The world’s best record shops #045: Idle Hands, Bristol: Chris Farrell, who in his young life has worked at Rooted, Replay, Imperial and more, bravely decided to stop the rot in Bristol and open a record shop of his own in February 2011. Named after his Punch Drunk-affiliated label of the same name, Idle Hands is located on Stokes Croft, the creative centre of the city and close to the former Rooted premises. Head here for a new 12” – from house and techno to dubstep, grime, reggae and everything in between – and a tinny. The vibe is less of a retail spot and a bit more like Chris’ living room, which it sort of is.
Aidan Smith: Demise of the record shop breaks my heart: From boy to man I’ve hung around record shops – from shelf-stacker to fifty-quid bloke. I worked in my local co-op to fund my first vinyl purchases and enjoyed a brief period when there was sufficient disposable income for me to re-buy those albums in special boxset editions complete with pointless alternative versions of the songs such as Gerry Rafferty’s Baker Street with a paper-and-comb solo instead of soaring saxophone.
Vinyl Confessions: I’m Your Man: He’s paid his rent in the Tower of Song. As far as I’m concerned, Leonard Cohen should be grandfathered there for eternity. I started listening to this Canadian bard late in life. While songwriters like Elvis Costello and Tom Waits (who I’ve loved since high school) were undoubtedly influenced by Cohen, I didn’t acquire a taste in his music until well into my late 20s. But better late than never. After all, Cohen himself didn’t receive his first record deal until he was the age I am now. I started listening at the beginning, every album from his first through 2004’s Dear Heather, and all the live efforts in between.
Solange A Seat at the Table Vinyl Release Detailed, Double vinyl, a purple edition, an art book, and more: Solange has detailed the physical release of her new album A Seat at the Table. It will first be out on November 18 on CD, and later, on December 9, the record will be released as a 2xLP vinyl. The next week, on December 16, Urban Outfitters will put out an exclusive purple vinyl edition of the album. In addition, Solange will release physical copies of her A Seat at the Table art book, which she had previously mailed to 86 fans and made available digitally. The book is expected out December 6, and is available as a stand-alone item, or as part of a package with the digital album, CD, or vinyl.
‘Fight Club’ soundtrack to be reissued on vinyl: The soundtrack to Fight Club is being reissued on double vinyl. The Dust Brothers score for the David Fincher cult classic is set for a US release on Wednesday (November 16). It is the first time their soundtrack has been released on vinyl in the US since the film, which stars Brad Pitt and Ed Norton, came out in 1999. The limited double LP has been pressed on 180-gram Pink Soap vinyl, you can view the release in a video below. Mondo, who recently released vinyl editions of the scores for Netflix’s Marvel shows Jessica Jones and Daredevil, are responsible for the Fight Club reissue.
