Monthly Archives: July 2010

Chicago Record Stores: Transistor

Record Shops, vinyl road rage, , ,

by Joe Wallace

Let’s just start by saying that the best record stores have performance spaces in them. I played more than a couple of gigs at the late, great Austin, Texas record mecca 33 Degrees in the late 90s, and since then I’ve been hooked on shops that know where their bread is buttered.

Chicago’s awesome “sound & vision” store Transistor, at 5045 N. Clark Street in Andersonville is just such a place. Usually, stores that don’t pick a direction–vinyl/CDs or electronics, or art, or…whatever– and stick with it are doomed to fail from the start, but Transistor has something many similar endeavors fail to promote–a philosophy.

Sure, that’s MY interpretation, but take a quick glance at the records, books, DVDs, music gear (Transistor is an authorized Numark, Korg, Alesis and Marshall dealer to name a few) and art; you’ll soon discover the vibe of this place. Everything’s interconnected somehow.

Transistor has regular workshops, performances, film screenings, even a Sunday podcast called Transistor Radio. It’s an ambitious operation, to be sure, but it definitely beats sitting on your thumbs waiting for Jesus to come and whip out a keg of Belgium’s finest. This is definitely one of the most forward-thinking shops in the Chicago record store scene. Yes, I’m well aware that it’s a multi-faceted operation, but they still sell vinyl and therefore…

One last note–99% of the vinyl falls into the new release category, but there is a smattering of used vinyl the shop offers on behalf of the Chicago Independent Radio Project as a benefit for them. How cool is that?

Vogue Picture Records 1946-1947

Media, singles, WTF?, , , ,

I discovered a fascinating blog post at COLOURlovers (a craft blog, not a vinyl blog) called Unusually Colored Vinyl Records. It featured a variety of impressive colored vinyl productions including the Man Or Astroman release, “Your Weight On The Moon” on  glow-in-the-dark vinyl pictured above. But the REAL treasure in this blog post was the mention of some seriously vintage post-war vinyl produced in Detroit by a company called Sav-Way Industries.

The Vogue Picture Discs are amazing for their detail and the instant visual reference to the  post war era when they were made (1946-1947) but the real stunner for me was the visual theme of the Marion Mann track, “You Took Advantage of Me”.

Decades before The Tubes put out Mondo Bondage, here’s a very racy post-war vinyl record implying all sorts of naughty things with this picture. There are some 74 Vogue Picture Record titles in this collection, which you can view more of at the University of California Santa Barbara, but none of them are quite as provocative as this one.

Sure, it COULD be argued that this was an innocent depiction of the song’s theme, but lest we forget, post-war culture in the 40s was filled with double entendres created to titillate and amuse while maintaining “plausible deniability” in a so-called respectable society. Mondo bondage indeed!

–Joe Wallace

Bad Album Covers: Cattle Decapitation Humanure

WTF?, , ,

by Joe Wallace

Maybe it’s not fair to kick a band when its down. After all, Cattle Decapitation is cookie monster metal and at first glance there’s absolutely NO deep thought going on with songs like “Bukkake Tsunami“.  First impression? This is a band not reaaaallly putting a lot of time pondering artistry here from the get-go, so why pick on the poor schmucks for a tastelessy ridiculous album cover?

It’s sort of like yelling at the dog for wanting a bone. He’s just acting like a dog, the poor beast, he can’t help it, and neither can Cattle Decapitation. “Hey guys, let’s call this record Humanure! And on the record we can debate issues of moral relativism, industrial decay and its effects on the human spirit, and perhaps sing a few lines on the merits of boycotting Chilean sea bass. Awww, what the hell, let’s just do another record about poop-eating like we always do.”

Even as a doody joke, the album cover for this just…isn’t…cutting it. Maybe that’s because I keep trying to apply common sense rules about marketing music, album cover aesthetics and using the cover to sell the CONTENTS OF THE RECORD. That’s pretty pointless when dealing with a band writing songs like Cloacula: The Anthropophagic Copromantik. COPROMANTIK?

Who am I kidding with this one? It’s a locker room joke on a 12.5 inch piece of cardboard, nothing more, nothing less. Maybe it’s the cow ass that bugs me. Yeah, that’s it–a totally unnecessary bovine anus depiction right in your spotty little face. Yuck.

***UPDATE*** So on closer inspection, I have to admit that I was a bit unfair in the “No deep thoughts going on here” department–Cattle Decapitation actually do transcend the usual cookie monster rock metal nonsense to make a few social statements…these guys could be considered the cookie monster metal version of Tool  (without the heaping helping of Crowley). But that album cover is still grotty. Cow ass indeed! I modified this post slightly now that I see this band a bit more clearly. Continue reading Bad Album Covers: Cattle Decapitation Humanure →

Chicago Record Stores: Reggie’s Record Breakers

Uncategorized, , , ,


Reggie’s is an unusual place–located at 2105/2109 South State Street in Chicago, this is a rock and roll venue, a bar and grill, and home to Record Breakers, the indie vinyl and CD store located upstairs. It’s a dangerous thing for a record collector to stop at the bar on the ground level BEFORE buying the vinyl–you’ll stagger up the stairs and back down much lighter in the wallet.

Record Breakers is a great place for new collectors–you can fill a lot of gaps in your collection if you’re looking for punk, post-punk, and soul. It’s not so great for soundtrack fiends like me, as the selection is pretty grim. I was happy to see a decent assortment of Chicago Wax Trax! era titles but really bummed about the soundtracks. The lack of a weird/unclassifiable section was a disappointment, but definitely not a deal breaker for the newcomer to vinyl.

I’d recommend Reggie’s for the full experience–don’t go and just record shop, take the whole scene in. A nice change from the standalone store, to be sure. If you go early on a Saturday, (after 12 but before 5) chances are you’ll have the run of the place–it was pretty quiet when I got there and got excellent service from the bar. Nice one.

–Joe Wallace

Continue reading Chicago Record Stores: Reggie’s Record Breakers →