Visitors of Vinyl Collective

Now that we have an office again, we have been asking bands coming to town to stop by, hang out, get some free schwag, and maybe have a beer or two. We plan to update this page often with new visitors.

Cheap Girls and Scotty Bell (2-8-10) – I reached out to Cheap Girls to see if they wanted to stop by the office before their Denver date with Drag the River and they said sure thing. They stopped in around 6pm and my offer of beer was welcomed by the Michigan 3 piece. Scotty Bell of Bermuda Mohawk is on tour with Cheap Girls helping tour manage and sell merch. Ian from Cheap Girls works at a liquor store that specializes in craft beer so we nerded out over beer. We actually took a really cool picture of the guys holding their records in front of our “Is This Good For the Company” sign, but someone in the office (not saying who) deleted it. Oh well. Not only are Cheap Girls a spectacular band, they are all good folks. We talked about music, the midwest, Paper and Plastick, and touring with Drag the River. I am really excited that both bands are touring together. The Denver date was absolutely amazing. Cheap Girls completely rocked it and while watching them, I thought about how they really need to tour with Ninja Gun as both bands are kindred spirits. If you see Cheap Girls on this next tour, ask Ian about how drunk he got in Denver. I take some of the blame as I fed him beer before their set and introduced him to Stranahan’s Colorado Whiskey right after Jon Snodgrass gave him a shot. Let’s just say that he lost his phone at the end of the night, someone gave it to me because my number was one of the last ones called, and we ended up having to track him down to get him the phone. Good times were had. Thanks guys for rocking Denver and being so damn cool. Looking forward to the next time.

PJ Bond (1-8-10) – It was a pleasure having PJ Bond come by the office and shoot the shit. I was unable to make his show the night before which was a bummer, because everyone at the office is really digging his album. We talked at length about his decision to record a solo record after having played in a number of bands from Outsmarting Simon to the Color Fred. His record is great and our friends at the Black Numbers put it out which makes it that much better. PJ is a really nice guy and he makes music for good reason, he tours around to gain new experiences and make new friends, and we are all proud to call him our new friend. If he travels to a town near you, make sure you go see him play, and if you are able, offer him a place to stay. I should add that you should also take him to your favorite local brewery as he too shares a passion for Craft Beer. I plan to take him to a few breweries the next time he is in town.

O Pioneers!!! (12-14-09) – Apparently the last time O Pioneers were in town, we snapped photos and never posted them. i am very sorry guys. I wanted to get this photo up right away and mention that it was great seeing the guys. They hung out a bit before the show and played an absolutely killer set with Only Thunder, Espirit De Corpos, and 10-4 Eleanor who were all great. I tried to get the guys who drink to come over and have some drinks with me afterward, but I think they ended up going to a friend’s house. I took a few videos which I will be posting soon, one of which is their song from their half of the Under the Influence 7″ we put out with New Bruises. If they come through a town near you (west coasters, i am talking to you), make sure you go and see them. They are great folks and one hell of a band. Little known fact, their current drummer was the drummer of Foxy Shazam. Small world huh?

Chris Paules (11-13-09) – Chris Paules from Bridge City Industries and his wife were in Denver visiting family. He had a little bit of time so we took him out for some Vietnamese food then some beers at Rackhouse Pub where I introduced the Odell Bourbon Stout to him. For those of you who don’t know, Chris books a number of great bands including a bunch of Suburban Home acts out of Portland, Oregon. Chris did his best to represent his roster by holding records from as many of his bands as he could. If you book shows, I highly recommend that you start working with Chris. I may be a bit biased, but he has one hell of a roster. Thanks Chris for stopping by and hanging out; see you around Christmas time.

Fireworks (10-16-09) Dave from Fireworks stopped by without the band the last time those guys were in town, but this time the entire band showed up. They picked up a few records, had a few beers, and shot the shit. I don’t know these guys well, but they seem like good folks. They played Denver with Hit the Lights but most of us were unable to make it. They are good buds with the Swellers and any friend of the Swellers are friends of ours. If you see these guys on tour, make sure you buy them a tasty beer or two. Not sure if all the guys are beer fans, but 3 of the guys seemed to like the Colorado beer that resides in our fridge.

Cobra Skull’s Dog, Bella (10-8-09) – The Cobra Skulls are playing tonight in Denver with Teenage Bottlerocket and I had been counting down the days til the show and this morning, my wife got offered a free ticket to see Wicked, the Broadway play. Because of this, I am bringing my son to get dinner with Bottlerocket, but I won’t be attending the show. The Cobra Skulls stopped by and picked up some records and gave us all some of their bandannas which are completely bad ass. Devin brought his dog, Bella, in the office who became quick friends with Ralph’s ducky chew toy. Bella fit right in at the office and was sad to go when Devin left to get the van an oil change.

Go see Cobra Skulls and Teenage Bottlerocket on tour, they are some of the best bands in punk rock.

