In rotation: 10/14/19

Calgary, UK | Prairie Records Tops the Charts: Named Top Cannabis Retailer in Canada at Grow UP: Singing a different tune in cannabis retail, the award win is a testament to how Prairie Records is offering Canadian’s a truly unprecedented purchasing experience. It is extremely gratifying to have Prairie Records be recognized at one of the industry’s largest events and to be able to stand out amongst a field of very worthy retail competitors, says Adam Coates, Chief Commercial Officer at Westleaf and Retail Brand Strategist for Prairie Records. We set out to make waves in a sea of sameness by creating an immersive experience like no other in the marketplace, and we are pleased and honoured to receive this, the first Grow UP Conference retail award. Ten companies were nominated in the Grow UP retail category at this year’s event, the first for the industry. Among the nominees were independent stores and well-known national chains. Prairie Records was recognized based on delivering an unparalleled consumer purchasing experience and creating a welcoming brand for cannabis consumers.

Kelowna, BC | Vinyl-loving couple to sell records inside Kelowna collectibles store: A Kelowna couple has decided to partner up with a collectibles shop in the city, giving record-lovers a new spot to get their vinyl fix. Doogie and Rita Irvine have been actively collecting LPs and 45s since the ‘60s, garnering over 50,000 albums and singles along the way. After decades of adding to and caring for their collection, the pair decided that they wanted to share the love and bolster their retirement fund by selling it off. “We never made the complete switch to CDs,” said Reta. “The sound quality of vinyl is just so much better,” added Doogie. “We just kept collecting albums and it was always our plan that when we retired to have our collection help fund it, so we are lucky it has come back in such a big way,” laughed Rita. For the last 10 years, the Irvines have been traveling and setting up makeshift shop at vinyl fairs across the country, selling their beloved records to the new wave of waxheads.

Manningtree, UK | Vinyl shop shortlisted for best small shop gong: A wine and record shop has been shortlisted in a national competition which celebrates the commitment and creativity of independent retailers on high streets. Winyl, an independent record and wine store based in South Street, Manningtree, is in the running to be named Britain’s Best Small Shop by the Independent Retailers Confederation. Winyl specialises in new, special edition vinyl and some vintage vinyl, which has been cleaned and graded. The shop hosts regular free events and clubs. Mark Walmsley, chairman of the Independent Retailers Confederation, said: “It’s all about recognising the community and culture that is independent retail.”

Belfast, IE | HMV to open more new stores over the next year: The owner of HMV said the company will return to opening new stores over the next year, just eight months after it shut a raft of high street shops after being rescued from administration. Doug Putman, who purchased the music retailer in February, said the business will pump cash into new sites and refurbishments. He said the retailer is “under-indexed in London”, saying there is room for expansion in the capital as the company eyes new locations for its growth strategy. Mr Putman revealed his ambitions ahead of the launch of HMV’s largest ever store, which is being called HMV Vault, at Dale End in Birmingham. The store, which the retailer said will be the largest entertainment store in Europe, is due to open on Friday after a “multimillion-pound investment” in the new site. The store, which will stock more than 100,000 LPs and CDs, has been constructed with a large performance area at its centre and will be launched with a live performance by former One Direction singer Liam Payne.

Los Angeles, CA | The Get Together Indie Record Label Fair to Make West Coast Debut: Indie record label market and music fair The Get Together will make its West Coast debut next month at the Museum of Contemporary Art in downtown Los Angeles. Following three successful seasons in New York City, Other Music has paired up with L.A. concert/event power team Spaceland and the MOCA to bring their indie artist vinyl/merch fair and music showcase extravaganza to Southern California. The event, which takes place November 15-16 at the museum’s Geffen Contemporary space, will feature a kickoff party (Friday evening), marketplace (Saturday 11 a.m.–5 p.m.) with a chance to shop merch and vinyl from a large selection of indie labels from around the world, including Sub Pop, Domino, Secretly Canadian, Dead Oceans, 4AD, Epitaph, Anti, Fat Possum, Burger, Rough Trade and more, and a Big Crown Records showcase (Saturday 6p.m.–10 p.m.) with performances from Lee Fields backed by El Michels Affair, Bobby Oroza, Brainstory, Holy Hive and DJs Ruben Molina & Danny Akalepse.

