Tallahassee, FL | Ownership and community: the value of physical media. …when you buy a record or CD first-hand, the industry standard is that the artist receives 10-20% royalty on that sale. This is a simple yet powerful way to ensure musicians are paid fairly for their artistry. Engaging with physical media also fosters community. Record stores and video lounges function as important “third places.” In an increasingly physically disconnected society, these spaces exist as a gathering outside of a home or workplace to interact with people with similar interests. In Tallahassee, stores like Retrofit Records, Rearview Vintage and Vinyl, Real Cool Time Records and Cap City Video Lounge are all popular third spaces, hosting live concerts, film festivals featuring local filmmakers, listening events for newly released albums, and screenings of rare films.
Rochester, NY | ‘Mission accomplished’: Record Archive celebrates 50 years of business. It’s become a destination for entertainment media, and, namely, vinyl records. Rochester’s Record Archive is celebrating 50 years in business this month. …“It’s like I had an ‘aha’ moment and decided to go for a booth that was all records. That was the 16th of September and off we went,” said Storms. In 1975, Storms brought some records to a flea market booth in Rochester. A few years later, he would go on to open Record Archive on Mount Hope Avenue. The business has since evolved into a city fixture, housing thousands upon thousands of records, movies, CDs and more in a 13,000 square-foot storefront off of East Avenue. “I’m kind of a hoarder, and the name of the store is really the mission statement. The mission was to become an archive of recorded media and that’s really our legacy.”
Jacksonville, IL | ‘No Ring, No Hope’ returning to downtown Jacksonville record store: Ringless professional wrestling will return to downtown Jacksonville this fall. “No Ring, No Hope: Back for Blood” will be at 7 p.m. Nov. 1 at Pizza Records, 56 E. Central Park Plaza. Matches will take place on the floor of the record store and will feature a death match main event bout. Wrestlers set to make an appearance at the event include returning performers Anakin Murphy, Kenny Kalix, The Luminary, Victor Analog, Gwen Neodonna and Hippie Johnny. Newcomers will include Naptown All-Pro Wrestling founder Chase Holliday and House of Heat Pro Wrestling heavyweight champion Josh Crane. The inaugural “No Ring, No Hope” event took place at the record store in November and featured four wrestling matches in between performances by central Illinois hardcore bands Keep and Javelin.
San Francisco, CA | The best dinner party in San Francisco is thrown at this bistro and vinyl bar: A new chapter begins in Mission Creek as Side A opens in the former Universal Café space. A boisterous restaurant and vinyl bar has opened its doors in San Francisco’s Mission Creek neighbourhood, occupying the same space the beloved Universal Café once did. Aptly named Side A, the site seeks to turn up the volume on Midwestern hospitality, giving American crowd-pleasers an international spin. Styled as a contemporary bistro, Side A exudes a retro-futurist aesthetic. The concept was brokered by Studio Ahead—a local design practice—which introduced husband-and-wife duo Parker and Caroline Brown, who now run Side A, to the venue’s owner Jim Skånberg. ‘We had recently met them at one of their pop-up events and were attracted to the energy they created by combining culinary and musical experiences, a spirit that would ultimately translate to the new venture,’ recall Studio Ahead’s co-founders, Elena Dendiberia and Homan Rajai.
Brooklyn, NY | The Vinyl Workshop: Welcome to the world of vinyl! We cover the ABCs of vinyl DJing and beatmatching so DJs can start their own vinyl journey. This workshop is designed to give you hands-on experience with turntables, learn the fundamentals of Vinyl DJing and connect with the roots of the culture. Playing vinyl totally changed my relationship with music and DJing. It sharpened my ears, expanded my musical taste, and got me passionate about DJing all over again. When I first started spinning records, it was like discovering DJing for the first time. …With these workshops, I want to share everything I’ve learned so you don’t have to spend years figuring out just how awesome vinyl can be. You’ll get hands-on experience with the essentials, beatmatching, and creating smooth mixes. But even more than the skills, you’ll feel the magic of vinyl and connect with music in ways screens and 0’s and 1’s just can’t match at one of the city’s best record stores, Archivio Records (DUMBO, Brooklyn).
Hayes, UK | Old Vinyl Factory Festival returns to iconic Hayes site: The Old Vinyl Factory Festival is returning to Hayes on Saturday, September 27, following its debut earlier this year. Held at Record Walk and Material Walk, the free outdoor event, from 11.30am to 5pm, will be a celebration of the borough’s rich musical heritage. In partnership with Hanwell Hootie and Intrepid Collective, the festival will feature live music performances, a vinyl record fair, curated by Groove Seekers, and a street food market with support from T&T Markets. There will also be free activities and creative workshops for children. The festival, part of Hillingdon Council’s strategy to enhance town centres, is a celebration of the musical history and culture of Hayes, paying tribute to the former home of EMI Records. By bridging past and present, it aims to inspire a new generation of creators and music lovers while cementing the town as a cultural, creative and business destination.
Stockport, UK | Stockport Vinyl Record Fair on 21st September: The Stockport Vinyl Record Fair is held every couple of months throughout the year at Stockport Masonic Guildhall, Wellington Road South, Stockport, SK1 3UA . With an average of 25 traders each time across the Guildhall’s 2 ground-floor rooms, we have tons of vinyl records and CDs on offer. The next Fair is on Sunday 21 September 2025 from 10:00am to 4:00pm. There are albums and singles, and always new as well as pre-loved stuff in practically all music genres. £1 per person at the door, or £5 per person for early entry from 9am. It’s £1 to park in the car park which is at the back of the building on Brentnall Street.
Graceland to release limited edition 10″ vinyl featuring Elvis Christmas classics: The new, limited-edition 10” vinyl features two of Elvis’ most iconic holiday classics, ‘Blue Christmas’ and ‘Santa Claus is Back in Town’ and is now available for pre-order exclusively at ShopGraceland.com. Custom-pressed on stunning blue vinyl, these two tracks capture the spirit of 1957—a year that gave us Elvis’ first holiday album, his first ‘Christmas at Graceland’, and a musical legacy that still echoes every December. ‘Blue Christmas’ is one of Elvis’ most iconic holiday songs. Written by Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson and first recorded in 1948, the song became iconic when Elvis gave it his signature sound—complete with Millie Kirkham’s backing vocals and The Jordanaires’ classic harmonies.
Los Angeles, CA | ‘Radio Stations and Record Stores’ Amplifies the Legacy of Rock & Roll: Following the success of The Coffman Collection, veteran music journalist Larry Coffman returns with “Radio Stations and Record Stores: More Distinctive Rock Hits from the Coffman Collection.” This follow-up volume delivers another deep dive into the stories, legends, and cultural backdrops of hundreds of Rock & Roll songs spanning the 1950s through the early 2000s. Grouped by themes such as country rock, garage hits, Christmas classics, and teen tragedies, Coffman reveals the connective threads between iconic and lesser-known tracks that shaped decades of popular music. From nostalgic reflections on American Bandstand to a virtual road trip through legendary recording locations, this book is a treasure trove for music lovers and history buffs alike.
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