Danville, IL | Seven Point cannabis dispensary to also sell vinyl records: As construction continues on Seven Point Danville Cannabis Dispensary, CEO Brad Zerman says the design of the dispensary will make it a first of its kind cannabis and vinyl record shop. “We’re planning on inviting record stores to participate in like a record exchange,” Zerman said. The dispensary would sell new records, but people and stores could bring in used records too, he said. “We’ll see. We have to get that together,” Zerman said. Zerman says he’ll be bringing in some of his own music, rock-n-roll memorabilia too, to have on display in an area in the dispensary, kind of like a Hard Rock Cafe. He said he will be bringing in items such as signed guitars from Pearl Jam, a U2 signed leather jacket and Rage Against the Machine signed cymbal. “We’re working on some things to bring other music companies into the fray, however they participate, whether it’s a venue or merch from a venue or merch from something in Chicago or Indy. We’re working on stuff, but we need to get open and show how cool the whole vibe’s going to be in here,” Zerman said.
Cambridge, UK | Much-loved café and record shop on Mill Road for sale with £145k asking price: This shop is rated an average of 4.5 out of five by both Google and Tripadvisor reviewers. A popular Cambridge café with a basement full of records for sale is on the market for £145,000. Relevant Records on Mill Road was opened by husband and wife Andy and Angie Powell in 2014. Since then, it has become a go-to spot for music and coffee lovers, gaining an average rating of 4.5 out of five by 908 Google reviewers and 4.5, and the same by 168 Tripadvisor reviewers. One Google reviewer described: “A really lovely café with a nice, lively atmosphere and fantastic food.” The business also grew into an online vinyl shop during the Covid-19 pandemic, and this will be included for the buyer. Relevant Records is being sold on a leasehold basis by Intelligent. The lease would be until October 2024, but Intelligent explains that the landlord will be ‘flexible’ for the right buyer. The listing describes an annual turnover of £572,826 and an annual net profit of £73,881. The business currently has 18 members of staff.
London, UK | The best hi-fi bars to check out in London: From moody cocktail bars to hidden gems in the heart of the city, we’ve put together a list of all the best London listening bars flaunting high-quality soundsystems. London is famous for its bountiful pubs, but in recent years, there’s another type of watering hole gaining traction in the city. With the disheartening decline of live venues and clubs in the UK and a fair bit of turbulence among the government over grassroots music funding, many of us are being drawn to hi-fi bars. These headsy institutions serve up a different type of musical experience, ushering in vinyl lovers and audiophiles for a late-night pint backed by a decent soundtrack. Also referred to as listening bars, there’s been a variety of these nightspots coming and going in London over the years, but in the past 24 months they’ve been notably trending upwards. A strong selection of new venues have popped up in the capital, catering for changing nightlife habits and a love for high-fidelity audio.
Dayton, OH | Dayton Record Fair returns with new venue, free admission: Luke Tandy, organizer of the Dayton Record Fair, has announced big changes to his annual event, including a new venue and free admission. The Fair will be noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 11 at Eudora Brewing Company in Kettering. Tandy said he wanted to try something different this year and host the record fair at a venue with amenities such as food and drinks. In previous years, the record fair was hosted at the American Czechoslovakian Club and the Yellow Cab Tavern. With this venue change, he’s also exploring hosting the record fair outside of Dayton. Attendees can expect thousands of new and used records, CDs, tapes and music memorabilia. There will also be DJs spinning records throughout the day. Tandy is the owner of Skeleton Dust Records in Dayton, who is a co-sponsor of this event. Other co-sponsors include Omega Music in Dayton, Resignation Records in Troy, Blind Rage Records in Dayton and Catacomb Records in Kettering.
UK | Texas Revolution: the record label that attempted to put the news on vinyl: Have you ever wished that the ten o’clock news could be pressed onto vinyl instead of broadcast on television? The resounding ‘no’ that presumably follows that question is likely why you have never heard of Texas Revolution, a short-lived record label that sprang up in the 1970s. Over the years, a plethora of well-meaning independent labels have come and gone without much fuss. Especially after the DIY ethos of punk music became more widespread in the late 1970s, small independent record labels sprang up everywhere. While labels like Rough Trade, Mute and 4AD remain popular among music fans to this day, the list of indie labels who put out a handful of unsubstantial releases before folding is much greater. Texas Revolution, meanwhile, had the pioneering idea to press records which detailed recent news events. Essentially, the label wanted to create audio newspapers as a kind of retro-futurist replacement for the mainstream press.
Cassette players for analogue audio lovers as we explore tapes’ slow and steady revival: Brand-new cassette players, refurbished classics and the best second-hand sources to experience analogue audio in 2024. There’s been a low-key revival in all things analogue and hissy over the past few years, the inevitable consequence of how modern culture induces a rolling wave of interest in the art, sounds, shapes, colours and technology of the recent past. There never used to be that much correlation between fashion and high fidelity. These days, brands from all sectors are happy to have an audio partner on board – Celine’s new partnership with Master & Dynamic is just one recent example. But while fashion’s relationship with cycles of style and nostalgia is a core part of the industry, technology tends to look resolutely forwards. That’s not always how consumers see it. Crucially, this is a space where media choices have an impact on tech, not the other way around. The vinyl revival caught many volume manufacturers on the hop, and many rushed to return to turntable-making many years after they’d given up on the format. Is the same now happening with cassettes?
How to store your vinyl: Tips and tricks on how you can keep your record collection in great condition: Discover how you can keep your precious record collection in tip-top shape with our expert guide to vinyl storage. Listening to vinyl records can be a brilliant experience, enabling you to hear your favourite music in its most organic form. However, this is only really true if the records in question are in great condition – and one of the best ways to keep them in fine fettle is by making sure your vinyl storage is sorted. Here, I’ll explain the best way to store vinyl records and highlight what you should and shouldn’t do in regard to topics such as temperature, sunlight, humidity and pressure. I’ll also round up some of the great vinyl storage solutions, to ensure you’re not simply stashing your precious discs in old supermarket carrier bags and shoving them away in the corner.
Queensland, AU | Made round to go round: How little discs of vinyl are one of life’s great pleasures: They might be a gift from decades ago but vinyl records are still time well spent, writes Phil Brown. Did I mention I’m into vinyl? No, not wearing it. Playing it. Since I bought a new record player during lockdown, I have been enjoying all my old LPs and buying new ones, haunting places such as Rocking Horse Records in Brisbane’s CBD and Dutch Vinyl at Paddington. There are many other record shops in Brisbane now and vinyl is booming worldwide, which is great. There was a time when it was predicted that vinyl was finished. The same people who predicted that also predicted that books were redundant. But the popularity of record stores and bookshops now proves that to be rubbish. In fact, I read an article the other day reporting that sales of vinyl records are at their highest this century. In my own small way, I have helped that happen. I have a lot of CDs too which I enjoy and I buy albums on iTunes to play in the car but I’m not into streaming at all. I prefer my music more curated and organized.
