Here at THE VINYL DISTRICTwe're good consumers. All Mp3's are posted to promote and give exposure to the music and are linked for a limited time. Please download to preview, then head promptly to your local vinyl vendor (or - OK, CD store too) and fork over your hard earned cash. You'll appreciate the piece of mind.
Got something you think we should be listening to or reading? thevinyldistrict (at) gmail.com
"Lovely UK songstress" is probably an overused triple word score when it comes to Kate Nash, but it's certainly appropriate.
Kate's on another jaunt through the States in support of her Bernard Butler produced release, "My Best Friend Is You" and as the sprightly graphic above imparts - we have a pair of tickets to to put in the hands of one of you guys for Monday's show at the 9:30.
Let us know why you should be chosen for the pair of tickets to see Ms. Nash in the comments to this post and the most convincing of the bunch will take home the tickets for the show.
We'll close this one on Monday at 9AM to give you plenty of time to conjure up your response—and remember to leave us a contact email address with your entry.
Remember, we've teamed up with ReadysetDC for all of our ticket giveaways so you can enter to win either here at TVD or at ReadysetDC.
AM returns to TVD today with another eclectic and obscure recommendation from his vinyl vault:
A few years ago I was in Seattle on a day off from touring. The band and I started scouring for record stores and we came upon a very small and humble place called...aggghhhh. I forgot. Which is really unfortunate because the guy that ran the place was really knowledgeable of his stock.
I went in looking for some 60's and 70's Italian soundtracks and he suggested I give a listen to a Turkish psychedelia record called Selda (known as Selda Bagcan - a 70's Turkish singer/songwriter). I bought that right away and noticed that it had been re-issued by a record company called Finders Keepers (run by uber collector Andy Votel and other worldly psych/folk/funk/jazz crate diggers.)
I've been buying much of what they have re-issued since which is how I knew The Sound of Wonder would be amazing...and it is. 60's and 70's psychedelic gems from Pakistan coined "Lollywood". It will blow your mind.
"Most sonic freaks will tell you that the record lives on because everything sounds better on vinyl. But I do not think it will be long before that theory dissolves. After all, only our toes are dipping into the ocean of possibilities that digital technology provides us with. Regardless of this inevitability, I think that vinyl will remain significant to me (and many others) because it still offers something all other formats do not ~ the ultimate tactile experience.
Vinyl has touch.
As one who never knows what record to pick, I leave my choice up to instinct. My ritual is to run my fingertips along the spines of my records until I feel the urge to pull one off the shelf. Once the record is in both of my hands, and I have had enough time to admire any particularly great artwork in all its bigness, I gingerly slip the record out of the sleeve. Because vinyl is easily bruised, there is a care that most take during the handling of them. I’ve witnessed the least graceful, least careful individuals carry their records delicately over to the player like they are holding a sheet of paper-thin ice.
My favourite part of the vinyl experience happens after it’s laid onto the platter...when you lift the arm and the record starts to spin. Call me a geek, I don’t care, but I love how much control I have at this point. It couldn’t be more different than the monster inside my laptop that yanks my CD’s from my fingertips. Every time I put a disc in there I never know if it is going to come back from those depths!
While the record is spinning before the needle has landed, it’s like a little warm-up ~ for me, my ears and for the turntable. It’s all about timing at this point. Once I’m ready, with as much accuracy as I can manage, I slowly lower the arm and gently place the needle into the first groove.
As if all that wasn’t satisfying enough, I get to do it all over again at half time and then at the close! Once the record has been placed back onto the shelf, I feel satisfied not only sonically, but physically as well.
Vinyl makes you work for the tunes… it takes real, tactile effort.
Touch. That’s why vinyl lives on in my world." —kp
