters of our live events and we really appreciate it. While these events seem like such a big ordeal to put on while we are in the planning stages, the minute an artist like Ben Harper walks on stage and the crowd gasps in excitement, all trepidation dissolves and we remember why we are doing this; the connection between artist and fan.
I often forget to mention it, but we have such a championship staff. They all make us look so good all the time. The artists always mention it to me..."Yeah, you got some cool people working here..." and it is so true, we really do have some cool people working here. Special mention as always to Dawn Greaney who holds all the pieces together for us so beautifully. Finally a behind-the-scenes tip of the hat to Don Vancleave and Rand Foster who I suspect were both instrumental in making this happen - thanks guys!
“This is the best time I’ve had in a record store (though you’re much more than a record store!). I will be Twisting and Shouting every time I’m in Denver!” - Ben Harper
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 | | Ben's Board | The Stage At T&S | |
08/30/07
Looney Tunes Distroyed By Fire
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LONGSTANDING LONG ISLAND INDEPENDENT MUSIC STORE, LOONEY TUNES FALLS TO OVERNIGHT FIRE
PLANS TO REBUILD THE STORE ARE ALREADY BEING DISCUSSED
West Babylon, NY:
Looney Tunes, the longstanding, nationwide renowned independent record retailer experienced a devastating fire last night. The cause, arson investigators say, was a faulty extension cord. The decimated 4,000 square foot record store has been the toast of not only its native Long Island, but also a national testimony to the perseverance of the independent music retailer. In an age when much of the general outlook seems bleak, Looney Tunes is 35 years standing. The family owned business, first opened by Karl Groeger in 1971, now run by his sons Karl, Jr and Jaime, has not only thrived over much of its years in business, but it has also boasted high profile in-store appearances such as Ice T, Ozzy Osbourne and Staind, whose 2001 rooftop in-store performance attracted 7,500 fans to the store.
The intention at press time is to rebuild Looney Tunes as soon as possible. Despite hundreds of thousands of dollars in merchandise and memorabilia including 57 autographed guitars and countless Gold and Platinum records destroyed, owner Karl Groeger, Jr, asks customers and fans, ³Keep us in your prayers, but have faith that we will be back stronger than ever." Groeger¹s attitude, still positive in the wake of the devastating fire, is clearly an indication of what¹s made Looney Tunes work over the years- moving forward, despite the circumstances or the climate.Looney Tunes is a long time member of the Coalition of Independent Music Stores (CIMS), an organization that supports the best music stores in the country. CIMS President Don Van Cleave reflected, ²Looney Tunes is one of music¹s premier stores. Their focus on serving the music fans of Long Island is legendary. We will miss their energy while they rebuild and look forward to the store being even better when it reopens.² Music industry folks wishing to send donations for the rebuilding of Looney Tunes can address their offerings to Don Van Cleave at the Coalition Of Independent Music Stores; 3738 4th Terrace North, Birmingham, AL 35222. This can include a financial donation, autographed memorabilia or award plaques. | |
07/04/07
Fingerprints In Long Beach Becomes Icky Thump Records
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 | | Staff Hanging Out With Jack & Meg | Icky Thump Log Winner & Runner Up | | |
05/02/07
2007 - NARM Retailer of the Year
01/03/07
Best New Old Store on Colfax: Westword
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 | | Pre-Openning Photo | Jorma Kaukonen | | |
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 | | Mark Farina | DJ Colette | |
01/03/07
Store Owner Talks About CD Sales (No Doom And Gloom Here)
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| | Clark Howard | | | |
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Amoeba Pesents Tim Finn
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