Aberdeen, UK | Independent records store to open new Aberdeen branch next month after years of planning: Assai Records sells a range of items including vinyls, CDs and merchandise, as well as hosting special events such as artist signing sessions and in-store performances. An independent record store with three shops across Scotland is set to open its fourth branch in Aberdeen next month. Assai Records announced the news on social media, with the store set to open on Back Wynd, with vacancies advertised online. Launched a decade ago on Dundee’s Union Street, the company has since expanded to Glasgow and Edinburgh in the years following, with the team revealing the plans had been three years in the making to open in Aberdeen. Assai sells a range of items including vinyl records, CDs and merchandise, as well as hosting special events such as artist signing sessions and in-store performances. Taking to Instagram to share the news, Assai said: “New store announcement!”
Manassas, VA | Manassas shop owner Deron Blevins named ‘Spirit of Prince William.’ Black Metal Mercantile offers novelties, heavy metal hits. The door is always propped open at Black Metal Mercantile in Old Town Manassas. That’s because owner Deron Blevins says there’s a little something for everyone inside, so they might as well come in. “I used to have a cheap cardboard sign that I would hold up outside, and it said, ‘Come on in, browsing equals $0,’” Blevins said. “Eighty percent of the time that sign worked—and just for kicks, I tracked if they ended up buying something, and that little cardboard sign made me $450 in the first year.” Blevins, 55, said he bet on himself back in 2023 when he opened Black Metal Mercantile on Center Street in Old Town Manassas. Blevins was part owner of Shining Sol Candle Company but left when the opportunity presented itself to open a shop that was uniquely him.
Indianapolis, IN | Indy CD & Vinyl rebirth built with community in mind: The owners of Indy CD & Vinyl say the Broad Ripple business’s next chapter is purpose built with the entire neighborhood in mind. Why it matters: In addition to bringing back the live stage that Indy’s largest independent record shop lost during the pandemic, a grand reopening celebration held over the weekend included the debut of a new space that aims to transform a tragedy into opportunity. …As the next-door neighbors to Landsharks, Indy CD & Vinyl owners Andy and Annie Skinner made the decision to expand into the vacant space to create “The 808,” an all-ages community stage and event venue. What they’re saying: “Not only did we have to deal with losing a neighbor that we’ve had for 20 some years and someone losing their life, but we were also faced with the prospect of public perception,” Andy told Axios
Reno, NV | A Young Person’s Love for Buying Vinyl Records Locally: …I have 20+ records currently in my collection, which is still growing. To play my vinyl records, I started out with one of those suitcase record players, which had a messed up tone-arm that didn’t quite reach the record. I had to balance a coin on it to weigh it down enough, probably not the best thing to do. When my parents realized I was getting more interested in records, they got me a nicer record player from the Jensen brand. It’s a little bigger than the suitcase, comes with speakers, and can also be used as a radio, CD player, and cassette tape player. …I try to go to Recycled Records during my free time, sometimes alone. It’s more fun with friends when we make a day a group outing out of it. The prices are still a little steep for me, but I can splurge for one or two every once and a while. I also try to add the records I don’t have, and want, to my birthday/ Christmas lists.
New York, NY | Biohazard Performs At New York City Record Store To Celebrate ‘Divided We Fall’ Album Release: This past Friday, October 17, the reunited classic lineup of BIOHAZARD celebrated the release of Divided We Fall, the band’s first studio album in over a decade, by performing live at the Rough Trade NYC record store, nestled in Manhattan’s Rockefeller Center, only steps away from the iconic Radio City Music Hall in New York City. Fan-filmed video of the show can be seen below. …Well, the album was a long time coming because the band wasn’t really doing anything for a long time. The band got back together in 2023. We started doing some shows, we started touring, and everybody started talking about, ‘Hey, why don’t we do a record?’, our managers and everybody. And that was it. It was just we started talking about it. We started getting together with the purpose of writing songs and seeing how that went. After a while, we kind of hit our stride and the songs just kind of came quick. And, yeah, boom—next thing you know, we’re making a new Biohazard album, Divided We Fall. Here we are.”
Lancaster, PA | Ask a Local—Favorite Places to Listen to Vinyl: Tellus 360 with Major Vibes: Wax on Wednesdays happens every Wednesday at 9 p.m. at Tellus, with Major Vibes taking over the main bar area to spin and mix vinyl until midnight. Wax on Wednesdays has been a fixture at Tellus for about a decade, and admission is free. Projected on a screen behind the Major are a variety of visuals, from anime to nature videos to old movies or whatever strikes his fancy. The sizable crowd definitely vibes to the music, with a few people getting up to shimmy. The music spans genres and decades, and Major Vibes may invite guests and friends to take a turn spinning and mixing their own sounds. You are also welcome to bring your favorite vinyl for Major Vibes to slide into the mix.
Southampton, UK | DJ Ridney completes Guinness World Record vinyl shop bid: A DJ and music producer is awaiting confirmation of his Guinness World Record after a mad dash across the South Coast to 32 vinyl record stores in 24 hours. Paul Ridney, a Cafe Mambo Ibiza resident who has released music with some of the biggest labels in dance and had his music featured on Love Island, among other TV hits, wanted to celebrate his lifelong love of vinyl by breaking the record for the most vinyl retail stores visited in a day. He clocked up 34,000 steps, as well as several train and bus journeys, as he went to 32 shops and purchased a vinyl at 28 of them, with four of them closed when he turned up to visit. Paul, from Nursling, has now submitted his claim to be the new world record holder, with the previous best standing at 20 stores visited in the same timeframe. He said: “I’m still crossing my fingers as all the logs need to go to the wonderful people at Guinness World Records, and they need to then say it’s an official thing…”
The Interior Designer’s guide to vinyl storage: A guide to help interior designers understand what clients really want from vinyl storage. And how it can fit beautifully into your design concepts. When clients say “I collect vinyl”—are you ready? Here’s an interior design challenge that’s increasingly common: your client is a music lover and has a vinyl record collection. It’s scattered everywhere throughout the house. And garage. Maybe a few hundred of them. Perhaps a thousand. They don’t actually know how many! They wave at some Ikea Kallax units, odd boxes, milk crates or creaking fixed shelves stuffed with vinyl and say “I need to bring everything together… my partner has had enough!” Welcome to 2025, a year when the vinyl revival has evolved from hipster trend to mainstream cultural force. It’s creating fascinating opportunities for interior designers who know how to integrate vinyl storage into a design scheme without it looking like a record shop just exploded.
Northbrook, IL | The Flip Side: Where Chicago Rocked: Created by Chicago natives Carl and Larry Rosenbaum, The Flip Side grew from an idea into a record store and then into a chain of popular music sources. Somewhere along the way those stores sprouted an entire second identity as Chicago’s premier concert promoter in the 70s and 80s. The Flip Side: Where Chicago Rocked is a book that takes you through the lifespans of both the record store chain and their concert business. Larry gives you a look “behind the counter” and shows you how everything was built, how it all lived and breathed, and shares many of the funny and not-so-funny stories that took place. Revisit what was a great time in Chicago and an even better time in rock and roll.
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