indie record shop

A kickstarter campaign has been launched to fund the international release of VINYLMANIA on a special edition double DVD.

A trip into the grooves, Vinylmania is a
75 minute feature length documentary about an object that has never lost its
soul: the vinyl record. An epic love story, the film is filled with
fascinating characters and internationally recognized artists including
PHILIPPE COHEN SOLAL (Gotan Project), WINSTON SMITH (Dead Kennedys, Green
Day record sleeve artist), PETER SAVILLE (Joy Division, New Order record
sleeve artist) and DJ KENTARO (2002 DMC World DJ Champion)

Contact julie@stefilm.it at Stefilm International Documentary Production Company for more information.

The iPhone App which allows you to locate your nearest indie record store is now available from the iTunes store. Search for “the 45 Fix” and download it now.

Please download this and encourage everyone you know to do so. If there is anywhere on a site you can publicise this pleae feel free to do so.

 Les Whitfield is currently recruiting for a new Head store which is to Open in Weston-Super-Mare mid to late May 2011.  They are looking to recruit staff from a Manager position to a part time sales assistants.  He will accept Covering letters with CV’s to be emailed to belfast@ehead.co.uk

Singles sales double last year’s.  Album sales up 20%

Foo Fighters and Queen top the sales rankings

19 April 2011: Sales data from the Official Charts Company (OCC) indicates that Record Store Day 2011 on Saturday (April 16) reached a new high.

• Sales of physical singles through independent stores were more than double last year’s total;
• Sales of albums were up 20%;
• Record Store Exclusives this week accounted for nine out of the Top 10 vinyl albums for the week, despite being on sale for just one day;
• Eight out of the Top 10 physical singles this week are Record Store Day exclusives.

Record Store Day coordinator – and manager of one of UK’s biggest indie stores Rough Trade East – Spencer Hickman said: “Record Store Day has been an overwhelming success. It seems to have struck a chord with artists, labels and music fans alike. It is now one of the most significant music events of the year.”

Organisers are still compiling a full and detailed report on Record Store Day 2011 and this will be released shortly. 

Around 180 stores took part in this year’s Record Store Day – 30 more than last year. There were around 250 exclusive releases only available in participating stores, more than double last year’s tally and more than 200 artists and bands played in record stores around the country.

Alan Jordan of Reflex in Newcastle said, “It was the best one yet. We sold twice as much as we did last year. The first customers started queuing at 4am. We had people drive here from Peterborough, Carlisle and Birmingham.”

Sandy Maclean of Love Music in Glasgow said, “There were 150 people queuing when we opened. We had to rejig the queue to stop them blocking the road. And it took four people serving four hours to clear the queue.”

Paul Mills of Soundclash in Norwich said, “The queues started at midnight. It was our busiest day ever in 20 years – 70% up on last year.”

Foo Fighters top Vinyl Albums Chart

Record Store Day exclusives headed by the Foo Fighters’s covers album Medium Rare dominate the Top 10 Vinyl Albums this week, despite the fact that they were on sale for only one day.

RSD dominates physical singles sales

Meanwhile RSD exclusives dominated a physical singles market headed this week by Queen’s 7” vinyl reissue of Keep Yourself Alive.

The Spirit of Record Store Day

Spencer Hickman said, “Record Store Day is a commercial event and when measured in those terms this year was clearly the biggest we have yet seen, but just as important as that is the positivity and love for record stores and physical product that it creates” 

“We had 800 or so people in the queue and some people had to wait in line line for three hours just to get through the doors, but my staff still managed to send them away happy. It was a genuinely festive experience. We had Chilly Gonzales play the opening set in the morning and watching him banter with the queue and get the entire shop singing along with him was the perfect start to the day.”

Scottish indie rock band Frightened Rabbit played on Record Store Day at Edinburgh’s Avalanche store. Lead singer Scott Hutchison said, “For me, it’s places like Avalanche that I was most proud to see my records on the shelves of, because it meant something to me from before I was properly in a band, to now, just being a record buyer and a music lover which I still am. I have always thought places like this were the coolest places on earth. It was amazing when I finally got my record in there and I think they still play an essential role. I’ve been to cities where nobody would ever have heard of us if it wasn’t for this one really enthusiastic guy who works in a wee record store telling all his customers about Frightened Rabbit.”

ENDS

For more information contact Steve Redmond on 07770 924720 or steveredmond@btinternet.com

 Resident – Brighton

Love Music – Glasgow

Tangled Parrot – Carmarthen
Head – Belfast

Curtainraiser for Record Store Day April 16

6 April 2011: The votes are in, the poll has closed and IndieRecordShop.Org, the lobbying organisation devoted to highlighting the contribution of independent stores to music, today announces the names of Britain’s best indie record stores, as voted for by the public:

• England’s choice is Resident, based in Brighton’s vibrant North Laine area;
• The best Scottish indie is named as Love Music in Dundas Street, Glasgow;
• Carmarthen’s Tangled Parrot took the crown as Best Welsh Indie;
• Head, based in Belfast’s Victoria Square Shopping Centre, is Northern Ireland’s choice.