Cut Your Own Vinyl Records With This $1,100 Machine: The Phonocut is an at-home vinyl lathe, allowing anyone with a digital audio file and a dream to make a 10-inch record. Better clear out several shelves of storage space, vinylheads, because your record collection is about to expand into infinity. Soon, you’ll be able to get absolutely anything on vinyl. Even better—you’ll be able to make it. The Phonocut is an analog vinyl lathe, the first consumer device capable of making custom records immediately, right there in your home (assuming you’re willing to pay $1,100 for the privilege). The device cuts 10-inch vinyl records, which can hold about 10 to 15 minutes of audio on each side. It’s a connected device; a companion app helps with formatting and song arrangement to better fit your music onto the two sides. But at its core, the Phonocut was designed for simplicity. All you have to do is plug in an audio cable, like from a headphone jack, and press Play. “It has to be idiot-proof,” says Florian “Doc” Kaps, an Austrian analog enthusiast and Phonocut cofounder. “Even I myself should be in a position to cut the records.”

Why Record Companies Will Destroy Vinyl Record Sales: The surge in vinyl record sales took the music industry by surprise about seven or eight years ago. The sale of vinyl records was a format that was destroyed by the birth of the CD in the early 1980s. It was amazing how quickly CDs took over record stores within just a couple of years. At times, people were shocked to walk into a record store and find there were no more records. By the 1990s, with the exception of the mom and pop collectors, stores most major retail outlets no longer carried vinyl records… Many people would argue that despite all the new technological advances in pop culture on the the digital end, record companies refusal to lower prices of CDs played a significant role in the demise of the CD. The same issue is now happening with the resurgence of vinyl.

8 MTV Unplugged Performances That Should Get Vinyl Reissues: Pearl Jam is the latest band to have their MTV Unplugged performance reissued on vinyl. The band’s 1992 unplugged set will be released on limited edition vinyl on Record Store Day’s Black Friday event on November 29. Pearl Jam’s news follows the announcement that Nirvana’s iconic MTV Unplugged in New York performance, which was released as an album in 1994 following Kurt Cobain’s death, is getting a deluxe 25th anniversary reissue. MTV started the Unplugged series in 1989, and provided artists with an opportunity to showcase their songs in a stripped down, intimate setting. Many musicians have graced the Unplugged stage, but not all of their performances have withstood the test of time. For example, the Winger and Slaughter episode that aired in 1991 doesn’t have the same gravitas as the Elvis Costello, R.E.M., or The Cure sets also from that year. Most of the performances, however, are a delight to revisit. In addition to Pearl Jam’s upcoming vinyl and others that have already made it to that format (Alice in Chains, for example), here are a few back-in-the-day performances we wouldn’t mind dropping on the turntable.

US record industry puts spotlight back on AM/FM royalties debate: Today is the one year anniversary of America’s Music Modernization Act being signed into law. With that in mind the boss of US collecting society SoundExchange has teamed up with Common to pen an op-ed piece arguing that music copyright laws in the country are actually yet to be truly modernised. Why? Because the big AM/FM radio get out remains. The MMA brought together a number of different reforms of US music copyright law. It included an overhaul of the way the mechanical rights in songs are licensed and managed, removed a quirk that meant recordings released before 1972 often weren’t getting royalties from online radio, and revamped the rate courts that oversee the licences issue by song right collecting societies BMI and ASCAP. However, what it didn’t address is the fact that, in the US, unlike most other countries, AM/FM radio stations are not obliged to get a license from or pay royalties to the record industry.

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