Seattle, WA | 3 small WA businesses voted most worth a 1-hour drive: Easy Street Records. Which small businesses in western Washington are worth a one-hour drive? This is the question a new survey sought to answer. Easy Street Records on California Avenue in West Seattle made the top of the list this year. Shops in Bellingham and Seattle rounded out the top three. “More than a record shop—it’s a culture hub. With live shows, diner food, killer coffee, and a stacked vinyl collection, this is where Seattle music lovers feel at home. Loyal fans always return for a browse, a pancake, and a Pearl Jam sighting,” read the study results from Advance Funds Network, in part.
SG | Over 1,400 records and rare Oasis gems: CNA938’s Melanie Oliveiro shares her 37-year vinyl journey. From autographed records to rare misprinted vinyls, CNA938’s radio anchor Melanie Oliviero took us through her record collection that began in 1988. A fellow British rock band Oasis lover, she tells CNA Lifestyle her passion for music and how she even met the band members. Stepping into CNA938 radio presenter Melanie Oliveiro’s apartment feels like walking into a collector’s dream. The walls are decked with band and movie posters, and the cabinets are brimming with records, figurines and books. But the real showstopper? Her vinyl collection, which boasts a sprawling archive that tells the story of a lifelong obsession with music in all its formats and forms. She’s even got an entire room devoted to her prized record collection—a true nerd cave in the best sense.
VN | 50 years after fall of Saigon, cherished Vietnamese music plays on: …In 2023, Tân co-founded SEA Vinyl Society, a crew of crate-digging disc jockeys celebrating “music from across the Asian diaspora.” Tân first started collecting records 15 years ago, mostly American rock and soul, until she came across the “Saigon Rock & Soul” compilation released by boutique Seattle label Sublime Frequencies. The album captures a vibrant Saigon music scene from 1968 to 1974 that was heavily influenced by the presence of American troops during the war. The irresistible funk grooves, garage rock riffs and soulful ballads from artists like Hùng Cường and Mai Lệ Huyền sent Tân down a YouTube rabbit hole, where music that was once banned by the communist regime from North Vietnam—which took control of the South once the war ended—had resurfaced thanks to a crowdsourced community of collectors.
Devon, UK | Famous bands’ lost songs rescued by Plymouth record label: Early tracks from The Status Quo and The Sweet have been given a new life. A Devon record label has rescued singles by two of the 1970s biggest bands from the scrapheap of obscurity. In A Spin Vinyl, based in Exeter and Plymouth, is giving new life to early efforts by The Status Quo and The Sweet. It has re-released the 45s in new sleeves with a welter of new information about the bands – including an exclusive interview with Quo founder Francis Rossi. In A Spin Vinyl co-founder John Griffiths, also of Exeter’s record fair business HDR Music Group, tracked down Rossi and original Quo drummer John Coghlan and included the interviews in the lavish colour insert that comes with the reissue of the psyche single Technicolour Dreams, backed by Paradise Flats. “It came out in 1968 but was quickly withdrawn,” said John. “So it was the obvious choice to bring back out and get people to experience it.”
Burn the Algorithm: Why Bandcamp’s Survival Matters More Than Spotify’s Billion-Dollar Playlist Machine. Bandcamp’s future is uncertain under Songtradr. Here’s why indie artists still need your support—and why Spotify isn’t the answer in 2025. …Buying records, going direct to artists, finding ways to support the people who actually make the music you love—that’s the real work. Always has been. Always will be. In a world where algorithms decide what you hear and who gets paid, Bandcamp remains one of the last real outposts for musicians who actually make music—not just content. If you love music and you’re tired of billion-dollar platforms treating artists like background noise for ad sales, you should care about Bandcamp. It’s that simple. No one’s coming to save independent music. Not the labels. Not the tech companies. It’s on us—the listeners who actually care—to show up, buy the album, grab the vinyl, tell a friend. Music’s rebellion doesn’t start with some massive headline. It starts small, with one choice: support the artists you love while you still can.
7 ‘boomer habits’ younger generations are finally starting to appreciate: Remember when your parents or grandparents would insist on certain habits, and you’d roll your eyes thinking, “That’s so old-fashioned?” Well, here’s a twist. A lot of those ‘boomer habits’, which we once dismissed as outdated and irrelevant, are now making a comeback. …There’s something about the scratchy yet warm sound of a vinyl record that takes you back in time. I’ll admit, I used to think my parents were hoarding when they refused to part with their extensive vinyl collection. But then I heard the rich, raw sound that only vinyl can deliver. I was hooked. And it seems I’m not the only one. Vinyl sales have been steadily increasing in recent years, with younger generations taking an interest in this ‘archaic’ format. There’s just something special about holding a physical record, admiring the artwork on the sleeve and experiencing music in its purest form.
Nicole Scherzinger Edition of Sunset Blvd.: The Album Will Be Released on Vinyl This Summer: Jamie Lloyd’s revival of the Andrew Lloyd Weber musical recently picked up seven 2025 Tony nominations, including Best Revival of a Musical. To mark its seven 2025 Tony nominations, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Blvd., currently playing Broadway’s St. James Theatre, will release a special edition of Sunset Blvd.: The Album celebrating Olivier winner and current Tony nominee Nicole Scherzinger this summer. Sunset Blvd.: The Album (Nicole Scherzinger Edition), which will be released on vinyl from The Other Songs label, is currently available for pre-order by visiting SunsetBlvdAlbum.com. The forthcoming release will feature exclusive imagery and photography celebrating Scherzinger’s portrayal of Norma Desmond.
Harry Potter original motion picture soundtracks to be available on vinyl June 6th: Rhino has just announced that the first four Harry Potter original motion picture soundtracks will be available on 2LP black vinyl on June 6th. After announcing the 16-LP box set in 2024, Harry Potter: The Complete Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, Rhino will now be releasing four individual motion picture soundtrack LPs as well. This new collection is set to include the original motion picture soundtrack albums for the first four films in the franchise, including Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Each of these will be available as 2LPs each on black vinyl.
Trump’s Tariffs Could Hit You in an Unexpected Place: Your Vinyl Collection. Volatility and anti-American resentment are already hurting the niche vinyl industry, but a little-known law could help it survive. As the chaotic rollout of President Donald Trump’s tariffs last week rattled the nerves of companies across nearly every industry in America and around the globe, one small business owner in the San Francisco Bay Area was trying to figure out if he could finagle his way through a loophole. Eric Mueller, of the punk rock record label and vinyl importer Pirates Press. was wondering whether he could classify his company’s records—which include colored vinyl releases by bands like Rancid, the Slackers, and Cock Sparrer—as “informational material.” Doing so would allow the records to be imported from overseas pressing plants without incurring a tariff under a little-known law. More than anything Mueller is hoping to find peace of mind. “The volatility is insane,” he says.
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