Last week, in order to free up some space and put a bit of cash in my pocket, I decided to sell some of my own records, and whilst pulling out things to move on I was confronted with a range of emotions, each record bringing a memory of where or when I bought it, who I was with, where I lived, if I played it out etc etc.
Nothing I got rid of held any particular strong memories for me, most of it was blog-house type stuff and electro remixes of indie tunes I’d accumulated whilst DJing at an indie club night in Hertfordshire during the late 00’s/early 10’s, none of it was especially valuable either but I could still remember where I got a lot of it from (those Rough Trade and Music & Video Exchange price stickers use some good glue). But as I was going through my shelves, I was also pulling out things I knew I’d keep - stuff that I’d still play these days (if anyone wanted to book me…) or listen to at home.
Truth told, 99% of what I got rid of were 12”s, and I know that my DJ-ing days are pretty much behind me now, so there was nothing I’d be too upset at losing. But in a flood or fire? That’s a different matter. My record collection isn’t that well-organised (I’m getting there after moving house a year ago), so something like that would indiscriminately affect my records. Whilst no-one’s going to shed a tear at losing a Zomby remix of Franz Ferdinand there’s a lot of things in my racks that are priceless (to me at least) that I’d be upset at having to try and find again.
I tend to hang on to stuff. Call it a collectors mentality, or just simply hoarding, my cupboard full of old Cambridge United shirts, shelves full of records and books and shed full of old car parts (one day I might need a spare set of bulbs for a 2005 Golf again, right?) attest to that. I worried that selling off a load of records would be emotional, but I felt strangely detached from the process. Maybe the lure of a couple of hundred quid cold hard cash overruled any attachment I had to them, maybe I’m just experiencing a mindset shift.
I’ve always wanted my own record shop. My own little space for me to just while away my days, listening to music and chatting to folk who come in. Of course that’s a romantic notion, and I’m under no illusion of just how hard it is to actually run a record shop in 2025. I’ve worked behind the counter in shops big and small, and know that a lot of the time you’re just chatting about the Beatles or Stones with some old boy, or fending off requests for the latest Taylor Swift LP. And that’s before you’ve got to deal with taxes, business rates, mail order, theft and 90% of people coming in and telling you “they can get it cheaper on Amazon”.
But I always wondered could I actually sell my own records, in a shop? When it came to the crunch could I put them in a bag and take payment and see them off into the world - for all the emotions and memories attached to them, they’re just slabs of plastic and cardboard, and most of them are on Spotify anyway aren’t they? I’ve sold tonnes of other peoples records in the past, but my own might be a different matter. What would have happened to those records anyway? Just sitting on a shelf gathering dust in a storage unit, when they could be giving someone the use they once gave me. One mans Mystery Jets remix 12” is another mans Loveless, or something like that?
Quick bit of news, I’ll be back at ADE next week from Wednesday to Saturday morning. Give me a shout if you’re about. I’m co-hosting a workshop on using samples in production on the Friday morning, if you’ve got an ADE delegate pass it’d be cool to see you there.
New Music
Blawan - SickElixir [XL]
Blawan comes correct with this new album, his first in a good few years. There’s not many people out there doing capital-T Techno like this, so singularly in their own lane, it really sounds like little else out there. Furious, frantic and ready to melt ‘eads.
The Necks - Disquiet [Northern Spy]
Over three hours of The Necks doing what The Necks do best here. It’s cliche to say this is an album to lose yourself in, but that’s exactly what it is, meandering freeform pieces that land somewhere along the Durutti Column/Talk Talk axis ie. exactly what you need after a long day at the coalface.
DJ Persuasion - Moon Blues (Remixes) [Ulterior Motives]
Switching things up a bit here DJ Persuasion enlists a stellar crew to remix his recent track Moon Blues. Man of the moment Tim Reaper teams up with Dev/Null for a dystopian take on things, Ironik drops a rowdy VIP and Friske chips in with a ruff n tuff mix, before Persuasion himself rounds out the package with a fresh original.
Braiden - Raindance EP [Off Out]
We haven’t heard much from Braiden in a while, his debut The Alps on Joy Orbison’s Doldrums label was one of the quintessential post-dubstep tunes that soundtracked early 2010’s LDN. The odd excursion on Rush Hour and his own Off Out label have punctuated the last decade and a half, but now we’ve got four new tracks that bring things right up to date.
Delerium - Silence (Denham Audio x NOTION Remix) [White Label]
Southend on Saturday yeah lads? Just got a new sub installed. 120mph down the A127. Yeah I wrote off my 205 GTI, got an Astra GTE now. Yeah the sixteen valve one. Big bore exhaust. Seventeens. Six by Nines. Lakeside Maccies on the way home? Mint.
Pub - Mamor [Ampoule]
Pub hails from Glasgow East Kilbride (sorry!) and has been releasing shimmering ambient tunes for 25+ years now. This new one sounds like the least Glasgow record possible to my ears, but perhaps that’s the point? To transport you away from the rain and grey skies towards a more blissful place. That’s no slight on Glasgow by the way, but the weather’s never been good when I’ve visited.
Bar Italia - Some Like It Hot [Matador]
I really enjoyed 2023’s Tracey Denim, so was looking forward to this new one from Bar Italia… first impressions are… it’s a bit 2007 indie isn’t it? Things improve on the second track which has a Saint Etienne feel to it, but I’m gonna need a bit more time with this.
Rat Heart - Dancin’ In The Streets [Modern Love]
A foggier, Northern counterpoint to that Necks album above, Rat Heart delivers a journey by sound that goes from the bucolic delights of the Pennine Way into the post-industrial murk of the Manchester Ship Canal over twelve tracks. Not on streaming so you’ll have to commit to the purchase, but it’ll reward those who do.
Great insights. The main physical record I would save (CD actually) would be my beaten up copy of Disintegration. The case is broken, the disk is scratched and doesn’t play, and I don’t have a CD player anymore anyway. But I bought it as a very young youngster the week it came out, from WH Smith in Devizes no less. I see you’re a music person. Likewise. Nice to see you here!