Huntington, WV | Lost Huntington: Davidson’s Record Shop: In the 1950s, rock and roll burst on the nation and revolutionized the music scene. America had never heard anything like it before. Characterized by a heavy beat and simple melodies, it was an amalgam of black rhythm and blues and white country music. While their parents may have hated it, youngsters loved it and flocked to buy rock and roll records. Rock music became the soundtrack of a youthful generation. And young rock fans in Huntington knew the best place to get their hot hands on the latest rock 45s by Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Buddy Holly and, of course, Elvis was Davidson’s Record Shop at 907 4th Ave. The little shop was always busy after school let out each day and on weekends was strictly standing room only.
Warsaw, PL | Elektra – reading room at the Mazowieckie Institute of Culture. Vinyl records, comics, albums: Hundreds of vinyl records, comic books and art albums on the shelves. Next to it there are comfortable armchairs, turntables with headphones, desks on the mezzanine, and stylish posters on the walls. In the renovated building of the Mazowiecki Institute of Culture at Elektoralna Street, a reading room for Elektra words and sounds was created. As the originators themselves say, Elektra is a “temple of analogue culture”, a place that “combines the functions of a literary salon with the atmosphere of an independent record store”. And they were inspired by the collection of records from the library that used to function here. – It turned out that the library also rented vinyl records. We inherited a diverse set of speeches by Lenin or songs in honor of the party, but also Polish jazz, entertainment music such as Skaldowie or Grechuta or Polish poets reciting their poems – said Aleksandar Ćirlić, one of the hosts of the new space, during the meeting with journalists.
Amsterdam, NL | Rush Hour hosting five-day used record sale: With thousands of records for less than a fiver. Amsterdam’s Rush Hour is hosting a five-day record sale, this September. While Rush Hour originally planned to host the sale over just one day, the five day event will see 1000s of records on sale, with new additions being added each day. Record prices are also a steal, with all records being sold for €3 each — equivalent to £2.50. “Too much stuff that needs to go out. We are cleaning the basement!” The sale will be held from the 8th September to the 12th, from 11am-6pm.
12 Soundtracks You Need to Hear on Vinyl: Despite the convenience of digital technology, an increasing number of music fans are turning to – or returning to, as the case may be – vinyl as their preferred method of listening to and purchasing albums. As Variety recently reported, vinyl sales soared nearly 30% in the U.S. last year, outpacing CDs for the first time since the mid-80s, and the movie soundtrack genre has benefitted greatly from that unlikely resurgence. Adding fuel to this comeback story are a number of specialty labels, like Waxwork Records and Mondo’s Death Waltz Recording Company, that cater specifically to film buffs and soundtrack collectors. And that’s understandable when you consider the many practical and aesthetic similarities between vinyl and traditional 35mm film. After all, both are analog formats, beloved for the warmth and richness of their sound and image, and both inspire nostalgic feelings based on our formative listening and viewing histories. So if you’re looking to build or expand your own soundtrack collection, here are 12 titles that deserve a spin on your turntable.
How to Set Up a Turntable System, 3 Ways: Building your first turntable system? We’ve created three different systems to get you on your way. All under $1,000. Vinyl is booming. After being nearly extinct in the early 2000s, its popularly has skyrocketed over the last 10-odd ears (at the same time as music streaming, oddly). People are captivated by its slow analog experience — placing the record, dropping the stylus — and hearing its warm nostalgic sound. The good news is that because vinyl has made such a defiant comeback, it’s spurred a resurgence of the other necessary components to play vinyl. Audio companies are making new turntables, phono preamps, amplifiers and speakers — all of a range of price points — so it’s pretty easy to build a basic turntable system. You don’t need to refurbish some vintage gear (although you still can if you want to).
Deluxe 50th anniversary reissue of The Doors’ ‘L.A. Woman’ due out in December: The Doors will release a deluxe 50th anniversary reissue of their classic 1971 album, L.A. Woman, on December 3. L.A. Woman: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition will be available as a three-CD/one-LP set that features a newly remastered version of the album on one CD, two bonus CDs of unreleased studio outtakes, and the new stereo mix of the original album pressed on 180-gram vinyl. Released in April 1971, L.A. Woman was the last album The Doors recorded with their iconic frontman, Jim Morrison, who died on July 3, 1971, at age 27. The album reached #9 on the Billboard 200 chart, and yielded two hit singles, “Love Her Madly” and “Riders on the Storm,” which peaked at #11 and #14, respectively, on Billboard’s Hot 100. Among the record’s other memorable songs is the title track, which remains a classic rock radio staple.
Diamanda Galás To Reissue Self-Titled Second Album: Diamanda Galás is reissuing her self-titled second album. Diamanda Galás originally came out in 1984 via Metalanguage, two years before the artist’s debut on Mute. It’s long been out of print on vinyl, and will now be made available on CD and digitally for the first time, in addition to a new vinyl edition. The album has been remastered for the reissue, which will come out on Galás’ own Intravenal Sound Operations imprint. The album is sometimes referred to as Panoptikon, after the title of the composition that sits on the A-side of the release. The record consists of two pieces: ‘Panoptikon’, which was inspired by Jack Henry Abbott, whose 1981 autobiographical book In The Belly Of The Beast chronicled his experiences in the prison system, and ‘ΤΡΑΓΟΥΔΙ ΑΠΟ ΤΟ ΑΙΜΑ ΤΩΝ ΔΟΛΟΦΟΝΗΜΕΝΩΝ’ (‘Song From The Blood Of Those Murdered’), which Galás dedicated to the political prisoners who were tortured and executed during the 1967-74 Greek military junta.
