Denver, CO | Twist & Shout, one of Colorado’s last locally owned record stores, has been sold after 33 years: Longtime manager and original employee Patrick Brown is taking over the Denver store. Denver music institution Twist & Shout — a longtime, locally owned record store — has been sold to a new owner, founders Paul and Jill Epstein announced Monday. The Epsteins, who started the retail store 33 years ago, sold the business to store manager Patrick Brown, Paul Epstein said. He expects the store will continue to thrive, citing Brown’s three-decade role managing Twist & Shout and its year-over-year growth due to the continuing explosion of vinyl record sales and renewed interest in CDs. “Patrick and I started talking about it, and within a half-hour, we shook hands and essentially the deal was struck,” Paul Epstein, 63, said of the negotiations that began last summer. “It’s not an easy decision and it’s been in the works for about five years.”
Toronto, CA | Toronto record store is permanently closing after more than 50 years: Mike’s Music Store recently announced that they will be closing after over 28 years of selling music at its Danforth location. While the news is sad to local music lovers, there’s some solace in the fact that this is due to Mike’s decision to retire and not due to some more disheartening issues. In fact, Mike has stated on social media that he’s choosing to continue to follow his passion of music by focusing on his band Knights of the Mystic Eye. There will even be CDs available for those who wish to take some of Mike’s Music home with them. While no official announcement of the store’s last day has been made yet, they did announce that effective this week the store will be 15 per cent off everything excluding new release CDs. Used CDs, DVDs, and Vinyl will all be available for a reduced price, so those hoping to say goodbye and pick up some discounted goodies should consider making the visit to 105 Danforth Ave while there’s still plenty of product left.
Jackson, TN | Local record store celebrates 4 years: Third Eye Curiosities is celebrating their Fourth Anniversary! Third Eye Curiosities opened in 2018, being the only brick and mortar record store between Memphis and Nashville. Owner, Hunter Cross didn’t know the path the store would take when opening, but records were always a hot commodity in the store, making selling records their main focus. For the anniversary, customers could hear some live music from Cross and his band-mates, and even bring their own vinyls to be played in the shop. Cross says throughout the years the community has always shown love and support. “Gratitude for sure, especially during 2020, people were building up their collections. And we saw an out-pour of support from the community, and it really opened my eyes to how our community is actually very strong,” Cross said.
Hamilton, OH | Hamilton’s Main Street Vinyl sold to neighboring business: Main Street Vinyl in downtown Hamilton has been sold, but not much will change other than the location. The Carder brothers of Unsung Salvage, 212 Main St., bought the five-year-old record shop, including contents, name, and website, and will relocate Main Street Vinyl in its shop. “I’ve collected records since I got out of the Army, and that was a long time ago,” said store owner Bill Herren. “It pretty much was something to do and a hobby and made enough to pay the rent, but it took off. This will be the second retirement for the Main Street Vinyl owner, who opened the record shop five years ago. The 75-year-old said after battling cancer and having been retired for a few years, his sons convinced him to open up a record store. “I never dreamed of it doing what it did,” said Herren of his store’s success. “But it’s very time-consuming and it’s taking up more time than I want.”
Bandcamp sells to Epic: can a video game company save independent music? A hero site generating better revenue for creators has sold out, say some musicians, while others hail the potential to reach new audiences. Musos and gamers were left scratching their heads last Wednesday as Bandcamp, the online record store hailed by independent artists as a bankable alternative to the razor-thin royalties of streaming, announced its acquisition by Epic Games, makers of the online gaming phenomenon Fortnite. Bandcamp CEO Ethan Diamond framed the deal as a boon for artists, saying that the two US companies shared a vision of building “the most open, artist-friendly ecosystem in the world”. A blogpost from Epic underlined the need for “fair and open platforms” to enable “creators to keep the majority of their hard-earned money”. But Bandcamp users reacted with shock and disappointment to the sale of the indie juggernaut, lamenting the loss of “our” store, as drummer and Spotify critic Damon Krukowski tweeted. “We all just got sold,” lamented media theorist McKenzie Wark. Bemused gamers and tech experts, meanwhile, wondered what possible uses a company such as Epic – itself 40% owned by Chinese gaming megacorp Tencent – might have for the direct-to-fan marketplace for MP3s of niche musical genres like vaporwave and chiptune.
Songkhla, TH | Thailand has a new listening bar, 22 Nakhonnok: Located in the southern city of Songkhla, the space focuses on rare groove records. 22 Nakhonnok is a new, vinyl-oriented listening bar in Songkhla, Thailand. Launched late last month, the 16-seat venue specializes in jazz, rare groove and popular Thai genres such as lukthung and lukkrung. Decked out with Technics turntables, vintage Acoustic Research speakers, a Luxman amplifier and mixers, it’s inspired by Japan’s tradition of jazz-focused cafes. “We focus on mood setting, with vinyl crackles, wooden furniture, warm lighting and controlled sound,” founders Yugo Tham and Pairot Damkong told Resident Advisor. Programming at 22 Nakhonnok, named after its street address of 22 Nakhon Nok, includes regular guest selectors, DJ nights and live performances, among other events. Claiming to be the first listening bar in southern Thailand, the space hopes to deepen music culture in Songkhla.