Thrift Store Cowboys and Amanda Shire (10/1/09) – These fine folks from Lubbock, Texas, are on tour and came by the office yesterday. They were all very nice folks and after listening to their albums, I can also add that they are great musicians, too. Two of the Cowboys work at Ralphs’ Records in Lubbock, Texas and when they said that, I told them how I saw someone at a Cory Branan show with a Ralph’s Records’ t-shirt on and they said they had an extra hoodie and they gave it to us for our very own Ralph. How nice huh? Another neat thing is Amanda asked us if we had the Justin Townes Earle album “The Good Life” and when I showed her we did, she showed me that she is in the photo with Justin on the cover and the back. Pretty cool if you ask me. I highly recommend checking out both The Thrift Store Cowboys and Amanda Shires.

Patrick Dangermond and Nicole Nelson (9-25-09) – Patrick and Nicole are big Suburban Home/VC supporters and when I went to San Diego for this year’s Narm convention, Patrick was kind enough to take me to a few record stores and to Pizza Port which has killer beer. We boozed it up together one night and at the end of the night they took me to Del Taco which ruled. They are in Denver for this year’s Great American Beer Fest and stopped by the office. I told them about how much fun I had last night and told them a few stops they had to make. Oh man, they are gonna have a blast tonight. Thanks for stopping by guys.

Cory Branan, Jared from Honorary Title (9-21-09) – Cory Branan is one of my favorite people on the planet. He is one of the greatest performers I know in the singer/songwriter world. He is a super fun guy to hang out with, too. We definitely overdid it last night with one of the most random nights I can recall. The night involved beer pong, time travel, a man with an oxygen tank, a Vietnam vet, a cab drive, and burger king. It was a good time by all measures but man am I paying the price today. Cory is touring with Honorary Title and Good Old War. All 3 were fantastic last night. Cory and Honorary title are touring in the same vehicle so we all had lunch today. I met Jared for the first time today and it was cool talking to him about what he has coming up. Looks like he is putting the finishing touches on a solo record. Look forward to hearing it.

The Swellers (9-18-09) – The Swellers are Vinyl Collective’s BFFs. They are some of the nicest dudes on the planet so it makes us feel really good that they are doing so well. They came through town and unfortunately, we couldn’t make it out to the show, but they will be back in a few weeks with Paramore. Swellers, have Paramore visit our office, it would rule! The guys had a new guitar delivered here and jammed on it a bit. Dave Kloc showed off his new, awesome business cards, and we all talked shop. Stay tuned for tomorrow when we have their new Paper and Plastick 7″ up for pre-order. Swellers, we love you!

Rob Pope from the Get Up Kids (9-15-09) – Imagine my surprise when by buddy Aaron Merzman (photographed next to Rob) called me to see if it was cool if Rob Pope from the Get Up Kids could come by and pick up some records. I have been a really big Get Up Kids’ fan since I first heard a song on a Drive Thru Records comp and their music really provided a gateway for me to get into a lot of other bands like Braid, No Knife, Promise Ring, and more. Rob was such a nice guy which made me feel terrible that I declined an offer for free tickets. I had to explain that I had been out the 4 nights previous and I was an old man but that I did love his band. I am bummed I missed the show as everyone told me it was fantastic, but as Rob says, they will be back. Rob is also in Spoon, another band I love. He has great taste in music as you might be able to tell of the stack of records he had in his hand. I sent him off with a shotgunator (which I hope he uses) and the drunk dial hotline. Call us on the road buddy.

Joe (get up kids merch guy) (9-15-09) – Shortly after Rob and Aaron left, Aaron called me saying that Joe, the merch guy for the Get Up Kids, wanted to come down and pick up a few things. Oddly, Joe and I have mutual friends in Jon Snodgrass and Cory Branan and some of Joe’s photos appear on the Snodgrass/Branan split LP. We bullshitted about Snodgrass, Get Up Kids, Cory and everything under the sun. Good dude. I told him that since he is going on this tour with Get Up Kids, he had to get them to call our Drunk Dial Hotline. I am counting on you Joe.

Charles Haug (aka The Chuck Diezel on our message board) and his very nice girlfriend Tori (9-15-09)- , came into town for our 14th Anniversary weekend. He missed one of his favorite bands and actually all of Friday night because of flight delays, but he made up for it by making the most of the rest of the weekend. Chuck represents what I love about independent music. He is a nice guy who is passionate about music so much that he recently started his own label, Gruff Beard Records, and I have no doubt that his label will embody the d.i.y. ethics that are so important about independent music. We had a lot of good hang time, had a lot of great conversations, and shared stories about the bands we love. Chuck and Tori had a great weekend with us and on Tuesday, they stopped by to pick up some records. I suggested a few things that were outside of his radar like Red Fang, Pinback, Riot Before,The Life and Times, and Justin Townes Earle (all of you should check out these favorites of ours). It was great to see Chuck again and meet Tori. Til next time friends.

Derek and Lisa Fricano (8-31-09) – Our visitors to the office are not limited to bands only; from time to time, people visiting Denver get in touch and ask if they can stop by the office. Derek did this a few weeks back as he and his wife were in town for an Insurance convention. He was out here for a week with per diems so I suggested some of my favorite restaurants and told him to stop by. Derek and Lisa stopped by yesterday and almost didn’t make it as google maps led them astray. Luckily, after lots of walking, they found our office. We bullshitted for a while about East Lansing, where they live, bands from Michigan, the new Life and Times record which is amazing, and lots more. Derek and Lisa, it was really nice to meet you. Thanks for coming by.

