2008 Woodie Awards
Collectors and dj's say your grandfather's records can do more than just gather dust
By: Addie Curlis
Issue date: 3/14/08 Section: Pulse
Due to the social world of vinyl, more and more young people are discovering new music, said Kelly Wicks, owner of Grounds for Thought.
Wicks, a collector himself, said he has a turntable in his office, at the roaster and in the guest and family rooms in his home.
Employees at Grounds sell between one and two dozen records a day at the coffee shop. They consistently offer about 3,000 records, he said.
"We sometimes buy entire collections, and then we inspect them, clean them and put new sleeves on them," he said.
Wicks enjoys seeing others find a record they have been looking for and also watching people find new ways to listen to music.
He added that new technology for formatting music has increased the sales of turntables. Customers enjoy the packaging, art work, posters and liner notes that accompany vinyl. Listening to vinyl is an involved process, he said.
"People find this way of listening to music appealing, even though there are easier ways," he said.
Vinyl is popular also because some music is not available in any other musical form. This is important for disc jockeys - who normally utilize underground music.
University student and disc jockey Brian Scavo, also known as "What the Bleep," uses vinyl in his radio shows. Between mixing, beat matching and DJ-ing, Scavo promotes himself as a vinyl DJ opposed to a radio DJ, specializing in electronic dance music.
"Beat matching is all about rhythm and training your ears to match up the music through listening," he said.
Scavo taught himself to use turntables in the summer of 2004, shortly after attending a rave and getting turned on to the culture. In rave culture, it is looked down upon to use CDs in shows, he said.
Because Scavo uses a very specific, underground genre known as raga jungle in his shows, he purchases almost all of his vinyl records on online shops. He said they range from $7 to $15, plus a heavy shipping fee because they have to be packaged very carefully.
Wicks, a collector himself, said he has a turntable in his office, at the roaster and in the guest and family rooms in his home.
Employees at Grounds sell between one and two dozen records a day at the coffee shop. They consistently offer about 3,000 records, he said.
"We sometimes buy entire collections, and then we inspect them, clean them and put new sleeves on them," he said.
Wicks enjoys seeing others find a record they have been looking for and also watching people find new ways to listen to music.
He added that new technology for formatting music has increased the sales of turntables. Customers enjoy the packaging, art work, posters and liner notes that accompany vinyl. Listening to vinyl is an involved process, he said.
"People find this way of listening to music appealing, even though there are easier ways," he said.
Vinyl is popular also because some music is not available in any other musical form. This is important for disc jockeys - who normally utilize underground music.
University student and disc jockey Brian Scavo, also known as "What the Bleep," uses vinyl in his radio shows. Between mixing, beat matching and DJ-ing, Scavo promotes himself as a vinyl DJ opposed to a radio DJ, specializing in electronic dance music.
"Beat matching is all about rhythm and training your ears to match up the music through listening," he said.
Scavo taught himself to use turntables in the summer of 2004, shortly after attending a rave and getting turned on to the culture. In rave culture, it is looked down upon to use CDs in shows, he said.
Because Scavo uses a very specific, underground genre known as raga jungle in his shows, he purchases almost all of his vinyl records on online shops. He said they range from $7 to $15, plus a heavy shipping fee because they have to be packaged very carefully.
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