Originally published in The Conversation, April 11, 2024 Previously relegated to the dustbin of media history, the vinyl LP has undergone a revival during the past decade to once again become the best selling physical format…
Like many vinyl collectors, I went into a state of serious record store withdrawal during the COVID pandemic. For most of my adult life, I’d visited a shop at least once a week. Suddenly, many of…
I was hospitalized for several months when I was 16 following a serious back injury during a soccer game. My friends visited regularly, and on one particularly memorable visit one of them brought me a copy…
To the keepers of quiet revolutions—who stand behind counters worn smoothby decades of fingertips and transactions,who catalogue not just musicbut memories— Thank you. For the bell on the door that ringslike a chorus beginning,for the scent…
On June 7th, I was finally able to celebrate the release of The Record Keepers: Digging for Stories in Canada’s Record Stores, at a launch party held at the Wellington Gastropub (The Wellie) in Ottawa. The…
During my fieldwork for The Record Keepers, I spent countless hours talking with record store owners across Canada. Near the end of many interviews, I would ask a few personal questions: What is your favourite album?…