Friends, if you are coming to Denver, drop us a line. We would love to have you check out our messy warehouse.

Dave from Fireworks and Dave (tour manager of the Swellers, did merch for Set Your Goals) (8-26-09) – I left early yesterday and while I was gone, Dave and Dave stopped by the office to pick up some records and shoot the shit. Fireworks are on tour with Polar Bear Club, Set Your Goals, and Four Year Strong. Dave #2 (w/ the beard) had come here before while on tour with the Swellers and was in town doing merch for Set Your Goals. He brought Dave #1 (w/o beard) with him who is out on tour with his band Fireworks. Andy said both dudes were super nice; hopefully I will be around the next time you guys come visit. Dave #2, bring Pareamore over to the office next time you are in town!

Billy from Silverstein (8-25-09) – Billverstein (or Billy from Silverstein) stopped by the office with our good friend T-bone (most know him as Dylan) who just got back from the Warped Tour. Bill hitched a ride on Dylan’s bus and had a day off in Denver. There have been countless times that we have tried to have Bill visit the office, but for one reason or other, it just didn’t happen. Luckily, there was no coordinating, he just stopped by, and we got to hang out for a good while. For those of you who don’t know, Bill has an insane record collection. At one time or other, he had the largest Hot Water Music collection (he might still have it, but he has recently sold a handful off pieces from his collection). We talked a long while about his collection, about Victory, about pressing records, the Coop (he is a member), and about a possible future Under the Influence 7″. Bill is a good dude. Thanks for stopping by.

Jared Grabb (of Scouts Honor), Matt Shaw (of Hinter), and Sean Dileonardi (of The Dowry) (8-18-09) – I have been talking to Jared about his label Thinker Thought Records for years and when I saw an email that he was going on tour and would be in Denver, I reached out and invited him to stop by. He is touring with Matt of TTR band, Hinter, and in Denver he was going to paly with Sean of the Dowry, another TTR band. We had a few beers, talked shop, and Jared and Matt bought a bunch of records. Thinker Thought are a really great label with releases by Empty Orchestra, Scouts Honor, The Dowry, Hinter, the Forecast, and more. If you see Jared out on tour, make sure you go see the show and buy him a beer. Jared and Matt call Peoria home so we did a lot of talking about Gared and Matt from Planes, the Forecast, and Scouts Honor who are all from Peoria. Oddly, there are a lot of Peoria transplants in Denver. Great to meet you guys, look forward to hanging out again.

Papermoons (8-14-09) – been a big fan of these guys ever since Aaron Danger put out a single for them. We were actually supposed to do an O Pioneers / Papermoons split 7″ at one point, but for whatever reason, it didn’t happen and that split ended up being with Mike Park. Their latest album is fantastic and hopefully one day will see the light of day on vinyl. I have known Danny from Papermoons because he used to be in the Negative Progression band, Little Compass and I once helped them set up a show. I got them on a show in Denver at the Hi-Dive this past Friday and as fate would have it, Portugal the Man were touring through. They got to play a sold out show in front of 300 Portugal fans and they played really really well. I was nice and drunk by their set as I had previously gone to the Great Divide release party for their Triple Belgium and their Rye Lager and they had a deal where you can drink all you can drink beer for $15. Needless to say that got me nice and drunk and kickstarted the party. We all boozed it together and had one hell of a time. Great to see you guys play Papermoons, everyone go see them on tour. Great folks and great band.

Steve from Rx Bandits (8-12-09) – A few weeks back, Steve had invited me to come out and meet him when Rx Bandits were playing in Denver. In between that time and the other day, I found out that Steve is a big foodie (he will soon be contributing to the Punknews Cookbook we are working on) so I asked if I could take him to go grab some grub. We had a great hang session which lead to us realizing we had so many mutual friends. We spoke about our good buddy Mike Park a bunch as Steve was in the Chinkees with Mike and has also known him forever. Met the other guys from Rx Bandits who are all really nice people and got to meet their Sound Engineer, Roger, who used to be in No Motiv who I used to love so much. They have a great crew and their set last night was amazing. They played the Gothic Theater which sounded so good. Thanks Steve for hanging out and forinviting me out. I had a blast.

Empty Orchestra (7-23-09) – Nice folks from Michigan who have put out a few records including an LP we carry in our store that was released by Thinker Thought (Jared from Scout’s Honor’s label). They had invited me to their show the night before, but I could not make it. I told them to stop by the office and hang out. They came by and we had a nice hang session. Pretty much all of the members of EO shop at Vinyl Collective which is awesome and Steve (holding the Neko Case LP) even picked up a few of his pre-orders. They gave me a few records, I gave them a few promos, and I thought I had said bye at least for some time. Then as I was riding my bike to work on Monday, I saw them walking by. Looks as though their van broke down and they had taken it to get fixed. They thought it was fixed so they headed to Seattle when the van broke down again, but since the shop was closed over the weekend, they had to bring it in on Monday. I hope they made it out to the West Coast where they are supposed to be touring with Sangre Sangre. If you get the chance, make sure you go and see them play. They are playing with the Suburban Home tour during the Bermuda Mohawk Fest coming up which should be fun. Thanks for stopping by the office and thanks for your support Empty Orchestra.