All four stores are participating in this year’s Record Store Day, due to take place on April 16.

The results are based on more than 4,000 votes logged in a public poll on indierecordshop.org, a lobbying and online resource backed by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA), designed to highlight the contribution of indies to the UK music scene.

Kim Bayley, Director General of ERA said, “Our four winners show the diversity and dynamism which are still the hallmark of the UK’s independent record stores and which will be on full display on Record Store Day on Saturday 16 April 2011.”

Around 180 of the UK’s 280 independent record stores will participate in Record Store Day, a grassroots celebration of indie stores when they will be exclusively selling a range of  250 limited edition releases from the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Queen, Lady Gaga, Tinie Tempah, The Smiths, Foals and Metronomy.

A full list of Record Store Day releases and activities is available from www.recordstoreday.co.uk.

ENDS

For more information contact Steve Redmond on 07770 924720

ABOUT OUR WINNERS

Resident, Brighton

Resident is an independent record shop in Brighton’s buzzing North Laine, established in 2004. Resident started out run solely by the husband & wife team of Derry Watkins & Natasha Youngs but has gradually grown to a team of 8 serious music lovers who work together to give Brighton’s residents and visitors the kind of record shop they deserve. From the weird & obscure to the absolutely essential, they carry an in depth range of 8,000 constantly evolving titles across new releases, reissues & catalogue, on cd & vinyl. Resident also sell a wide range of gig tickets for local venues and host regular in-store PAs.

Co-owner Natasha Youngs said, “When we opened the shop 7 years ago, against a backdrop of industry doom & gloom, we were told repeatedly that we were crazy but we knew in our heart of hearts, that if we did it right, there was a place for us to follow our dream and open our own record shop. This serves as fabulous affirmation that all the time, love & energy that goes into running Resident is recognised & appreciated by the most important people……our customers. We’d like to say a massive thank you to every single customer who voted for us & to all the people who have supported us, shopped with us & worked with us to make Resident such a success.”

Love Music, Glasgow

The rebranded and face-lifted Love Music – previously known as Avalanche Glasgow has remained true to its formula of offering new and pre-owned records and music DVDs. New items arrive six days a week, and the store hosts in-store performances by local and touring acts.  Next in the diary is a performance by Dundee’sThe View – who have recorded this year’s Record Store Day anthem, ‘I Need That Record’ – on April 7.  Love Music is run by Sandy McLean who has over 30 years of experience in the UK music business , and has worked for Rough Trade , Fopp , Virgin , Fast Product , Avalanche and Bruce’s Records in Edinburgh.

Sandy McLean said, “I’m honoured that we’ve been chosen as Scotland’s best independent record shop. There’s been a lot of hard work put into winning this award; we’ve had to evolve with the changing marketplace. As our traditional student custom dropped off our demographic has gotten older and more discerning; we’ve had to run faster just to stand still. Glasgow is such a music loving city ; there’s a real passion for music here, and we’re proud to be a part of it. Thanks to everyone who voted for us.”

Tangled Parrot, Carmarthen

Tangled Parrot specialise in the fringes (and sometimes extremes) of popular music while also catering to the varied musical needs of the local population of West Wales. The shophas just moved to new premises on the upper floor of 32 King St which has a new cafe/bar/venue on the ground floor. This is a move to a more prominent position in Carmarthen. The store caters to most tastes including rock, punk, indie, hip hop, electronica, reggae, dub, roots, world and recent additions of jazz, folk, country and spoken word, as well as offering an extensive stock of all styles of dance music and hip hop. As well as new releases Tangled Parrot also offers a comprehensive second hand selection.

Matt Davies said, “It’s a huge honour to be voted the best indie shop in Wales and it comes at a time when we’ve undergone huge changes to improve the shop. We would like to thank all our customers for their support.”

Head, Belfast

Success in the indierecordshop.org poll comes for Head just four months after it opened in the Belfast’s Victoria Square Shopping Centre. Part of the five-strong Head chain run by Les Whitfield, Head offers frequent promotions and is a keen user of social networking tools.

Shop manager Kenny Hutchinson said, “We like to think we give our customers great, honest, friendly service. This is achieved through a team of individuals who possess fantastic product knowledge across all formats and demonstrate a friendly ‘can-do’ attitude that is often lacking on the High Street. We have strong in-store merchandising to promote a large product range we believe is unrivalled throughout the whole of Ireland.”

