In rotation: 6/27/19

Valdosta, GA | Remerton record store remembers the King of Pop: Millions remembered the King of Pop as Tuesday marks the ten year anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death. A decade after his passing and the singer remains a household name with fans crossing generations. Le’Shawn Taylor owns Vibes & Stuff Record shop in Remerton. He said Michael Jackson albums remain among his top sellers. It’s a trend he doesn’t think will slow down anytime soon. “He’s just the artist of first. He’s like the Michael Jordan of pop music, if that makes sense,” Taylor said. “Once they reach that level they’re more of a brand, once you’re world wide, you leave an impact.” Taylor said he always keeps some of Jackson’s most famous albums, like Thriller, on hand, because of its timeless interest of fans of all ages. He said he also offers work by modern hip-hop artists that he can hear were inspired by Jackson.

Manchester, UK | A Factory affair: Inside Tony Wilson’s record collection: Since his death, the record collection belonging to Tony Wilson – co-founder of Factory Records and the Haçienda – has been stored in an archive. With his new book, A Life in Thirty-Five Boxes, exploring the impulse behind collecting vinyl records, DJ and writer Dave Haslam gained exclusive access to the archive to share a few highlights. I recently had the honour of viewing a vinyl collection belonging to the late, great Tony Wilson. Looking through the records felt like an intimate act. His son, Oliver, told me he’d decided not to accompany me, as the occasion was likely to be “too emotional”. Tony, who died in 2007, was an influential broadcaster on Granada TV, a co-founder of Factory Records, and the Haçienda. He was a man who gave opportunities to musicians, DJs, and young creatives of all kinds, always believing in Manchester

Los Angeles, CA | Amoeba Music Set to Be Torn Down, Replaced With Complex After L.A. Council Votes to Approve Zoning Changes: The John Ferraro Council Chamber at Los Angeles City Hall is hardly the most artistically expressive of places, but on Tuesday, the room played host to an event that will have real world consequences for generations of music fanatics. The City Council voted to approve zoning changes that will clear the way for the development of a 26-story complex at the site of the Amoeba Music store at the corner of Sunset and Cahuenga boulevards in Hollywood. The move cements the fate of the distinctive building and fuels further speculation on the future of the city’s biggest record store. Amoeba will be moving. Where to, however, remains anyone’s guess. The retailer’s Hollywood location, which opened to great fanfare in 2001, has been in a kind of holding pattern since news of the possible development came to light a few years ago. The store sold the building to developer GPI Cos. in 2015 for $34 million.

Petal Explains How Streaming Services and Major Labels Hurt Indie Artists and Record Stores in Twitter Thread: Earlier this week, news broke that streaming service Spotify had reportedly overpaid artists in 2018 and was asking for a refund. To many artists, Spotify’s stance was a slap in the face; not only does the platform offer only the paltriest of royalty payments, but now their corporate greed was exceeding themselves. With this in mind, indie rocker Kiley Lotz (of the band Petal) took aim at the corporation in a Twitter thread Monday, making some thought-provoking points and raising interesting questions about the state of the music industry. Her main takeaway is that major labels and distributors are cooperating with streaming corporations in a process that hurts not only independent artists, but also local record stores. “In the streaming age, the best thing labels can do is sell directly to independent record store [sic] and foster those relationships. If you hear a record you like on Spotify, go to their bandcamp or to the record shop and order/buy it,” one tweet reads.

Ben Swank explains how Third Man Records give back to their most dedicated fans: …Living up to the label’s motto of “your turntable’s not dead”, Third Man is about the music, first and foremost, with Swank explaining that the label’s focus is on artists who share the same desire that they do. “You just try to work with people that you care about and artists that are just excited to be there,” Swank explains, noting that this same attitude led to the creation of a physical location for Third Man Records. “It largely started as a way for Jack to get his music out, and 10 years ago some of those early recordings, their licensing was beginning to revert to him. “So that gave him the idea of finding a physical location in Nashville to house all his gear and equipment and everything. Then the idea became, ‘let’s start a physical space and have a physical storefront, and sell some rare 45s here and there’. “And from there, the ideas spilled over, […] other ideas started firing off, and things just got bigger.”

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  • SUPPORTING YOUR LOCAL INDIE SHOPS SINCE 2007


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