Mike Kennerty and Tex from All American Rejects (7-11-09) – Let me just start by saying that Mike Kennerty is the nicest guy I know who happens to rock for a multi-plantinum selling rock band. We have exchanged emails for a while now because he is a uber record collector and over the years, we had tried to connect in Denver. Luckily, they had a night off in Denver on Friday and it worked out that he and Tex could stop by the office, hang out, and then go out and get some beers. While Mike was here he picked up a copy of the Farewell Continental picture disc, a Gaslight Anthem demos 7″, and I loaded both him and Tex with a bunch of beer cozies as both guys collect them. The 2nd photo is of a tatoo he received from one of the guys in Every Time I Die. We went and got beers at Cheeky Monk afterwards which is this killer Belgium Beer bar. It was a really good time. Both Mike and Tex had lots of great stories. Mike told me a few good ones about Limbeck, AAR, and Ben Weasel. Tex had some good storeies about folks from Dallas which is where he is from. He said he would give me some tunes to check out from a newish project from the singer of Slowride, a band I used to love.

Small world alert: back in the spring of 1996, I went and roadied for Zoinks! and on that tour, they played an instore at Music Dimensions and a show at Bricktown Live in Oklahoma City. Mike was at both shows. Crazy right?

Be on the lookout for more releases from Edmond Records (Mike’s label). he put out that last Ben Weasel album before Asian Man re-released it and has some killer releases planned, maybe even a 7″ by Screeching Weasel.

Thanks Mike and Tex for hanging out, look forward to hanging again.

Living with Lions (7-7-09) – Whenever the Swellers come to Denver, they usually stop by the office. This time, they brought their friends and tourmates, Living with Lions. Living with Lions are a really great rock band on Adeline Records. We carry their 10″ and pretty soon, we will be doing a pre-order for their upcoming album (which the band gave me a copy of). For some reason, I thought the guys were from Portland, but they are actually Canadians (maybe that’s why they were all so nice). You might not be able to tell the record on the far right, but it is Weakerthans Reconstruction Site. I am not the best photographer. Well, the guys in Living with Lions are all fantastic people and they are touring like crazy. Make sure you see them and soon, we will have a pre-order and full album stream on the site. And hey Living with Lions, Justin wanted me to thank you for his hangover today.

Sam Lowry and T-Bone (5-22-09) – Our new friend, Sam Lowry (pictured on the right), stopped by our offices while on his way to visit a friend in Ft Collins. He is driving out to meet Langhorne Slim who he is about to do a tour with. For those of you who don’t know Sam’s music, we highly recommend you check him out if you are a fan of Nick Cave, Murder by Death, or William Whitmore. We announced last week the pre-order for Sam’s split 7″ with Will (as Wayword Sons) and am so excited to work with both artists. While Sam was in town, he gave me a box of CDs of his new album which we will be posting on the site shortly for sale. I encourage everyone to pick up a copy. T-Bone is the nickname that I gave Dylan Gibson, one I have been trying to make stick for 2 years now. If you know Dylan, please refer to him as T-Bone, introduce him to others as T-Bone, and help me make this his name. T-Bone just got back home from a really successful tour with 3oh3; he does merch for them and occassionally plays bass with them on certain songs. Thanks guys for stopping by the office. Sam, sorry I won’t be at your Denver show, I hope your tour with LS goes great.

Chris Mason of Dirt Cult Records and Shang-A-Lang (5-20-09) – A few weeks back, Chris had mentioned that he would be in Denver doing some training. I told him to stop by the office. He stopped by yesterday and we got to hang out, have a few beers, and talk shop. I played him the Yesterday’s Ring album because it came up in conversation. He educated me on Dirt Cult and the fact that he is also in the band Shang-A-Lang who have like a hundred releases coming up. If you are not familiar with Dirt Cult Records or Shang-A-Lang, I think a lot of you would dig what they do. Chris is a super nice guy, too.

If any of you know him, please find out if he went to go see Big Business last night. I guess he has been a lazybones and hasn’t been going out to shows this week, I told him he would deserve a big kick in the pants if he didn’t go see Big Business last night.

Brook Pridemore, Dan Crafty, Vikesh Kapoor (5-20-09) – Dan, mastermind of Crafty Records (far right) was in town with one of his artists, Brook Pridemore (middle) and Vikesh Kapoor (far left) who plays with Brook. I had previously met Dan at the Fest, he is a super nice guy and he has a great label. He has put out some killer vinyl for Ghost Mice/Brook Pridemore, The Steinways, Unlovables, Mischief Brew, Chris Clavin, and more. After talking yesterday, it was agreed that we should do a Crafty Records’ Spring Cleaning Sale. Expect that shortly (records will be 30 to 50 percent off til the end of the month). And when Dan emails me the info, we will be putting up for sale a really neat idea for CD compilation, Thanks for the Floor. More on that soon. Brook is on tour and I highly recommend you check them out. Brook bought a few records, we swapped some hoodies, and chatted a bit. Vikesh will be putting out his own 2 song 7″ soon so keep an eye out for that. These guys seem like they have a great attitude about independent music and are doing some cool things in New York. Nice folks all around.