             STRATEGY | DEVELOPMENT | COMMUNICATIONS

UK TELEPHONE: +44 7770 924720 | GERMANY TELEPHONE: 0176 944 76 723 

 Resident – Brighton

Love Music – Glasgow

Tangled Parrot – Carmarthen
Head – Belfast

Curtainraiser for Record Store Day April 16

6 April 2011: The votes are in, the poll has closed and IndieRecordShop.Org, the lobbying organisation devoted to highlighting the contribution of independent stores to music, today announces the names of Britain’s best indie record stores, as voted for by the public:

• England’s choice is Resident, based in Brighton’s vibrant North Laine area;
• The best Scottish indie is named as Love Music in Dundas Street, Glasgow;
• Carmarthen’s Tangled Parrot took the crown as Best Welsh Indie;
• Head, based in Belfast’s Victoria Square Shopping Centre, is Northern Ireland’s choice.

All four stores are participating in this year’s Record Store Day, due to take place on April 16.

The results are based on more than 4,000 votes logged in a public poll on indierecordshop.org, a lobbying and online resource backed by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA), designed to highlight the contribution of indies to the UK music scene.

Kim Bayley, Director General of ERA said, “Our four winners show the diversity and dynamism which are still the hallmark of the UK’s independent record stores and which will be on full display on Record Store Day on Saturday 16 April 2011.”

Around 180 of the UK’s 280 independent record stores will participate in Record Store Day, a grassroots celebration of indie stores when they will be exclusively selling a range of  250 limited edition releases from the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Queen, Lady Gaga, Tinie Tempah, The Smiths, Foals and Metronomy.

A full list of Record Store Day releases and activities is available from www.recordstoreday.co.uk.

ENDS

For more information contact Steve Redmond on 07770 924720

ABOUT OUR WINNERS

Resident, Brighton

Resident is an independent record shop in Brighton’s buzzing North Laine, established in 2004. Resident started out run solely by the husband & wife team of Derry Watkins & Natasha Youngs but has gradually grown to a team of 8 serious music lovers who work together to give Brighton’s residents and visitors the kind of record shop they deserve. From the weird & obscure to the absolutely essential, they carry an in depth range of 8,000 constantly evolving titles across new releases, reissues & catalogue, on cd & vinyl. Resident also sell a wide range of gig tickets for local venues and host regular in-store PAs.

Co-owner Natasha Youngs said, “When we opened the shop 7 years ago, against a backdrop of industry doom & gloom, we were told repeatedly that we were crazy but we knew in our heart of hearts, that if we did it right, there was a place for us to follow our dream and open our own record shop. This serves as fabulous affirmation that all the time, love & energy that goes into running Resident is recognised & appreciated by the most important people……our customers. We’d like to say a massive thank you to every single customer who voted for us & to all the people who have supported us, shopped with us & worked with us to make Resident such a success.”

Love Music, Glasgow

The rebranded and face-lifted Love Music – previously known as Avalanche Glasgow has remained true to its formula of offering new and pre-owned records and music DVDs. New items arrive six days a week, and the store hosts in-store performances by local and touring acts.  Next in the diary is a performance by Dundee’sThe View – who have recorded this year’s Record Store Day anthem, ‘I Need That Record’ – on April 7.  Love Music is run by Sandy McLean who has over 30 years of experience in the UK music business , and has worked for Rough Trade , Fopp , Virgin , Fast Product , Avalanche and Bruce’s Records in Edinburgh.

Sandy McLean said, “I’m honoured that we’ve been chosen as Scotland’s best independent record shop. There’s been a lot of hard work put into winning this award; we’ve had to evolve with the changing marketplace. As our traditional student custom dropped off our demographic has gotten older and more discerning; we’ve had to run faster just to stand still. Glasgow is such a music loving city ; there’s a real passion for music here, and we’re proud to be a part of it. Thanks to everyone who voted for us.”

Tangled Parrot, Carmarthen

Tangled Parrot specialise in the fringes (and sometimes extremes) of popular music while also catering to the varied musical needs of the local population of West Wales. The shophas just moved to new premises on the upper floor of 32 King St which has a new cafe/bar/venue on the ground floor. This is a move to a more prominent position in Carmarthen. The store caters to most tastes including rock, punk, indie, hip hop, electronica, reggae, dub, roots, world and recent additions of jazz, folk, country and spoken word, as well as offering an extensive stock of all styles of dance music and hip hop. As well as new releases Tangled Parrot also offers a comprehensive second hand selection.

Matt Davies said, “It’s a huge honour to be voted the best indie shop in Wales and it comes at a time when we’ve undergone huge changes to improve the shop. We would like to thank all our customers for their support.”

Head, Belfast

Success in the indierecordshop.org poll comes for Head just four months after it opened in the Belfast’s Victoria Square Shopping Centre. Part of the five-strong Head chain run by Les Whitfield, Head offers frequent promotions and is a keen user of social networking tools.

