Tucson, AZ | Lesser-known Tucson destinations accessible via the Sun Link: Hurricane Records. Music isn’t a product, it’s a passion for this local Tucson record store. Located at 636 N. 4th Ave, Hurricane Records has been serving the Tucson music junkies for six years. All genres of vintage and new records are sold here. Hurricane Records first started as a vintage record store but now sells a variety of new records. Employee, Ted Riviera, 55, said some of the most popular genres include reggae, hip-hop, punk rock and 90s alternative. Popular artists include Lana Del Rey, Fleetwood Mac, Frank Ocean and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. “The owner [Rich Hopkins] has a UK distributor for the Frank Ocean records because it is almost impossible to get them domestically.”
Peckham, UK | Inverted Audio is opening a record store in Peckham: A collection curated by Tom Durston. A new record store is opening in Peckham. Inverted Audio Record Store, the first physical location for the electronic music site of the same name, will open in Holdrons Arcade on September 15, during Peckham Festival. With a collection curated by Tom Durston (DJ Antepop), Inverted Audio Record Store will offer new and used vinyl, tapes, CDs and clothing from the worlds of “house, techno, dubbed-out grooves, experimental, avant-garde and esoteric ambience”. The store will stock records from a series of labels, including Astral Industries, Ilian Tape, FXHE and The Trilogy Tapes. Inverted Audio will be open on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from midday to 7 p.m.
Lititz, PA | Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler visits Lititz music store, plays beginning of ‘Dream On’ on melodica: It’s not every day that someone can expect to hear a live, private performance from Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler, but that’s just what happened to Lititz music store owners Saturday. Tyler visited Lititz Music Co., at 47 S. Broad St., Saturday evening. It was the first time Ben Hartranft, co-owner of the store along with his wife Brooke, has had a famous musician visit his shop. Tyler has been in Lititz for at least a week and a half; he was spotted at Lititz hardware store Bomberger’s on Aug. 15. Aerosmith’s tour kicks off at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia Sept. 2. While many major artists prepare for tours at Lancaster County’s Rock Lititz, the live entertainment mecca declined to comment whether Tyler is a client.
Vancouver, CA | Ed Sheeran visits Vancouver record store and leaves signed albums for fans: A Vancouver record store recently got a “perfect” visit from English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran. The “Shape of You” singer stopped by Beat Street Records on West Hastings before his record-breaking show at BC Place on Saturday. Record shop owner Avi Shack says the visit from the pop star came about thanks to a Vancouver legend. “Well, we got to thank our guy Narduar for connecting the dots for sure,” he told Daily Hive over the phone. Shack says Sheeran didn’t end up leaving with any records as he spent most of the visit chatting with staff. “He’s a very nice guy, humble and I think he probably doesn’t get a lot of chances to go into a place like ours,” said Shack. The musician did give staff members a generous gift and also left fans some presents at the record store. “He was kind enough to hook the entire staff up with tickets to his show and he even signed a bunch of records and CDs for us,” said Beat Street Records communications manager Tanin Risdon.
Moscow, ID | Where the people bring the beat: Monthly vinyl night at Moscow Brewing Company provides crowd with sudsy blend of home-picked jams. While Wednesday evening was overcast in Moscow, the vibe inside the Moscow Brewing Company was far from it. Music greeted patrons from the brewery’s open doors and inside, people enjoyed drinks and the music coming from the speakers. Welcome to Bring Your Own Vinyl night. In a corner, by a pile of board games, a makeshift DJ booth was set up with turntables and two baskets, one labeled “to play,” the other labeled “played.” Friends said hello and guessed which songs each person selected from the albums they brought. David Campillo, aka DJ Dave, was behind the turntables and grab bed a record from a basket in front of him and que the songs requested from each one. The music had no limits, and genres would bounce based on what he pulled.
Cross Plains, WI | Waxxy Poodle vinyl pressing plant revives record-making in Wisconsin: From his home studio just outside of Middleton, Dave Eck of Lucky Mastering helps create the vinyl versions of albums by artists like Leon Bridges, Depeche Mode and Sarah McLachlan. There, for 14 years, he has received each artists’ tape, fine-tuned the recording and transformed it into grooves on a lacquer disc. He sends that disc, called a “master,” to a plating facility that creates metal copies, called “stampers,” which stamp the recording into melted PVC. Then, until recently, he and his clients would wait. There are only around 40 vinyl-pressing plants in the U.S., the Associated Press reported last year. Those facilities have strained to keep up with surging demand over the last two decades, as young people have embraced the analog listening experience. U.S. record sales have risen for 17 straight years, and they’re up more than 20% in the first half of this year over the same time last year, the Guardian reported in July.
El Paso, TX | Groove Grotto: Unconventional record pressings go beyond the black circle: In last month’s column, I wrote about album covers. But what about the goodies hiding within the sleeves? From lyric sheets to posters to catalogs, there’s a long history of interesting things found inside record sleeves. In the sleeves of records I’ve bought over the years, I’ve found photographs, a joint that was likely last smoked in the 1970s, a breakup letter, and a report card. (I’d hide it, too, if I had those grades). But today, let’s talk about interesting record pressings. When you think about a record, a black circle with a label and a spindle hole in the middle probably pop into your head. But there are many wildly creative record pressings out there.
Seoul, KR | Release your inner audiophile at these audio spaces: Even the most extroverted people may find it troubling to sit inside a crowded franchise cafe, unable to communicate let alone focus on the music playing on their headphones. Unwinding in tranquility is something the younger generation is willingly signing up for. On the other side of the social media scene where pictures and the number of likes matter, there is a craving for the opportunities to sit in the calmness and listen to self inner thoughts. Speaking about chilling in peace, either spent by yourself or with your close ones, music is a great medium to carry out that initiative. Sound cannot be captured in pictures, meaning that you are forced to put the phone down for a while and chime with the tune playing in the background. If you are into unwinding and want to dive into some quiet yet verified sonic experience, here are the four recommendations by the Korea JoongAng Daily.
Leicestershire, UK | Led Zeppelin Houses of the Holy album sleeve sells at auction for £15,000: An album sleeve signed by all four members of Led Zeppelin has sold for £15,000 at auction, despite not containing the actual record. The cardboard sleeve of the 1973 album Houses of the Holy was only estimated to sell for between £1,200 and £1,800. Items signed by all band members are rare, due to drummer John Bonham’s 1980 death and the band’s subsequent split. The seller acquired the autographs during a chance encounter at Gatwick Airport in 1977. Despite missing its vinyl record, and also showing some light wear and tear to the corners and edges, the price achieved for the album sleeve is believed to be an auction record for signed copies of Houses of the Holy, the band’s fifth studio album. The cover was shot at the Giant’s Causeway in County Antrim and is a collage of several photographs featuring two naked child models.
