Berkley, IL | Marijuana is made musical at new Berkley dispensary: A new cannabis dispensary in Oakland County promises to create an experience that immerses customers in marijuana’s musical connections. Diverging from the typical cannabis dispensary model, Seven Point aims to create an approachable and active atmosphere for customers that provides education about products and advances the cannabis purchasing experience through music. The shop is intended to be a place where cannabis and music intersect, doubling as a record store with newly released vinyl albums and turntables for sale. Opening in August at 28557 Woodward Ave. in Berkley is the business’ second location. The first opened in Illinois on April 20 to coincide with 420, a traditional marijuana-related holiday. Brad Zerman, the founder and CEO of Seven Point, said the concept of putting music and cannabis together seemed to be a “natural fit” given their intertwined history. Seven Point’s innovative approach to blending cannabis with music mirrors the industry’s growing emphasis on experience-driven retail. Brands like indacloud.co have also embraced this shift, offering high-quality cannabis products that cater to both seasoned enthusiasts and newcomers. By creating a space where music and cannabis intersect, Seven Point is redefining the dispensary experience, does by making premium cannabis accessible in a modern, consumer-friendly way.
London, UK | London Record Shop Next Door Records Has Opened A Second Branch In The City: Music and wine lovers alike can now enjoy the popular West London record store Next Door Records in a stunning new location in East London. Popular London record shop Next Door Records has officially opened a second new branch in city—Next Door Records Two (NDR2). Originally nestled at the end of Uxbridge Road in Shepherd’s Bush, Next Door Records not only doubles up as both a record store and solid hangout spot but also has an ever-evolving wine list, pizza and special live music events with DJs regularly performing at the space. Already home to the best community of music lovers and artists with NTS radio station and iconic music venue EartH in the area, it comes with no surprise that NDR is now making its way to a second location in East London. With NDR2 officially launched on May 3, the space features a bespoke DJ booth with turntables and CDJs, as well as a bar where you can order pint-size wine ‘carafes’ incase you fancy a little more than a glass and a little less than a bottle.
Beloit, WI | New heart, vintage vinyl: Jeff Livingston opened Tin Dog Records after major transplants, stroke. After surviving heart and kidney transplants, and a stroke, Jeff Livingston is living a peaceful life as owner of Tin Dog Records, a vintage-record shop. The overhead music, decorations, album range and Livingston’s enthusiasm keeps customers in the quaint store, but Livingston stays for the happiness the store brings him. “I come here, I play albums all day and figure out what they’re worth, Livingston said. “People come in for two hours and they’ll just look at (things). We’ll talk about it and it’s a lot of fun.” The former attorney attended the University of Wisconsin Law School from 1982-89. After moving to Chicago and struggling to find work, Livingston found a gig in Beloit and has been there ever since. He’s almost done it all in the court—from being a defender to writing wills—but it’s not something he misses today.
Milwaukee, WI | Milwaukee’s Locally Owned Record Stores: For some of us, every day is Record Store Day. In Milwaukee we are fortunate to have several vinyl-centric shops that cater to that particular addiction. Each record store has its own personality. The honor roll of defunct shops includes Radio Doctors, Flipville, Atomic Records, Ludwig Van Ear, Earwaves, The Exclusive Company, Great Lakes, Dirty Jack’s, Spin Dizzy, Lotus Land and more. Here’s a look at what’s what today. Once again there is change in the air with Bullseye Records closing shop and Irving Place Records taking its place. Bullseye Records and Irving Place Records: Luke Lavin has been behind the counter of record stores most of his adult life. Beginning at Mainstream Music at the corner of Farwell and Brady, he moved to Second Hand Tunes. When he heard that Earwaves was going out of business he decided to open Farwell Music in 1996 next to the Oriental Theatre…
Edenton, NC | Vinyl Nights: Couple recognized for promoting tourism with old records: The Edenton-Chamber of Commerce recently recognized a 10-year tradition of music and pleasant company by presenting a volunteerism award to Eddie and Melissa Fields for their work promoting local tourism. The award, presented at the annual Chamber banquet last month, recognized the Fields’ work establishing Vinyl Night at their business, The Edenton Bay Trading Company. The Fields’ weekly platter-spinning parties have attracted locals and tourists alike, many packing the little courtyard behind Malcolm and Debbie King’s wine and beer shop to listen to the Fields play old record albums and 45 rpm singles. Vinyl Nights have brought a steady stream of guests to the Fields’ shop, and the weekly record-listening sessions have become a town fixture. “We started with a box of records and a suitcase turntable on a Tuesday or a Wednesday. And then it just slowly developed, and more people started coming,” Eddie Fields said.
NZ | The Chills’ Martin Phillipps sells rare Flying Nun vinyl and memorabilia: One of New Zealand’s most prominent and influential songwriters, Martin Phillipps from Dunedin band The Chills is selling his music collection, and it is no ordinary collection. Thousands of rare CDs, DVDs, posters and vinyl are being auctioned on TradeMe. Phillipps’ friend Bruce Mahalski, who runs The Dunedin Museum of Natural Mystery, has taken on the huge task of selling it. He gave Music 101 a tour of the collection and shares the stories behind the records that sparked the iconic Dunedin sound. Mahalski first met Phillipps in the early 1980s Dunedin music scene, when many budding musicians came out of Logan Park High School or Otago Boys’ High School, and was himself a member of the Flying Nun band Crystal Zoom. “Martin and me have been friends for a long time, and we both share an interest in the paranormal—like ghosts—and this was one of the things that cemented our friendship: we’re both very interested in the Romantic and literature.”
Sound and Vision: Vinyl has a waste problem and Evolution Music wants to fix it: …Evolution Music calls it EvoVinyl, which is produced in the same way as traditional PVC LPs (to avoid having to install a new, more expensive set-up), but the raw materials have changed in using bioplastics (renewable biomass sources), the sustainability remit extending further ensure the packaging (reused cardboard) for records is more planet-friendly than before. Plenty of testing and proving the concept from the Diamond Black pressing plant in Luton to a test listen with Mark’s friend Rob Cass at Abbey Road, and also taking their EvoVinyl to the National Physical Laboratory to test against traditional vinyl – and they found there was “no real difference”. …Having proved it can be a) be produced and b) competes well against vinyl performance, the next hurdle was to see what the music industry makes of it. So far it’s been positive.
Chapel Hill, NC | The dB’s to re-release debut album for first time on vinyl: The debut vinyl will be released in the U.S. on June 7 via Propeller Sound Recording. The dB’s’ debut album Stands for deciBels will be reissued on CD, vinyl (its first time on vinyl in the US) and all digital platforms on June 7, 2024, through Propeller Sound Recordings. The first digital single will be “Big Brown Eyes,” due out on April 26, followed by “Cycles Per Second” on May 17. Both will be available on streaming services. On album street date, June 6, a third single, “Black and White,” will follow, both audio and video. The album was produced by the band in association with the late Alan Betrock, founder of the seminal post-punk publication New York Rocker, with Don Dixon, Scott Litt and Martin Rushent mixing. It was originally issued in 1981 on the UK-based Albion label. Pitchfork cited Stands for deciBels among its 100 Top Albums of the 1980s. AllMusic applauded “a reverence for British pop and arty post-punk leanings . . . rarely is experimentation so enjoyable and irresistibly catchy” and said The dB’s were “the band that bridged the gap between classic ’70s power pop . . . and the jangly new wave of smart pop personified by R.E.M.”