Shop manager Kenny Hutchinson said, “We like to think we give our customers great, honest, friendly service. This is achieved through a team of individuals who possess fantastic product knowledge across all formats and demonstrate a friendly ‘can-do’ attitude that is often lacking on the High Street. We have strong in-store merchandising to promote a large product range we believe is unrivalled throughout the whole of Ireland.”

             STRATEGY | DEVELOPMENT | COMMUNICATIONS

UK TELEPHONE: +44 7770 924720 | GERMANY TELEPHONE: 0176 944 76 723 

Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England will choose their own winners for the first time 

4th February 2011:Public voting has today begun to find the UK’s Best Indie Record Shop – and successor to last year’s first ever winner of the award, Badlands of Cheltenham.

Voting is being extended this year to discover the Best Indie Store in each of the four nations of the United Kingdom – Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England.

The award was launched last year by IndieRecordShop.Org – an online resource backed by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA), designed to highlight the contribution of indies to the UK music scene.

Voting closes on31st March 2011 and the winner will be announced shortly afterwards.

Philip Jump who together with his brother Steven runs Badlands in Cheltenham, named Britain’s Best Indie Record Shop in 2010, said, “We were so thrilled to win. It had a real impact on all of the staff here and, of course, our customers loved it. There was a real sense of pride and I’d certainly like to win it again.”

Kim Bayley, Director General of the Entertainment Retailers Association said, “It is clear that there is a huge public affection for independent record stores, and there was an overwhelming response to last year’s poll. By broadening this year’s vote to discover the best record shops in Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and England, we hope to further bolster the grassroots of music retailing where new artists are nurtured.”

IndieRecordShop.Org offers a searchable database of the UK’s 300 or so remaining independent record shops together with details of Pas and special promotions. The database can be searched by postcode, address or a Google Map.

ENDS

For more informationcontact Steve Redmond on 07770 924720

Organisers have confirmed that Record Store Day, the annual celebration of independent record stores, will take place this year on Saturday April 16.

More than 150 shops are expected to participate in the event which highlights the continuing contribution of indie stores to UK music.

 The announcement of this year’s date coincides with the launch of a new UK-focused website www.recordstoreday.co.uk which will detail all of the activities taking place in the UK.

 Organiser Spencer Hickman of London’s Rough Trade East said, “Record Store Day is the perfect antidote to all the doom and gloom we hear about the music business. It’s a day of celebration fuelled by the enthusiasm of artists and fans for record stores.”

 Last year’s Record Store Day reached new heights with queues hundreds-strong forming outside some shops.

 Key to the event are exclusive products available for one day only in participating stores.

Highlights last year included:

• Blur’s first new recording in seven years, the 7” single Fool’s Day
• The Rolling Stones Plundered My Soul – 1000 copies on 7” vinyl of a previously unreleased track from the legendary Exile on Main Street sessions;
• Tinie Tempah Pass Out – an exclusive 500 copy 7” edition of the Number One hit single;
• Gorillaz feat Bashy,Kano & National Orchestra For Arabic Music White Flag – just 100 copies of a 10” vinyl edition;
• Goldfrapp Head First- just 500 copies of the album on cassette.

Alongside the exclusives were a range of special events, including PAs and performances from the likes of The Paddingtons (Crash Records, Leeds), Ash and Laurie Anderson (Rough Trade East), and Magic Numbers (Rough Trade West). Elsewhere music fans enjoyed Rock ‘n Roll Face-Painting, Indie cake stalls and RSD after-parties.

 Spencer Hickman said, “Last set a very high standard for what Record Store Day can achieve. We’ll be releasing full details of RSD 2011 closer to April 16, but already we have been knocked out by the great ideas coming from artists and labels. We’re all going to make sure it’s a day to remember.”

 Record Store Day is supported by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA) whose members include all sectors of the entertainment retail business from internet (Amazon, Play) to specialists (HMV, Game) to supermarkets (Tesco, Sainsburys, Asda) to digital (7digital, eMusic, We7, Tunetribe) as well as independents.

 ERA Director General Kim Bayley said, “Independents are a rich source of diversity in music retailing and we are delighted once again to support Record Store Day.”

 More information about Record Store Day is available from www.recordstoreday.co.uk

ENDS

www.parlophone.co.uk/recordstoreday

 PARLOPHONE RECORDS RELEASES EXCLUSIVE 7” VINYL SERIES FOR UK RECORD STORE DAY – RELEASES FROM THE BEATLES, TINIE TEMPAH, HOT CHIP, BAT FOR LASHES AND MANY MORE… (more…)

 22 February 2010: The Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA) today announces that Cheltenham retailer BADLANDS has been named the UK’s Best Indie Record Shop after a poll conducted by indierecordshop.org, the new online resource for the UK’s 300 remaining indie stores.

Click here to read full press release