Sunday, February 05, 2023
Dam Native - sleng teng remix biz
Saturday, February 04, 2023
Ring The Alarm playlist 4 February 2023
Friday, January 27, 2023
Savage - Swing (reggae cut)
Thursday, January 26, 2023
Vinyl sales are slowing down big time
"Just a year ago, the industry was bragging about a vinyl market that had doubled in size in a single year. In just 12 months, demand had increased from 21.4 to 41.7 million units.
"But then in 2022, the growth rate collapsed from 95% to 4%. That’s not a slowdown—that’s slamming on the brakes right before you hit the brick wall.
"And if it wasn’t for Taylor Swift, the vinyl market would have actually declined in 2022. This one artist did more to support vinyl sales than the much hyped “Record Store Days."
He also highlights that half of vinyl buyers don't own a record player. So those Taylor Swift LPs are memorabilia.
Essentially what his article says is new vinyl sales have stalled, and the record companies haven't been doing anything to increase capacity when seeing the previous rapid growth in vinyl sales, instead relying on technology from the 1950s, and putting up the prices. One could argue that the record companies are more focused on streaming as that's a bigger revenue opportunity. Go have a read.
Tuesday, January 24, 2023
Real Groovy moves this week
Real Groovy Records announced last month on it's social media it was on the move. They are shifting to midtown Auckland on Thursday and opening at a new spot at 19 Victoria St West on Friday 27 January, above Countdown supermarket. Unlike their last move 3 years to ago, this one is by choice.
Their previous location at 369 Queen st is now a block of apartments (an office block conversion), as is the location before that at 438 Queen st, across the road. They've moved three times in the past seven years.
The new location is a bigger space, and will have everything on the same level, with a live artist space and a museum."Instead, it’s a shrewd business decision. The store’s current site at 520 Queen Street doesn’t get much foot traffic. Next to Victoria Street’s Countdown supermarket, foot traffic is guaranteed. In two years, when the City Rail Link finally opens, there’ll be even more. “That,” says Hart, “will be the way of the future”.
"Moving isn’t cheap – the moving company charges $25,000 on its own. He says the store usually runs at a loss after a move as customers get used to finding the new site. “It gives us two years to consolidate,” he says."
492 Queen St 84-86
400 Queen St 86-87 (this was a temporary location I think, while they did building upgrades to 492)
492 Queen St 87-89
438 Queen St 1989-2016
369 Queen St 2016-19
520 Queen St 2019-23
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A mockup of what Real Groovy's new store front will look like, via Real Groovy's site. |
Saturday, January 21, 2023
Ring The Alarm playlist 21 January 2023
Saturday, January 14, 2023
Ring The Alarm playlist 14 January 2023
Saturday, January 07, 2023
Ring The Alarm playlist 7 January 2023
Monday, December 19, 2022
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown admits he demolished His Majesty's Theatre
This resulted in a share trading halt on Auckland Airport on the NZ Stock Exchange, while the mayor clarified that he was just speculating, and didn't apologise.
The other delightful fact to emerge from this meeting was reported by NZ Herald's Simon Wilson:
@simonbwilson Dec 16
"Guess who the demolition contractor on His Majesty’s was? Guess what he said about then-mayor Cath Tizard? (I’m told it’s true.) From my @nzherald wrap of yesterday’s big council meeting, newspaper only."
Dec 16 Replying to @simonbwilson and @nzherald
"Told by whom? No mayors ever signed nor delivered administrative orders! If Brown is lying it’s a worry but if he thinks this is true it’s even more worrying."
Finlay Macdonald
Dec 16 Replying to @simonbwilson and @nzherald
"Seem to recall Phil Warren's fingerprints were all over that clandestine demo job."
@JudithTizard
Dec 16 Replying to @MacFinlay @simonbwilson and @nzherald
"That’s my memory. Cath was in the middle of getting all the CWGames [Commonwealth Games] venues done. The ACC couldn’t buy it so had no choice but let it be knocked down. She NEVER delivered demolition permits personally! And was very sad that she couldn’t do anything to save it."
The situation wasn’t helped by comments such as those made by City Councillor Phil Warren, who described His Majesty’s as “a rat-infested dump with no artistic, historic or architectural significance.” Hamish Keith disagreed, saying that the councillors should lead the way and not let developers “walk all over them.”
The permit was granted anyway on 31 December 1987, and the demolition proceeded in the new year on 3 January with a crane arriving to remove the roof, the stage was demolished 13 January, and the point of no return was reached by around 14 January 1988 when most of the rear of the theatre was destroyed. 29 protestors were arrested for trespass and obstruction at this time."
His tale to the council meeting ended with his pleasure at later “being able to drive the digger which pulled that bloody post down” though he seems to have meant it metaphorically, telling Stuff he just got the permit for a client.'
Saturday, December 17, 2022
Ring The Alarm playlist 17 December 2022
Saturday, December 10, 2022
Ring The Alarm playlist 10 December 2022
Saturday, December 03, 2022
New Dub Asylum funky reggae bizz
Out now for Bandcamp Friday, some funky reggae covers from me, taking in James Brown via Jamaica, and Miss Aretha Franklin's classic, Rocksteady. Enjoy!
Saturday, November 26, 2022
Ring The Alarm playlist 26 November 2022
Dubinator feat Seanie T - Police in helicopter (Oliver Frost remix)
Monzanto Sound -The fool
Night Owls feat N'Dea Davenport - Cramp your style
Friday, November 25, 2022
Ugly Mac Beer
Okay so this French Beatmaker is named Ugly Mac Beer - which is gonna sound like an odd name to NZ folk, but give its a spin. His album is out in January 2023, but the first single is out now.
"... The concept of this instrumental album is based on the search for the ultimate and perfectly heady loop, the one that can be listen to over and over again. 'The Valley Of The Kings' is Ugly Mac Beer's own 'old movie about Egypt' concept LP, a story that takes us on a journey back when the pyramids were built.
"A digger/beatmaker effort par excellence, very inspired by the 90s productions of masters of the genre such as Madlib, DJ Shadow or RZA, the concept of this instrumental album with oriental sounds is based on the search for the sample of "THE" ultimate and perfectly heady loop, which can be listen to over and over again. "