Jon Snodgrass and Cory Branan (5-7-09) – Jon Snodgrass (of Drag the River) and Cory Branan stopped by the office before their incredible show at 3 Kings Tavern. I tried to get Cory to stop by the office the last time he was in town, but I ended up scoring last minute tickets to see Obama during the DNC. This time around, I got to sit down and hang out with 2 of my favorite songwriters. Jon should need no introduction as we have been releasing his records as Drag the River and Armchair Martian. If you are not hip to his first solo album, “Visitor’s Band”, you have been doing your ears a disservice. Cory Branan is my favorite singer/songwriter not on Suburban Home; he writes amazing songs, his live show will blow you away, and it is only a matter of time before he is a household name. He is close to finishing up his long overdue, new studio album and friends, I will be counting down the days to hear it. I feel very lucky to be able to release a split LP between Jon and Cory (more details soon, but expect it to drop in late June). Jon and Cory are forever linked and you can expect a number of shows together (in July with Joey Cape) and more down the road. If you ever get the chance to see Jon or Cory, drop everything and make that your number 1 priority. Note that Jon wanted to be the first Visitor to VC to be holding his own record (also note that he has an Austin Lucas record right behind it).

I took a bunch of videos from the show which will be posted soon to our Youtube Channel.

Mike Hale and Ninja Gun (5-4-09) We just got done with a killer weekend with Mike and Ninja Gun. I have a bunch of videos going up this week from the show in Denver which includes brand new songs from Ninja Gun (“Time and  a Half” is one of my new favorites). The guys also got to hang out with us all day Sunday where we barbecued, drank beer, and they watched us get creamed in our first regular season kickball game (we lost 13 to 1…but we drank about 100 more beers than the other team so I consider us the actual winners). I absolutely love Mike and all the folks in Ninja Gun and am so honored to have them both on Suburban Home. After this tour, Mike Hale, will be heading off to Europe to do shows with Austin Lucas and Josh Small. Ninja Gun will be touring with a band we all love in the VC/SH offices but I am not sure if we can announce it yet. Mike Hale just finished recording a split 7″ with Mike Reed (of Small Brown Bike,Able Baker Fox) that we are hoping Second Nature might put out (if not, I will gladly put it out); the songs are great and will come out after Mike’s split with Kevin Seconds. Speaking of busy, after Mike’s tour of Europe, In the Red will be doing a 2 and a half week tour of the West , and then doing another Mike Hale tour.

Frank Turner and Look Mexico (4/2/09) – I had been counting down the days til this show and it was all that and then some. The Denver date was the final date Frank was doing with Look Mexico and at the beginning of the day, there were weather concerns as the guys were driving from Salt Lake City. Luckily the weather help up nicely and the guys arrived in time to stop by the office. Not only are Frank Turner and Look Mexico some of my favorite musicians, they are some of the greatest folks I know. It was my first time meeting Frank as well as a few of the Look Mexicans. We had some beer, we talked shop, and then I got these handsome gentleman to pose with some of their favorite records. Take a nice, hard look the records, these guys have great taste.

The show later that night was absolutely amazing. I caught a number of videos so be sure to check into our Youtube Channel as the videos will soon be posted.

Teenage Bottlerocket and Toby from Red Scare (3-24-09) – 3/4ths of Teenage Bottlerocket and Toby from Red Scare hung out at the office yesterday. It was really great seeing those guys and catching up. Got to hear the story of how the whole Fat signing came to be and how stoked they are to be recording their debut for Fat in June. Got to also catch up with Toby and hear about the upcoming Cobra Skulls recording session for their new album on Red Scare (so stoked). Teenage Bottlerocket played such an amazing set last night including 2 songs which I filmed but was told to hold off on posting. You can see a bunch of songs from their set last night on our Youtube Channel. They fucking rocked it.

In the Red (3-2-09) – One of Suburban Home’s newest bands came through Colorado and we had the greatest time hanging out. Mike Hale, Luke, and Matt are some of our absolute favorite people on the planet. They absolutely rocked our socks off over two nights playing with Only Thunder and Taun Taun in Colorado Springs and Only Thunder an Git Some in Denver. While hanging out after the Denver date, I got to talking with Matt (the tallest gentleman pictured on the right) about how tall he was and it hit me, Matt could be the TALLEST DRUMMER IN THE WORLD. I mentioned it to our staff and Andy mentioned that Mick Fleetwood was tall. I looked him up and he is 6 foot 6 inches which is tall, but Matt is 6 foot 8 inches. Do you know a taller drummer? I hope not as i recently purchased worldstallestdrummer.com (expect site launch soon) and have started filling out the necessary forms for the Guinness Book of World Records. Stay tuned.

In the Red are so amazing and we are so lucky to work with them. I filmed a few videos of their show in Denver. You can see them on our Youtube Channel or directly link to each of these videos:

To Shake to Tremble

Alone is Still a Sound

Green Eyes

First Evil Twin

You have to go see them on this tour. They have their new album with them as well as a ton of killer merch.

