Brussels, BE | Saint-Gilles record shop Dust Dealers to close down: A staple in the revived Brussels vinyl scene of last few years, record shop Dust Dealers in the Brussels municipality of Saint-Gilles announced it will close from the end of September. Nestled in the beautiful Art Nouveau gem Rue Vanderschrick, Dust Dealers has been known for its specialist focus on jazz and soul, but also hip hop, disco, funk and folk music from all around the world. Among the most comfortable record shops in Brussels, the shop window was adorned with classic music memorabilia and merchandise, and also had lamps, armchairs and a sofa for its listening posts. Last Monday, the shop’s managers announced on social media that, from 30 September, the shop will be closing down after the 8 years of operations. “On 30 September, I’ll be giving the shop the final sweep and the dust will be gone. What was only supposed to be a parenthesis will have lasted more than 8 years. It’s time for me to make a different choice and change the record,” the statement read.
Poole, UK | Poole record store relocating branch to Wiltshire: Boiler Room Records has closed its Kingland Crescent shop. A Poole based record store has closed one of its branches, and relocated it to Wiltshire. Boiler Room Records has closed its Kingland Crescent store and opened a new shop in Salisbury’s Cross Keys Shopping Centre. Boiler Room was set up 40 years ago and is known for its dedication to the growing vinyl community. The original shop at 27 High Street in Poole’s Old Town will remain open. Owner Mark Northey said: “We loved our time at Kingland, especially the support from Legal & General, who have been leading the way with innovative ideas in modern retail. “However, having two stores in close proximity was splitting our revenue. We couldn’t possibly close our original shop in Poole, so we decided to bring a proper independent record shop to Salisbury instead.” The new store in Salisbury has undergone a huge refurbishment and increased its stock capacity to offer new vinyl, including weekly releases, and the ability to pre-order future releases, and indie exclusives.
Lincolnshire, UK | The Lincolnshire record store still thriving after 20 years thanks to revival of vinyl: Off the Beaten Tracks record store is a treasure trove for music lovers. It’s Saturday morning and the Off the Beaten Tracks record shop in Louth is as busy as always. Music-lovers crowd the stands hunting for new finds, bargains and rarities, while a constant stream of fresh sounds pour out of the store’s sound system—a mix of alternative artists and local bands. … Since the pandemic, local businesses have been struggling to stay afloat. In 2023, there was a record-breaking, 585,807 businesses closed across the UK. Yet despite the gloomy high street outlook, Off the Beaten Track – a quaint record store in the centre of Louth – is this summer celebrating its 20th anniversary. Run by Mark Merrifield and wife and business partner Lee Conybeare – both 49 – the place is something of a treasure trove, tucked away between a bookies and a takeaway in Aswell Street. And it is much loved by Louth locals.
Midland, TX | Cotton Flat Records to host grand opening Aug. 10: Nic Hartley fell in love with music and vinyl records when he was a kid. Now, he’s transformed his collection into a new business venture. Cotton Flat Records, a dedicated record store, will have a grand opening at noon on Aug. 10. After Eccentric Brewery closed, Jamie Ehl, the owner of the building, was looking for his next business opportunity. Hartley, one of Ehl’s employees, told Ehl about his personal vinyl collection and suggested opening a store to sell them. “I told him I have a huge record collection,” Hartley said. “I love collecting records, and I know everybody in the vinyl community in Midland and Odessa would be interested in that.” Hartley said that he grew up in a musical household, which eventually led him toward collecting and singing and playing guitar in a band. “My dad and mom both had a big record collection,” Hartley said. “As a kid, I would go through their records and pick out the ones that I thought looked cool and take them to my room to keep.”
