London, UK | London’s Zen Records to shut after 30 years: According to his family, shop owner Robert Douglas will be stepping back due to health issues. After nearly three decades of supplying music fans with vinyl records of house, reggae, soul, jazz, and more, North London’s Zen Records has announced its closure. In an Instagram post, it was announced that the Tottenham shop’s owner Robert Douglas will be stepping back and closing the shop later this year “due to health reasons.” The post, signed by Douglas’ family, says Zen Records will live on through Discogs, where Douglas will “continue to share rare gems from his incredible collection.” Before the shop closes, they’ve announced there will be three live-streaming DJ sessions performed live from the shop floor “in tribute to the community Zen has created.”
Glasgow, UK | The Anniesland spot hoping to become your new local home for coffee and records: Roasted Vinyl has opened next door to the Crows Nest on Crow Road and is a coffee house and record shop hybrid that’s ideal as a chill out space after you’ve perused the antiques next door. A brand new spot in Anniesland is hoping to become the new local home for coffee and records for Glasgow’s vinyl fans. Roasted Vinyl has opened next door to the Crows Nest Antique Centre on Crow Road, combining two of our favourite things—music and coffee. The new venture is open Wednesday through Sunday from 9 am until 6 pm at 950a Crow Road in Anniesland. Owner Regan revealed that after gaining contacts through close friends who work in the music industry and being given the chance by the guys at Crows Nest to reopen the coffee shop there, he wanted to create something a little different. He said: “We offer quality coffee and relaxing vibes in a quaint little spot, that’s not too bustling, where you can sit down and enjoy a wee bit of music and enjoy the experience…”
Cleveland, OH | At 300 Prospect, a Cleveland storefront where rock ‘n’ roll was born: Leon Bibb Then and Now. Leo Mintz operated Record Rendezvous until shortly before his death in 1976. It would remain open until 1987. Walk by 300 Prospect Avenue in downtown Cleveland today and you’ll see a store preparing to open—one that will soon become a marijuana dispensary. But rewind the clock a few decades, and that same address was humming with energy. It was home to Record Rendezvous—one of the most influential music stores in rock ‘n’ roll history. And its owner, Leo Mintz, helped give the genre its name and sound. “Papa Leo coined the phrase, ‘rock and roll,’” said Doug Trattner, writer, editor and four-time New York Times Best Selling Author who is also the grandson of Mintz. Mintz opened Record Rendezvous in 1938, and moved to the Prospect Avenue location in 1945. It wasn’t just a place to buy records—it was a cultural crossroads.
Hopeless Records And Fat Wreck Chords Announce Landmark Partnership, Uniting Two Of Punk’s Beloved Iconic Independent Labels: Hopeless and Fat Wreck Chords are today announcing a joint effort that unites two of punk’s most influential independent labels. In a full-circle moment more than three decades in the making, the alliance reflects both labels’ artist-first ethos and deep roots in the punk community. As part of the partnership, Hopeless is acquiring the Fat Wreck Chords catalog, but just as important is what’s being left behind. In a move guided by Fat Mike and Erin’s long held artist-first philosophy, all unrecouped balances for currently signed FAT artists will be zeroed out. No strings, no fine print, just a clean slate for every signed band that’s helped shape the label. At FAT’s request, Hopeless will adopt a no-new-signings policy for Fat Wreck Chords, ensuring all focus and resources stay on its roster.
SoundCloud teams with elasticStage to enable independent acts to create vinyl releases: SoundCloud has partnered with elasticStage to enable Artist Pro users globally to sell vinyl. Artist Pro subscribers can join the waitlist from today for the service with no upfront cost, and no minimum order requirement. Once artists are approved for the service, the vinyl-on-demand service will allow them to pick tracks from SoundCloud, add credits and upload artwork to create the release. SoundCloud will create a web page for the vinyl and list it for sale. In partnership with UK company elasticStage, SoundCloud will release and ship each record as orders come in and artists then get paid for every sale. Shipping is available to over 90 countries. …The elasticStage on-demand model means only the vinyl that is ordered is produced, with artists getting paid for every sale. The company will handle all processing, shipping and customer service requests.
DJ Target on vinyl rituals, grime’s misunderstood legacy and why radio still matters: As Roll Deep celebrates twenty years, the member of the grime collective looks back on the early days of his craft. When you think about the voices that shaped UK music from pirate sets to prime time, DJ Target’s name sits front and centre. The east London legend, one of grime’s original architects with crews such as Pay As U Go Cartel and Roll Deep, has spent over two decades breaking artists, championing underground sounds and—true to form—finding ways to slow us down for a moment of deep listening. Recently, he teamed up with Monkey Shoulder Whisky and KEF Audio for a special pop-up, where he curated an exclusive vinyl selection alongside Katy B and DJ Arthi. As he looks back on twenty years of Roll Deep, the timeless power of radio and fatherhood’s impact on his legacy, DJ Target speaks to HUNGER about the roots, the rituals and the community that keeps him spinning.
IN | Universal India revives Bollywood catalogue with vinyl reissues: In addition to the launch of such decidedly 21st-century concepts as a new I-Pop band and a “shoppable” music video, Universal Music India also harked back to a simpler time this week, with the re-release on vinyl of three classic Hindi film soundtracks in its catalogue, R. D. Burman’s ‘Rocky’ (1981) and ‘Yeh Vaada Raha’ (1982) and A. R. Rahman’s ‘Bombay’ (1995), which are now available through distributor Basking Shark’s website Blisstainment.com. Basking Shark, which sells music and movies in a variety of physical formats, is now the official licensor of the major’s domestic Bollywood and Indian pop repertoire, which are being remastered for vinyl. The label didn’t announce how many titles it will release but has pressed 500 copies of the initial batch of three, and plans to re-issue the soundtrack of the iconic Hindi film ‘Sholay’ as part of the celebrations to mark 50 years of the blockbuster’s release.
Chicago, IL | The compact disc isn’t going quietly: Vinyl has long been the big story in physical media, but CDs are cheaper, quicker to manufacture, and poised for a comeback. At Begyle Brewing on Sunday, June 8, the Chicago Independent Radio Project hosted its third CD Blowout Sale. CHIRP founder and general manager Shawn Campbell says the sale’s debut in May 2022 was a way for CHIRP to get back into hosting public gatherings after the arrival of COVID. It had to be outdoors, and it had to be a lighter lift than the big annual CHIRP Record Fair & Other Delights, which took at least six months to plan (and which ended its 20-year run in November). CHIRP has a lot of CDs, and the CD Blowout Sale was also a way to do something useful with them. The station has collected CD donations since its inception, and every Record Fair featured CHIRP tables overflowing with cheap CDs.
GZ North America Launches Vinyl Visualizer Tool: GZNA launch the Vinyl Visualizer, a free and interactive online tool for vinyl design. GZ North America (GZNA) has launched the Vinyl Visualizer, a free tool that simplifies vinyl color and effect selection for artists and labels. For the first time, users can explore GZNA’s full color and effect catalog and generate realistic mockups of their record before going to press. Designed with creativity and control in mind, the Vinyl Visualizer allows users to explore the GZNA photo database in three distinct ways: By Color: Use a color picker, enter a HEX code, or browse a list view to find matching vinyl options. By Effect: Start with a vinyl effect to see the combinations available in-house. By Artwork: Upload your cover art and center labels to generate color suggestions and visual mockups that align with your album design.
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