IMadeThisMistake (2-8-09) – Kyle William and Cody from IMadeThisMistake routed Denver into their tour although it meant driving nearly 10 hours to get to the show and another 10 to get to their next date in Nebraska the very next morning. They stopped by the office as you can see from the photo, then we went and grabbed some Vietnamese Tofu sandwiches at Sputnik (yum!). I got them on a show with Red Fang, Kingdom of Magic, and TaunTaun at 3 Kings and although they were a little out of place on the metal bill, they rocked it very hard. We had a good time drinking beer and watching 3 really great metal bands, too. Make sure you see those guys on their remaining dates of their tour and at the Harvest of Hope Fest. And make sure that when you need vinyl download coupons, you work with Kyle and crew at vinyldownloads.com. They do an amazing job and are super rad folks.

Watch the videos I shot from the other night of IMadeThisMistake, TaunTaun, and Red Fang on our Youtube Channel.

Dave from Fear Before (1-30-09) – Our buddy, Dave Marion from Fear Before the March of Flames (you might call them Fear Before) stopped by our office on Friday after having lunch with us at Sputnik. He came at the right time as we had just done a beer run at the good ol’ Argonaut and had a very nice selection of beers. Not really thinking about it til after he had been hanging out a while, I suggested he pose for a picture for our visitors section. He was down and as you can see picked 3 records. I asked him what was up with the latest Fear Before album and when we can expect it out on wax through EVR. He said that he wasn’t sure what the hold up was and that he would look into it and see if we can maybe just put it out (will keep you posted). We also talked about doing an Under the Influence and as it stands, they already have a song recorded. We are figuring out who might make a good split partner so expect some news soon. In other Fear Before news, Adam and Goose are currently recording with Orbs which features Dan Briggs from Between the Buried and Me. The band are about to embark on tour with Alesana, Drop Dead Gorgeous, and Set My Friends on Fire.

Mustard Plug (1-23-09) – It isn’t often that we have 2 visiting bands on the same day, but it happened today (if you were wondering why there were a lack of updates). They had a few boxes of shirts shipped here and came to pick them up. Little did they know that we had just stocked our fridge with a ton of really good beer. They all partook of our beer, hung out, and posed for this picture. I have known most of the Mustard Plug folks for a long time as they were one of the new bands on Hopeless when I worked there over 10 years ago. They are in town for the Ska is Dead Colorado dates and I am bummed I won’t be able to make it out since Drag the River are playing Saturday and William Elliott Whitmore is playing Sunday. I really wanted to see Deal’s Gone Bad who are on the tour as well. It was great seeing Mustard Plug and I hope all the shows are going well.

Anchor Down (1-23-09) – Our new friends, Anchor Down, came to Denver (from Portland) to play the Blackout Pact reunion show tonight. Josh from our office somehow ended up picking them from the airport and brought them down to the office. They bought some records, drank some beer, and watched some Sunny in Philadelphia while at our office and we took them to City O City for some yummy vegetarian fare. They are supremely nice guys. I guess I will be seeing them tomorrow night at 3 Kings for the Drag the River / Andy Thomas show which should be fun. Vanessa of Lubricated Magazine first told me about them and I recognized a few of the guys from the Fest. Check them out.

Jon Snodgrass and JJ Nobdy from Drag the River (12-18-08) – Jon and JJ were in town yesterday to do some work on their Drag the River “Live at 3 Kings” recording and while in town, they stopped by the office. As you can see from the photo, Jon picked up a bunch of Suburban Home vinyl including Ninja Gun, Joey Cape, Two Cow Garage, Playing Favorites, and Tim Barry. JJ also grabbed some records including the Two Cow Garage record he is holding. The guys are playing some shows this weekend, but we won’t be able to make them since we are having our Suburban Home Christmas Dinner. I love those guys and am so excited about all the great Drag the River/Jon Snodgrass releases planned for 2009. Drag the River fans are gonna be stoked.

Kepi Ghoulie (12-5-08) – Most people know Kepi because of he fronted the legendary pop-punk band, the Groovie Ghoulies. Since the Ghoulies stopped playing, Kepi has been pretty focused on his solo career. He has put out a few records on Asian Man as well as a handful of singles. Besides being a talented songwriter, he is also one hell of an artist. It just so happened that while Kepi was out on tour, his date for Denver happened to fall on our “We Put the F Back Into Art” First Friday Party where we have artists showing their wares and usually feature a musical guest. Not sure how well you can see from the photo, but Kepi is rocking in front of some of his art which was all really killer. I actually purchased the Dragon with the orange backdrop. Kepi and Dino not only rocked those in attendance, but Kepi’s banter in between songs was right on. We posted 4 videos from the night on our Youtube Channel. Kepi is one of the nicest folks I have met. He called me a few days later thanking me for having him play.

Cobra Skulls (12-3-08) – I got in touch with the Cobra Skulls after being contacted by Andrew Jackson Jihad to do an Under the Influence 7″. AJJ asked us if we would be interested which we responded, “Fuck Yeah”. When thinking about a good band to share the split with, The Cobra Skulls came up. I tracked those guys down and they were down. I tried to convince the Cobra Skulls to record and Black and Bluhm (in Denver while on tour), but they said they just were not ready yet. Instead, they stopped by the office and posed for this photo. We talked a bit as they had just experienced that gnarly Van/trailer accident while in Nebraska. The guys are all lucky to be alive and we are all lucky that they will live to play another day. I am excited for the Under the Influence and I am excited that at some point soon, it looks very likely that we will be putting their Red Scare album out on vinyl! Great band, nice guys.

