New Castle, PA | New shop hoping to recreate old-school experience: John Gutierrez remembers growing up attending novelty and penny stores in his youth, where children could get penny candy and hang out. Now, years later, he wants to recreate that experience in New Castle. He and his fiancée, Carrie Statti,held a grand opening for their new shop, Times Like These, on Thursday. It is located at 26 N. Mill St. in Washington Centre. “I wanted to give back to the community,” Gutierrez said. Gutierrez said the store will sell a variety of new and used/wholesale items, such as pop-culture T-shirts and other clothing, tin signs, posters, flags, comic wall art, books, fishing items, board games, kites, toy airplanes and vinyl records. The store will sell chips and soda, as well as candy under $1. “Anything that reminds you of your childhood we’ll have,” Gutierrez said.
East Longmeadow, MA | High hopes for another hit: 2nd location for Raspberries Records opens in East Longmeadow: Bob Roccanti sorted through tens of thousands of vintage vinyl records before selecting the first ones he’d sell at his new Raspberries Records II store in East Longmeadow. He picked Johnny Cash, Nirvana, The Beatles, Grateful Dead and Led Zeppelin to lead off. They were among hundreds of other revered bands and singers featured during his recent grand opening. Roccanti handpicks his stock—well over 30,000 titles now in his store—at estate sales. He buys others from used record stores that go out of business. His customers also come in to sell him their collections. These days he’s looking for records by Pink Floyd and David Bowie. Both are especially hot. “They’re iconic, and they have large followings. ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ (by Pink Floyd) is 50 years old and is still one of the top-selling albums in the country, even among newer artists,” he said.
Norwich, UK | Record store gives young bands chance to play live: Budding bands have been given a boost with the chance to play on stage at a city’s local record store. Access Creative College (ACC) has teamed up with HMV in Norwich to give students the opportunity to showcase their music at free public events in the shop. College bands played there last Saturday and a further three are set for the stage on Saturday. Dan Foden, the head of campus at ACC Norwich, said it was a “privilege” for students to be able to play at HMV and that the college could not wait for them “to wow audiences at the Live and Local showcase.” Grassroots music venues can offer a vital launchpad for fledgling acts. However the last annual report by the charity The Music Venues Trust (MVT) said that financial stresses led 125 UK venues to abandon live music in 2023, with more than half of these shutting entirely.
London, UK | FLINTA-focused turntablism and vinyl event, Spin Spin Sugar, set for Dalston Superstore: The event, run by Vinyl Bitch, will feature a FLINTA-led turntable workshop and record swap followed by a club night. A new FLINTA-focused turntablism and vinyl event is set to take place at Dalston Superstore later this week. The event – run by London-based community platform Vinyl Bitch – is dedicated to empowering and celebrating FLINTA (Female, Lesbian, Intersex, Nonbinary, Trans, Agender) individuals in the art of turntablism and vinyl culture. Tickets are available here. Vinyl Bitch was founded last year by Atlanta-born vinyl DJ and producer MADDØG, aka Madison True, as a “non-judgemental and encouraging space” for turntablists of all skill levels to explore vinyl DJing. No previous experience is required and tutorials are given 30 minutes before needles drop.
Huddersfield, UK | The Turntable Coffee and Vinyl review: Huddersfield’s chart-topping cafe and record store bucking the New Street trend: A few weeks back we published an article on the number of empty shop units in Huddersfield’s New Street. Quite rightly, many will be concerned on a trip to Huddersfield town centre to see the amount of empty premises. In contrast, and as something of a welcome boost, it is a great pleasure to sing the praises of a New Street business very much in-demand. While visiting the town, I recently made my first visit (which I’m sure will be one many) to The Turntable Coffee and Vinyl. Serving a combo of delightful treats and great music, I’ll level, I was sold from the off. Judging by how busy it was, during my Friday lunchtime stop, I’m not the only one. The outside seating was pretty full so I set up base inside the cafe and record store. Quite a few indoors were working remotely to the soundtrack of Blondie, Avril Lavinge and Robbie Williams—the music coming courtesy of a record player.
Richmond, VA | The Richmond Record Riot! Over 10,000 LPs in one room! Sat June 15th At Stony Point Fashion Park: The Richmond Record Riot! It’s a MASSIVE vinyl record POP-UP sale at Stony Point Fashion Park! Sat June 15th. Over 15,000 vinyl records in ONE ROOM! Great music and family fun. LPs, CDs and 45s. A giant record store lands in Richmond VA! Dealers from far and wide converge for a giant music sale! Sat June 15th at Stony Point Fashion Park! LPs and 45s and CDs too. All types of music from punk to funk to country to classic rock, hip hop, soul/jazz and more. Dust off that turntable and come on down. Regular admission starts at 10 AM ($5) with early admission at 9 AM ($15). Don’t miss the BIG VINYL DIG!
Harrisburg, PA | The Harrisburg Record Riot! Over 10,000 LPs in one room! At Lovedraft’s in Mechanicsburg. Great food! The Harrisburg Record Riot returns! Over 30 tables of LPs & CDs. Over 10,000 LPs in one room. Great food and drink too. 10 AM-5 PM, $5 admission, $15 early at 9 AM. Great music and vinyl community! It’s a GIANT pop-up LP & CD event in Mechanicsburg! The Record Riot RETURNS! Over 30 tables of LPs, CDs, 45s and more. Dealers from all over the east coast. Punk, funk, classic rock, country, oldies, disco and more—too many records, too little time. 10 AM-5 PM $5 admission at 10 AM, $15 early at 9 AM. Great music and family fun. Door prizes all day! Don’t miss the BIG DIG! See you at the show!
Cleveland, OH | The Cleveland Record Riot! Vinyl Records!! Sun July 21st at Woodside Event Center, Broadview Hgts. The Cleveland Record RIot! It’s a BIG VINYL RECORD POP-UP sale at Woodside Event Center, 5025 Mill Road, Broadview Heights! Over 15,000 vinyl records in ONE ROOM! Great music & family fun. LPs/CDs/45s The Cleveland Record Riot RETURNS! It’s a WONDERFUL vinyl record POP-UP sale! Sun July 21st at the Woodside Event Center, 5025 Mill Road Over 15,000 vinyl records in ONE ROOM! Great music and amazing family fun. LPs, CDs and 45s. Dealers from far and wide converge for a giant music sale! All types of music from punk to funk to country to classic rock, hip hop, soul/jazz and more. Dust off that turntable and come on down. DOOR PRIZES TOO! Regular admission starts at 10 AM ($5) with early admission at 9 AM ($15). Don’t miss the BIG VINYL DIG!
Nashville, TN | Astor Added To VRMA Board: The Vinyl Record Manufacturers Association (VRMA) is pleased to announce the election of Eric Astor, Founder & Partner of Furnace Record Pressing, to its esteemed board of directors. The election took place during the recent Making Vinyl Nashville conference, an annual gathering of industry leaders and professionals. Astor brings over three decades of experience in the vinyl record industry to the VRMA board. Under his leadership, Furnace Record Pressing has become a renowned name in the vinyl manufacturing sector, known for its high-quality pressings and commitment to sustainability. Eric’s election to the board marks a significant addition to the VRMA, promising to bolster its mission of advancing the vinyl record manufacturing industry.