London, UK | The reason why there is a giant statue of the HMV dog in the middle of West London: In recent years, the West London neighbourhood has gained attention for a unique attraction: a gigantic fox terrier statue that sits in the centre of The Old Vinyl factory site on Blyth Road. Famous for its rich industrial history, close proximity to Heathrow Airport, and its picturesque country parks, Hayes in West London remains a popular destination for individuals to live and visit, boasting an imposing neighbourhood and community. In recent years, Hayes has also gained attention for a unique attraction in its quarters: a gigantic fox terrier statue that sits in the centre of The Old Vinyl factory site on Blyth Road. This impressive 5.5 metre tall statue, situated in Vinyl Square, depicts Nipper, a famous dog featured in various record company logos worldwide. Taking over five years to create, Nipper is made entirely from fibreglass and was first unveiled at the square in 2017.
Colorado Springs, CO | New Colorado Springs vintage market offers thousands of items: Digging for buried treasure has never been so easy. Vintage and Vinyl Co. will offer treasure hunters a new sustainable market with racks, tables and piles of Y2K vintage clothing, upcycled clothing, vintage vessel candles that can be reused, handmade jewelry, pin-ups, records and more at its new weekly pop-up event inside CO.A.T.I., a downtown food hall, event space and work space. The grand opening event is noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. Sunday markets, featuring rotating DJs, tarot card readings, drag performances, flash tattoos, drink specials and more, will continue through Sept. 30. A Vintage and Vinyl Co. store also will be open daily inside CO.A.T.I. “There are a ton of vintage sellers in Colorado Springs,” said Vintage and Vinyl founder Erica Rose, who co-produces the weekly events with Missa Webb. “Because of the military a lot of people are well-traveled, so when they pass on or donate there’s a lot of great vintage.”
New Study Uncovers Shocking Statistic About US Vinyl Buyers: Vinyl sales have been on the up in recent years—the format outsold CDs in 2022 for the first time since 1987—but it looks like the same can’t be said for record players. As Music Business Worldwide point out, a new study conducted by Luminate shows that half of US vinyl owners don’t actually own a turntable. The “Top Entertainment Trends for 2023” report showed that out of 3,900 US survey respondents, “50% of consumers who have bought vinyl in the past 12 months own a record player, compared to 15% among music listeners overall.” You might be thinking, why would someone buy music they can’t listen to? And there are two types of people that could play into it: collectors and super fans. Collectors may be looking for rare records while super fans may simply want a visual representation of the music.
The Beach Boys’ ‘All Summer Long’ Returns In Limited Colored Vinyl Edition: Originally released in 1964, the much-acclaimed record reached No. 4 in the US during a 49-week chart run. In celebration of its 60th anniversary, a special new limited edition of The Beach Boys’ All Summer Long is out now in sunrise color vinyl. The new reissue is available in a high-quality numbered tip-on jacket. All Summer Long was the Beach Boys’ sixth studio album. Originally released on July 13, 1964 on Capitol Records, it was a landmark release as it is regarded as the band’s first artistically unified collection of songs, as well as one of the first true concept albums. The recorded marked the first Beach Boys album not to be focused on themes of cars or surfing. Instead, the songs are semi-autobiographical and relate to the experiences of a typical Southern Californian teenager, a theme encapsulated by the acclaimed title track and the often-imitated front cover, a modernist style collage depicting the band members relaxing with friends on a beach.
Longlegs Original Soundtrack Coming to Vinyl From Mutant: The vinyl release will hit shelves in September. Landing in theaters this weekend from filmmaker Oz Perkins is Longlegs, the terrifying horror experience featuring Nicolas Cage as the titular serial killer. The film currently sits at 91% positive on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, with a number of elements coming together to craft the frightening experience. One key component of the film’s effectiveness is the music by Zilgi, which is set to be coming to vinyl through Mutant. Much like the film’s visuals, the music is evocative and unconventional, delivering audiences a frightening experience that delivers an experimental atmosphere. You can pre-order the Longlegs Original Soundtrack now before it hits shelves on September 28th. Mutant describes the release, “Mutant, in conjunction with Milan Records and NEON, is proud to release the premiere physical release of Longlegs (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) with music by ZILGI…”
