Keene, NH | New record store on deck for downtown Keene: Audiophiles in the Monadnock Region will soon have a new spot to stock up on vinyl records, CDs and more. Dodo Music is opening this weekend at 20 Main St. in Keene, according to owner Danny Kamps. The shop is in suite 2, above Shadow and Soul Emporium and Tea Lounge. The store is Kamps’ first foray into entrepreneurship, he said. …Kamps—a former special education teacher at Keene Middle School who most recently worked for workforce training program ApprenticeshipNH—wants his store to be similar to Turn It Up! The Keene location of Turn It Up! closed in 2018 after more than 20 years in business. “It was just a small local community music shop, which is really what I wanted to get back to…”
St. Petersburg, FL | Florida Is Home To The World’s Largest Vinyl Record Collection—And You Can See It: Tucked away in St. Petersburg, Florida, Bananas Records: Vinyl Warehouse is home to one of the most jaw-dropping vinyl record collections on the planet. With over two million records spread across three locations, this place is a dream come true for music lovers of all kinds. Whether you grew up dancing to 1960s Motown or headbanging to 1970s hard rock, chances are you will find exactly what you are looking for here. Get ready to discover why music fans from all over the world make a special trip just to visit this one-of-a-kind record warehouse in the Sunshine State. Some stores have a lot of records. Bananas Records: Vinyl Warehouse has an almost unbelievable number of them.
Grand Prairie, TX | Nostalgia, subscription fatigue drive CD sales at North Texas record store: At Forever Young Records in Grand Prairie, store manager Gary Austin has watched music trends come and go over the store’s 43 years in business. While vinyl records have been on the comeback for years thanks to nostalgic fans, CDs are making a resurgence of their own for many of the same reasons plus a few added advantages. At Forever Young Records in Grand Prairie, store manager Gary Austin has watched music trends come and go over the store’s 43 years in business. He says one of the biggest surprises lately has been the growing popularity of CDs. “It started last year with cassettes,” Austin said. “Then it turned to CDs and now CDs are selling more than cassettes.” Data company Luminate reports compact disc sales are up 16% in the first half of 2026, far outpacing the sales of vinyl.
Birmingham, AL | New hi-fi listening lounge, Ralph’s, opening in Birmingham next week: Birmingham’s newest cocktail destination is almost ready to welcome its first guests. Ralph’s Listening Room, a hi-fi cocktail lounge that combines craft cocktails with curated music on a high-end stereo system, is set to open its doors at 2204 2nd Ave N in downtown Birmingham in late July. We met with owners Qadeem and Speegle to learn more about Ralph’s before it opens to the public. At its core, a listening lounge is just what it sounds like—a place where music is the focus, not just background noise. Inspired by the jazz kissa of post-WWII Japan, listening lounges have risen in popularity in recent years, driven by the resurgence in vinyl records and the yearning for “third places”: accessible environments where people can relax and build community.
Taipei, TW | Disc Drive: Tokyo‑based Taiwanese artist Lee Kan Kyo painstakingly made models of more than 200 CDs for his new exhibition. He talks to Zian Chen about his practice and how the music we loved growing up shapes us as adults. A few weeks ago, I climbed the narrow staircase to TheCube Project Space, tucked above one of Taipei’s bustling student districts, expecting the familiar choreography of an exhibition opening: polite conversation, people pretending to look at art. Instead, everyone was riffling through racks of CDs, heads bowed in concentration. …For his solo exhibition, The Last CD, Lee Kan Kyo has painstakingly recreated more than 200 CDs by hand. Every jewel case, booklet and disc has been remade in cardboard and modelling clay, complete with handwritten track lists, while the original CD has been tucked inside each counterfeit album.
Grand Rapids, MI | Grand Rapids Vinyl Swap: Second Pressing. This is a free event. All ages welcome.After the massive success of the first edition in April, the Pyramid Scheme is excited to announce the second pressing of the Grand Rapids Vinyl Swap, which will take place on Sunday, September 13 from 4pm to 8pm. Modeled after our wildly popular annual Last Chance Holiday Market, for one night only, both rooms of the Pyramid Scheme will turn into a record collectors paradise. A unique part of what were trying to do is alongside having traditional vendor tables, were offering personal collectors the opportunity to get involved with a limited number of 24-inch round high top tables, intended for a single crate of vinyl records to sell/trade.
Cali, CO | Vinyl collectors gather in Colombia: Thousands of people gather each year in the city of Cali to celebrate the old school vinyl record, and revel in the region’s unique sounds. Colombia’s music scene is usually dominated by pop stars like Maluma and Shakira but in the city of Cali, thousands of people gather every year to celebrate the old school vinyl record, and revel in the region’s unique sounds. Following its successful debut at The Tate Modern, La Clave will reproduce Jose Luis Seijas’ ‘Salsoteca’—an installation paying tribute to Colombia’s mythical vinyl-sharing. As Seven London-based Salsa vinyl collectors select their best vinyl artwork to display and the best Salsa tracks to spin, Latinolife explains the phenomena of the ‘Salsotecas’—the legendary encounters that have helped give the city of Cali its reputation as home to the world’s most passionate Salsa lovers.
‘The Lord Of The Rings’ BBC Radio Dramatisation Comes To Limited Edition Vinyl & CD Box Sets This Christmas: The complete 1981 BBC Radio adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic fantasy is being released in its original 26-episode format for the very first time on deluxe limited edition vinyl and CD. Demon Music Group will present the original 1981 BBC Radio full-cast dramatisation of JRR Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings—in its original 26-episode format—in limited edition vinyl LP and CD box sets just in time for Christmas. Presented in its original 26-episode format for the very first time on vinyl and CD, The Lord of the Rings is the definitive BBC radio dramatisation of Tolkien’s masterpiece series. The acclaimed 1981 full-cast production, dramatised by Brian Sibley and Michael Bakewell, is presented on 14 LPs with complete cast and credits for each episode…
How a random White Stripes single became the most expensive record sold this year (on Discogs). Someone just made thousands of dollars on an unexpected 1990s vinyl record after a sale on Discogs. The online record database also serves as a marketplace for collectors to buy and sell titles. If you were asked to guess the most expensive vinyl record sold in 2026, there is little chance you’re going to get it right. Even with the hint that it “came out in the ’90s,” you’re still probably not getting it. According to information provided by Discogs, a sale was made on its platform in June that netted someone a whopping $25,000 from just one title. Not only that, but it was also just a single and not a full album. The White Stripes’ 1998 Lafayette Blues/Sugar Never Tasted So Good single is one of only 15 known copies in existence. It was the band’s second-ever single.
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