Broadway Calls (11/20/08) – Broadway Calls stopped by the office yesterday and man, they are rad dudes. I first met them at a Warped Tour after party and hit if off with them. It didn’t hurt that the guys are all Gamits’ fans. I saw them again in Gainesville during the Fest, but I unfortunately missed their set. When they called out of the blue yesterday, I didn’t even know that they were gonna be in town for a show, but as luck would have it, they not only played last night, but it was during a night that I was planning to work late so I was able to make it. I am so glad that I went. They absolutely rocked the Blasto Mat which is a really cool garage that hosts punk and hardcore shows. The audience was definitely a hardcore audience and what surprised me the most was the crowd’s absolute freak out over the Broadway Calls’ set. It was such a great show that included covers of Kid Dynamite and Jawbreaker and I filmed 4 videos that we will later post on Youtube. What a great night.

I won’t say with who, but Broadway Calls have agreed to do an Under the Influence 7″. When we announce it, everyone is gonna be stoked.

And I probably shouldn’t mention this, but BC are about to announce signing to a really rad label. Stay tuned. Thanks Broadway calls for coming down and hanging out.

The Gaslight Anthem (11-14-08) – it doesn’t seem right that it has been nearly a month since our last visitors. Weird. Anyways, we had our friends in the Gaslight Anthem over at the office after we had a nice lunch with them at Watercourse Foods. Unfortunately Brian and his wife Hollie were enjoying a day of no driving on their own, but we still had a great time. The guys posted for this photo with some records they dig (they all have really diverse music tastes which is cool). It is really great to see the guys doing so well. They played 2 sold out nights in Denver with Rise Against, Alkaline Trio, and Thrice. I took a few vidoes of their show last night which should be up on our Youtube channel shortly. It was great seeing them, but I can’t wait for their headlining tour in March where they will play a smaller venue with better sound and where they will play a longer set. Great guys, great band, just great all around. Thanks guys for hanging out.

The Swellers (10-16-08) – Aaron from Team Science had called me saying that the Swellers were in town with Streetlight Manifesto and we were all invited to attend. Trouble is I had planned to work til 1am last night and just could not fit in a show. I invited the guys to stop by the office and visit and so Nick and Jon stopped by and hung out for a bit. Unfortunately, I had to go home for dinner with the fam, but our staff said that the guys were both super nice and that they had lots of mutual friends. Jon was rocking a Cheap Girls shirt so there was lots of talk about how great that band is. Thanks Swellers for stopping by and we hope that the tour continues to go well.

Joey Cape (9-25-08) – As you might have noticed, we had Joey Cape come by the office a few weeks back. We had a really great time with him, did a 30 minute interview, and had some lunch. We even talked him into doing one of our Visitor to VC spots which you can see by the image above. This could be the last known photo of Joey with a mustache as later that day, he shaved it off on stage.

I cannot say enough great things about Joey. I still can’t believe that we are putting out his debut album which will ship this week to those of you who have pre-order them. The album is amazing and I can’t wait for all of you to hear it. Joey is a great guy and I feel really lucky to be able to work with him. Joey spent quite a lot of time looking through our records, but in the end he picked a Ramones’ album (his favorite punk band), and his favorite Iron and Wine record but he said he loves all of Iron and Wine’s records.

Fake Problems (9-10-08) – I meant to post this one a while back, but better late than never right? Our buddies, Fake Problems, came through town while on tour. I unfortunately could not make it to the show, but a lot of our staff went and not only said the band were amazing, but they all said the guys were kind as can be. While here, they played us their new album which was recorded by the folks who record a lot of the Saddle Creek material (their name(s) are escaping me currently). The new album is their best material to date and it looks like they are gonna be signing with a really great label soon. I am so happy for these guys. They work so hard and it looks like it is starting to pay off. Someone recently had not so good things to say about Fake Problems, but let me tell you, the guys are really top notch folks and some of the nicest people I have met. Plus they enjoy drinking beer all night which is a hobby of mine.

The guys will be down at the Fest and as it looks right now, we will have their upcoming split 7″ with Look Mexico will be in hand by the time we go down to Gainesville.

Jr. Juggernaut (9-12-08) -Jr. Juggernaut did a lot of hanging out when they came to visit us for our 13th Anniversary. They rocked Denver a new a-hole with a blistering set of rock and roll and then the rest of the time, they boozed it and hung out. Mike bought like 20 records from us and told us that we need to put Uncle Tupelo on wax as well as his band’s album, “Ghost Poison”. Hopefully one day in the near future, we can do both. They will soon be recording for our under the influence split 7″ series where they will be paired up with label mates, Two Cow Garage.

