Record Store Day 2016 Ambassador Metallica: We’re pretty excited to announce that the Ambassador for Record Store Day 2016 is not one person, but four: the four who make up METALLICA. From the very first Record Store Day, Metallica have embraced the concept, and celebrated the culture of the indie record store with in-store appearances and special releases for both our special April Saturday and Black Friday. Be sure to check out the Ambassador Statement, written by drummer Lars Ulrich, and the video where the entire band gets excited about record stores and exciting Metallica reissue news.
After 24 years, Barry’s Music in Radford to close: By perhaps the end of this month or early March, Barry’s Music at 1083 E. Main St. in downtown Radford will close its doors after almost exactly 24 years in business. Like the rest of the music industry painfully discovered more than a decade ago, Roberts is cognizant of the two-faced demon that sealed his fate and many other businesses like his. But for the 55-year-old man, the truth is never an easy pill to swallow. He said he has no desire to pursue a retail business again.
Rooky Ricardo’s Records To Move Across The Street During Seismic Retrofit: Some temporary changes are on the way for Rooky Ricardo’s Records, who will be temporarily vacating its current location at 448 Haight while the space undergoes a seismic retrofit. But luckily for vinyl aficionados, its doors will still be open for business—right across the street. Owner and neighborhood fixture Dick Vivian has worked out a deal with the folks behind the storefront located at 419 Haight (formerly Zero Friends San Francisco) to set up shop in their space for the four to eight months it will take to complete the retrofit at his original store, which he has run for the past 28 years.
The Long Ear is moving its CdA record store: The Long Ear is closing its current Coeur d’Alene location this week, but thankfully for music fans, it will be reopening nearby next month. After more than 15 years on 4th Street, the music store known for its huge selection of CDs, vinyl and more is moving its business to Government Way, in what was formerly the Army-Navy Store. “It’s only seven-tenths of a mile away, but this is still a big deal,” says Deon Borchard, who has owned the business with husband Terry since 1973, first in California and then Idaho starting in 1985.
Regina residents go retro with one-day pop up shop for vinyl records: Hosted by Rebellion Brewing company in the Queen City, the one-day shop featured thousands of vintage vinyl records, with many musical genres up for sale. “Sound tracks seem to be popular but there really is a little bit of everything. There was a couple guys here with some punk, and some hardcore. There’s a young gentlemen that’s got a bunch of soul 45s. So it’s really a wide collection”, Organizer Joe Hadesbeck explained.
Cassettes roll back into fashion: Format follows vinyl with huge boost in sales after acts start releasing albums on tape: First LPs and record players made a comeback – now the cassette tape is rewinding back into our lives. Music fans on both sides of the Atlantic are returning to the cassette two decades after they were replaced by the CD, and more recently digital downloads. This nostalgia for the old format comes despite the frustrations that led to their decline, including their tendency to become scrambled and jammed in players.
Passionate about spinning vinyl: “For me, vinyl has never gone out of style, I’ve always had them on hand,” said Notarianni, who was born in the 60s and still considers herself a bit of a hippie. “I grew up listening to vinyl records. I love the sound and it’s not something they can replicate, it’s just not the same when they digitally remaster it. Even with all the little crackles and imperfections on some of the older stuff, it just has that special feeling.”
Advice: Slow down, listen: In contrast, I recently found a rack of used vinyl records at my local Goodwill store, and not only did I enjoy standing there, combing through the stacks of LPs, but there was the album art to enjoy, the value of buying a whole album of carefully curated pieces of music for 99 cents and the extensive liner notes. Liner notes!
