TVD’s The Idelic Hour with Jon Sidel

Greetings from Laurel Canyon!

If you haven’t figured it out by now, The Vinyl District, the blog that hosts this column and my weekly radio hour, is the official blog for Record Store Day next Saturday. Obviously record shops are meaningful to all of us in the TVD family and I thought I’d a get a jump on the crowd and dedicate this week’s Idelic Hour to Record Store Day.

Last year I came up with the idea of going on a field trip to a local shop and got intimate with LA Records one of the cooler shops here in town. It was very inspiring but to be honest, I don’t hang in record shops like I once did. For me snuggled in Laurel Canyon, the internet is the ultimate in record shopping! I cannot recall a day that I have not been completely interested in hearing and adding a new record to my collection!

Years ago, I believe 1982, my collection of 45’s burned in a fire. Before that time I was one of those collectors who sought to own every 7-inch for all my favorite bands. A singles collector is a rare breed. It takes the type of heart that most music fans simply do not have. It’s these cherished individual collectors that are the muse for this week’s show I’m calling Idelic “Every Day Record Shop.”

For my field trip this year I went to visit mega record shop, Amoeba Records here on Sunset Strip. I wasn’t so interested in thumbing through bins as connecting with two collectors, Kevin and Mahssa, who work in the back room sorting through hundreds of 45’s to pick as collectables.

More than any two people I know, their dedication to their collection has been inspirational. I don’t believe I would even have a radio show if it weren’t for the records Kevin Fitzgerald has turned me onto. So, with the collector in mind, tune into this week’s set.

Bands in the collectable mix: Panda Bear who’s finally releasing his new LP for RSD. Fleet Foxes, The Strokes, and Salem who are living up to hype, and newcomers Mount Moriah and Dirty Gold soon to be collectable.