"Some may say it's a dying breed, or a dying business, but I still love the ritual of going to record stores or junk sales and buying vinyl. I love the warmth of the analog, the size, the artwork, and I love the experience of having to get out of the house and shop spontaneously.
The first records I got as a kid were records that my babysitters were playing. I would read the lyrics, stare at the artwork, and dream of a better life and other places than my tiny apartment in Queens, New York. Music gave me the confidence to not feel alone and like a total freak in a suburban middle class mainstream world. It is my favorite format to hear music.
Just when I get tired of schlepping my record collection around in apartments in New York or storage spaces, I have that night when I hook up the turn table, plug in, and once again clearly see the sonic difference.
I dig the idea of having an iPod when I'm in the gym or sitting in the van or airplane. My favorite program on there is "shuffle" because it feels like one of my friends or somebody came into my house at a drunken party and started playing my records, picking their own choices, and making me hear my collection in a different way. Nonetheless, looking at an album cover on a tiny MP3 player really does not turn me on, even though for my own records the little image makes my nose look smaller.
I always release all of my records on vinyl and sell them at the live shows. Me and the band love playing in stores & as many mom and pop shops as we can in this country. Traditionally, on release day, I play one of my favorite shops, Vintage Vinyl in New Jersey. There are many of these cats still out there. They are the real lovers, passionistas, and outlaws.
The idea of going into a store looking for one thing, and maybe something else catches your eye—a person to fall in love with, become friends, start a band, or buy a record you weren't planning to. As a kid we went to record shops and some of the cool folks behind the counters would suggest things to buy. Sometimes these were life changing records. We would travel hours on trains and busses to find a certain shop or record. When we found what we needed it made all the difference.
I'm an advocate of showing up and being in person. I'm not religious, but I believe in people and life. Going to live shows, bookstores, movies, and record stores are all part of the experience. To sit at home on one's couch and be told by shopping networks, "if you like this, you'll like that, etc. etc. etc." seems very big brother.
Favorite things to listen to include: Bad Brains "Pay to Cum" 7 inch, anything by The Kills, The Hold Steady "Boys and Girls in America," Lucinda Williams "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road," Elton John "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" (double album with gatefold and lyrics), Chuck Berry "The Great 28," Suicide's debut album, Wilco "Yankee Hotel Foxtrot" on 180 gram vinyl, Sam Cooke "Nightbeat," The Dickies "Dawn of the Dickies," and Bob Dylan "Blonde on Blonde."
—Jesse Malin
Jesse Malin & The St. Marks Social play DC9, this Sunday (9/12) with Moneybrother.
Find Jesse at his Official Website | Myspace | Facebook
Jesse Malin - All The Way From Moscow (Mp3)
Approved or download!
No comments:
Post a Comment