Brian Quirk and Stephanie (8-29-08) – I feel bad because I never got Brian’s fiance’s last name, but we normally post bands in our Visitors of VC section, but we thought, why not put friends of VC, too. Brian and his fiance were visiting Denver before their big day and they caught us at the end of our day Friday. Unlike some couples, both Brian and Stephanie collect vinyl, but I got the feeling that Brian is a little more intense with his record collecting. Brian saw the Slapstick and Broadways records we had just gotten in so I sent him back with them and told him i would just bill him later. It was nice chatting with them and talking shop, but I had to cut my visit short to meet up with an out of town friend for dinner. I had given them some restaurant recommends for their visit so hopefully they got to eat good while in my neighborhood. Thanks Brian and Stephanie for the visit.

Portugal, the Man (8/12/08) – Usually when Portugal comes to town, they come in for one night and have to do an overnight drive directly afterwards. Luckily, they had a night off and were able to hang out for a few days. They came to the Kay Kay / Wild Orchid Children party the night before and hung out at VC with the Kay Kay folks. We all went out to get some Mexican food, I got them to sign a copy of “Church Mouth”, and we took the photo you see above. We talked about the new album quite a bit and although we are bummed, we won’t be putting it out on vinyl, we are excited to announce that we will have an exclusive color for our store. More details to follow, but it should be the most limited variety of the pressing. The new album is so amazing, I think I might go so far as to say it is my favorite Portugal album. It was great to see the guys who are some of my favorite folks in a touring band and I can’t wait til they come back through on their headlining tour in October.

Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground (8/12/08) – Having Kay Kay in town was such a treat. They are not only one of the most talented group of musicians I know, they are some of the nicest and most grounded. They absolutely love playing music and being on the road. They played amazingly on their first show of the Rx Bandits/Portugal the Man tour and it made me feel really proud to be able to work with them. They played me some new tunes from Wild Orchid Children, Delific (Phil’s 9 and 7 year old kids’ band which is a cross of Delicious and Terrific), Lizzie Huffman (Kirk’s sister who is amazing), and told me of other projects they were working on.

I got them to sign a copy of their album and of course, Kirk put a pot leaf on the record, we took this photo that you see here of them all picking a record they love, and we went out for Mexican food. We had a great couple of days with them and I really look forward to our next hang sesh.

Anthony Germinaro (from Stereotyperider), Dad, and Girlfriend, Stephanie – Anthony and family were doing their summer trip out to Wisconsin and we were able to grab a bite and a few beers with him on his way back home to Phoenix, Arizona. Sounds like they had a great trip. Anthony rocks in both Stereotyperider and The Revenge. Stereotyperider recently finished recording their 4th record for us and we are deciding to do vinyl only or just on CD, depending on what the band wants.

Rocky Votolato and Dave Barker (7-20-08) – Rocky was on tour and after playing a hell of a show the night before with Chad Price, he stopped by the office to pick up copies of all of his records. I asked him and Dave (dave plays drums with Rocky, used to be in Pinhead Circus, Love Me Destroyer, and Drag the River) to pick a record they loved for my picture. If you see him on this tour, he should have copies of every color of every record of his. And if you haven’t picked up a copy of his “End Like This” 7″, it will soon be out of print. we have 13 copies left and he has 20 on the road with him and then that is it. While at our office, I got him to sign a copy of “Suicide Medicine” for our office and we spoke about him getting back home to record a cover for our under the influence series which we will be doing with Chad Price. I am stoked. Lastly, I gave him a copy of the Mike Hale album and told him that I would like more anything to have him take Mike out on tour. Cross your fingers!

Ninja Gun (6/18/08) – We had Ninja Gun in town for a week and we just fell in love with them. They are some of the most genuinely nice folks around, they are super funny, and they put on one hell of a show. We all miss them and can’t wait for them to come back to Colorado. When they hung out at the office, we asked them to grab a record they loved and pose with it. There are some really great selections.

Bomb the Music Industry! (5/29/08) – Since my son has been sick, I only spent half the day at the office yesterday and the BTMI guys attempted to catch me, but the Breeder’s bus happened to be blocking their van and they couldn’t come over til the afternoon. Luckily they made it by and the rest of the Vinyl Collective staff said that the guys were super cool enjoyed some beer, and took this snappy photo. Now the question is, are these records favorites of the band or are they being facetious? I will let you decide. Come back to Denver so we can meet up properly guys.

Lemuria (5/29/08) – The members of Lemuria are all really nice folks. Since my son has been sick, I wasn’t able to see them rock Denver, but luckily they stopped by the office the next day. And guess what? I asked them to do a split for the Vinyl Collective under the influence 7″ series and they said yes!

Murder by Death (5/9/08) Murder by Death were our first visitors to our new office. They hung out, drank beer, and talked shop. Later that night, they put on one of the best damn shows I have seen all year. Their new album is their best work to date and if you haven’t heard it, you are truly missing out. These guys are so committed to vinyl that even when the labels that have released their albums declined on doing vinyl, they put it out themselves. Great folks. Side Note: the terrorist looking guy is my good buddy Dylan (I call him T-bone). He does merch for Murder by Death.

Dan from Second Nature Recordings (5/21/08) Dan from Second Nature and his girlfriend Jane came to drop off lots of records since we are now handling their mailorder for their store. I totally spaced on taking a photo of them when at our office so I took a photo of them eating at Watercourse, Denver’s best vegetarian restaurant. They are good people and I am glad to be working with them. Their drive home was hit with storms and they almost had a run-in with a tornado. Luckily they got home in one piece.