Many devotees of Louisville’s music scene were left confounded by the sudden closure of ear X-tacy late last year. After all, it wasn’t long ago that artists and fans alike could readily find and discover local talent within the bins of this institution, in addition to it being the go-to place for musicians around town to promote and sell their newly released albums on a consignment basis. Around-town favorites such as My Morning Jacket, Nappy Roots, Ben Sollee, Cabin, Shipping News, Slint, Wax Fang, Cheyenne Marie Mize, Villebillies, Rachel’s, Kinghorse, and Tim Krekel all successfully utilized this convenience at one time or another within their careers, as did such notable national acts as Alexi Murdoch, The Watson Twins, The Seedy Seeds, and Over the Rhine, along with many others. So when news came down the pipeline that ear X-tacy was closing up shop once and for all, there was a palpable sense of concern within the community of local musicians and a foreboding feeling amongst patrons of Louisville music who were left wondering where they’d be able to acquire the artist’s physical goods while supporting this thriving music scene.
“Now that the ‘Ear’ is gone, where do I go to buy good local and regional music?” asked Chris Tandy, longtime benefactor of our city’s vernacular music, in a candid online musing.
To many, the future of our lauded melodious commonwealth seemed to be in a capricious state of disarray. Questions such as Tandy’s flourished online, in print, and through spoken conversation and hearsay.
As the place that meant so much to so many people succumbed to the pressures of a changing industry and a merciless economy, musicians and artists began to get especially resourceful. Smaller shops around town commenced in taking the reins to avert an untimely meltdown of our respected music community. This town has never been one to back down easily. So when the going got tough, the tough decided to do something about it.
As luck would have it, there are still a multitude of local shops that currently carry Louisville music. Some have increased their presence as purveyors of local and regional music, while others have only recently decided to venture into this sometimes tedious yet indispensable form of community advocacy, sharing the torch and carrying it on.
Underground Sounds has been carrying music by local bands on a consignment basis since Craig Rich opened his Highlands staple in —-1995. Rich’s shop offers Louisville musicians a haven to consign items such as LPs, CDs, and T-shirts. However, he hasn’t necessarily noticed an increase in the number of Louisville artists seeking to sell their merchandise since the closing of ear X-tacy.
“We’ve actually had more customers calling and asking about specific local bands than new artists dropping off product with us,” said Rich.
That could easily be explained by the fact that Underground Sounds already inventories 200-300 Louisville artists, according to Rich.
Another favorite shop around town, Better Days Records, has been carrying local and regional music of all genres for close to 30 years. Ben Jones, a perpetual fixture in Louisville’s music scene and the owner of Better Days, recently opened a second location on Bardstown Road in the Highlands, in addition to overseeing his other shop located in West Louisville. Jones has been heavily involved in the Louisville music community over the past few decades. He’s run a successful local record label, helped jumpstart early fanzines, and written a local column on music news, all while maintaining a strong commitment to championing Louisville musicians and the community that helps support them. Jones has noticed an increase in the amount of out-of-towners coming in lately – folks who want to take something uniquely Louisville back home with them. For this reason, Jones and his crew like to keep the Louisville-related titles up by the front counter, not only giving them the added exposure, but also encouraging a discourse between the staff and someone who might be seeing a Dane Waters, Leigh Ann Yost, Rare Treats, or Janitors of the Apocalypse album for the first time ever.
While Underground Sounds and Better Days Records have both been known to carry Louisville music throughout the years, there are a few other shops around town that have recently delved into this arena of community outreach. Please & Thank You, a boutique-style bakery, coffee shop, and record shop, has recently started carrying items from several musicians around town. In addition to having a consignment program in place, Please & Thank You, which exclusively carries vinyl, has also been known to purchase a few copies of new Louisville-related releases outright.
Two other shops around town have also developed consignment programs for Louisville musicians. While neither are your archetypal record shop, they are each a vertebrae in the backbone of the Louisville music scene. Mom’s Music and J&J Old Louisville Music Shop are independently owned and operated instrument shops, furnishing the latest and greatest in the realm of guitars, basses, drums, etc. Local musicians frequent both of these shops. It was just a matter of time before these respected retailers expanded their inventory to take on the recorded physical media of their clientele. Mom’s Music, which is currently celebrating their 31st year in business, has carried Louisville music on a consignment basis for a few years, but recently they revamped their consignment policy and expanded their selection of Louisville music. They boast an impressive wall in their Mellwood Avenue location, featuring CDs comprised of all Louisville and Southern Indiana musicians.
“A lot of people have been coming in looking for local music,” said Howard Gittli, the manager at Mom’s Music and a member of The Louisville Crashers, a local band.
J&J Old Louisville Music Shop, located at the corner of Burnett Avenue and South 2nd Street, started carrying Louisville music on a consignment basis four or five months ago. Jerry Hill, co-owner of the store, said he’s been getting customers in his shop recently who have heard through the grapevine that they’re now carrying local bands’ music. The store carries music from local bands such as Huh Robots, Son of the Widow, Yo’Majesty and the Eracists, Mercy Academy, and Hill’s own music group, Aladdin’s Castle.
Hill said that local bands such as his own use their combined social capital to build awareness. Aladdin’s Castle networks within the community, with bands helping each other get shows and further their reach within the city and beyond.
Gittli points to a strong work ethic as a major reason for The Louisville Crashers’ recent success and notoriety.
“If you want it bad enough, and you work at it, good things will come,” said Gittli.
The Louisville Crashers utilize such social networking tools as ReverbNation and Facebook to connect with their fans, keeping them in the loop with frequent postings about upcoming events, new music, and live shows.
Louisville shop owners who carry local music often share encouraging words of wisdom from their years in the industry with consignment artists who come in looking for advice.
“[Bands and musicians] have to understand the food chain,” said Jones. “You have to be all parts of the business and know the ins and outs just as if you were a CEO, manager, accountant, etc….The more info you can give us about your band – what songs to look out for, what other artists are similar to your sound, etc. – the more educated the staff will be and the easier it will be for them to recommend it to their customers.”
Rich suggests that bands do their best to stay on top of their consignment pieces, checking in regularly and collecting any amount due on what has sold up to that point. He also likes the idea of keeping local music local.
“Bands from Louisville should be in shops from Louisville,” said Rich.
The current landscape of the music industry changes daily. The very fabric of what makes Louisville so unique in terms of keeping all things local remains threatened as the Internet grows and larger companies make their way into this great city of ours. But with action comes wisdom. Each of the local music shops has a spirit of adaptability that has shined through as a beacon of light in an otherwise daunting climate. It is this same ethos that has helped sustain our thriving and diverse music community over the years, not just within the consumers of music, but also within those musicians who strive to get their wares into the hands and ears of those who take pride in supporting something so special.
–Sean Bailey
LOOK HERE:
Shops that carry Louisville music:
Better Days Records: 1765 Bardstown Road
Better Days Records West: 2600 West Broadway
J&J Old Louisville Music Shop: 1449 South 2nd Street
Mom’s Music: 1900 Mellwood Avenue
Please & Thank You: 800 East Market Street
Underground Sounds: 2003 Highland Avenue
online resources for local musicians:
Band Profile: Profile Pages for Musicians
Louisville-related music blogs:
Independent custom manufacturing
for CDs/LPs:
Better Days Records (Louisville, KY)
Monkey Drive Screenprinting (Louisville, KY)
Louisville Multimedia (Louisville, KY)
Palomino Records Pressing (Shepherdsville, KY)
Bellwether Manufacturing (Bloomington, IN)
United Record Pressing (Nashville,TN)
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