Together Magazine is a new magazine supporting underground music and culture. Over a few issues they've had interviews with the likes of Charlie Dark, Yogi Houghton and Karl 'Tuff Enuff' Brown as well as articles on record shopping and more. We are running the article they wrote on record shopping in Soho, London below. You can follow Together Magazine HERE to stay up to speed with their manoeuvres. .

Record Shopping

Record shopping back in the 1980's to the early 00's wasn't just a case of popping down to your local specialist shop, choosing your tunes and paying. Oh no it was much more than that!

The way we consume music has come a long way in the last 20 years. Some of it good some bad, especially from an artist being paid stance. Gone are the days of dressing up a 1000 copies and selling them sale or return and pocketing a few grand in the process, if they all sold! I wouldn't like to hazard a guess at the number of streams and downloads you'd need to replicate that kind of return.

However the return made on selling vinyl could allow a producer to concentrate 100% on producing music without other work distractions. Which in turn would give them the time and space to hone and develop their sound.

Our relationship with record shops has also shifted. The days of running on a Friday for the latest imports or spending the best part of your Saturday afternoon down at your local record shop chatting with fellow DJ's is no longer common place. It's hard to believe now but buying the music you loved on vinyl was the ONLY way of owning a copy of the CDs comps and they generally took months to come out.

In the 90's - A Journey into Sound

Back then making the journey into London's West End to buy records was a rite of passage, especially if you weren't from London. The anticipation of getting your hands on records that shops elsewhere wouldn't have just added to the excitement.

The first thing to hit you was the warm, stale smell of the tube as you descended the station's steps. The anticipation slowly building as the underground ended and you popped out at Piccadilly Circus. Confronted by the hustle and bustle, the neon signs, the traffic and tourists.Winding your way through the crowds past Tower records, (may hit that on the way back, see if you could get any bargains), if you had any cash left! Past the street selling Union Jack hats and red double-decker bus magnets. Then Pow! hitting the edge of Soho. The sun disappearing as the streets get narrower and buildings closer together.

The multi sensory experience continued as the destination got closer. The smell of the city, the fumes from the traffic, the aroma of food from all four corners of the world wafting from the various bars and restaurants, the high pitched noise of scooters racing up the narrow streets. The still holders vying for trade and avoiding being knocked down by delivery drivers. You don't get that from downloading a wav or mp3!

D'arblay Street was the destination, literally the beating heart of Soho. Before you even got close to the shops there, you could hear the music. The thud of the sub bass guiding you to Black Market then Uptown and then onwards to Release the Groove. Once inside Black Market, if you hit it at peak time it could be three or four deep at the counter. Everyone nodding and staring at the wall of records with scribbled labels on them. It could be a jousting match, especially if you were late in getting there. Edging your way ever closer to the front.

This was a scene played out in virtually all of the specialist shops back then. You also had to earn respect. Best advice was to stand back, soak up the atmosphere and listen to the music being played by the staff, many of them talented DJ's themselves. If you liked the tune that was rattling the shops sound system you had to let them know and quick. Snooze and you'd lose. Some shops had listening posts where again depending on your status or trustworthiness you would get a stack of 12"s and be able tp listen to them on the headphones.

The choice of releases could be overwhelming especially as decisions had to be made quickly. Releases of a 1000 copies, if they were hot could be gone within days, maybe hours and there was no guarantee of a repress. (No leaving it your download cart for a week!. Most times the wants list went out the window and it was all about picking up what was hot right now, right in front of you.

Gauging what shops had what releases was an art form. Each shop would have a buyer or buyers and in turn each shop had slightly different stock. Some were known for a specific sound. No one wanted to spend most of their money in one store only to find out the others had equally or even better releases. It was a game of jeopardy. Once the money had ran out it was time to head back home and get the latest purchases back on the decks. Exhausted and hands hurting with carrying all the records back. That was all forgotten though when the moment arrived and the first 12" is carfeully removed from its sleeve and placed on the Technics and the needle dropped giving that unmistakable click and crackle just before the beat...

It's a shame those halcyon days are no more, but nothing lasts forever. Times change, things move on. Physical stores still exist and there's still something special about searching through their racks and bins finding hidden gems. Limited vinyl presses sold on instagram or Bandcamp has brought back some of that urgency and excitement in getting hold of new music. If you want it you need to be quick, really quick. I get this isn't for everybody as short run lathe cuts, dubs and limited vinyl releases can be expensive. Plus it's another threat to not just bricks and mortar stores but online ones as well. But what it has done is bring producers and labels closer to their audience and that can only be a good thing.
However the most important part in all of this is the Music or more specifically Underground Music. Our connection with it is primal, it's in our DNA and that will never change regardless of technology changes or how we consume it.

This article first appeared in Together Magazine. You can follow Together Magazine HERE. All photos © Black Market records.