Feature: Off the Record

photos by Mark Rawlings and Anna Rasshivkina layout by Jay Huerbin

As… photos by Mark Rawlings and Anna Rasshivkina layout by Jay Huerbin

As co-owners of a small attic record store that specializes in obscure music, Vince and Daphne Curtis probably sound like the type that would be all for waging the war on music piracy. When they acquired Craig Street’s Brave New World, they amped up the decor by painting the walls in electrifying shades of green and purple, stocked up on Scandinavian war metal and rechristened it Wicked Discs. Vince used to play in a hardcore punk band called Half Life. Both Curtises are big fans of The Wildhearts and like to talk about Pig Destroyer.

However, despite their strong ties to the alternative music industry, neither harbors any hostility toward illegal downloading. In fact, both believe it may be beneficial to their businesses, thanks in part to an increasingly popular phenomenon known as track sampling.

“You get to test drive a car,” said Daphne, “so why not a record?”

Peer to peer, or P2P, file-sharing programs and torrent sites have made it easier for listeners to sample songs from obscure albums sold exclusively by smaller vendors like Wicked Discs. The Curtises explained that only 10 or 20 years ago, it was much harder to learn about up-and-coming independent bands. The only way to do it was to constantly browse catalogues, read magazines and attend shows.

“Now in 20 minutes you can find 10 new bands to try out,” said Daphne. The Curtises also believe that the breed of listener interested in the kind of music they sell is naturally more inclined to view CDs as collector’s items.

In a recent New York Times article, Eric Levin, who oversees the Alliance of Independent Media Stores, a trade group representing 30 shops from across the country, said many smaller record stores have limited their inventory to obscure records, hoping to attract music elitists who don’t see downloading as a viable option.

“As Brave New World, and now as Wicked Discs, we’ve always tried to identify with a more alternative niche,” said Daphne. “What we’ve done [in response to downloading] is concentrate even deeper in our niche. We can’t carry any product line that even borders on mainstream. We have to concentrate on the odder genres.”

A few neighborhoods over in Bloomfield, Paul’s CDs owner Paul Olszewski isn’t sweating the download, either. He said customers often come to the store after having downloaded a few sample tracks from a CD they’re now interested in purchasing. Like Wicked Discs, Paul’s sells punk, indie and alternative records, targeting a demographic still looking to build a CD collection.

“People still want the physical album. Just look at the new Radiohead,” said Olszewski.

In Rainbows has been one of Paul’s best sellers, despite the fact that the band offered a digital version for free online. Olszewski explained that bands like Radiohead continue to sell because they have a devoted fan base that sees the value in a hard copy of its favorite artist’s newest album.

According to TorrentFreak.com, a recent University of London study found a positive correlation between the number of files listeners downloaded and the number of CDs they purchased. The researchers estimated that for every additional P2P file downloaded per month, listeners bought 0.44 more CDs per year. In other words, someone who downloads 270 songs a year will buy nine more records than someone who only downloads 27.

“People always like to listen to something before they buy it,” said Vince. “I think the digital download just helps buyer confidence.”

Working for more than 10 years as an accountant for Brave New World, Daphne became familiar with music-industry economics. She said “big box” record stores like Sam Goody and FYE really took a hit when Napster popped up in 1999, and suffered even more when iTunes arrived on the scene and provided a legal alternative to pirating. She explained that iTunes appeals to listeners who don’t view CDs as collectors’ items and don’t want to purchase an entire album just because they like one song.

“For the mainstream music buyer who wants the radio hit, iTunes is perfect. It’s the absolute perfect solution for the listener who just wants the 10 songs a month that they love,” she said.

iTunes attracts what Vince refers to as the “U2 / Hannah Montana” crowd, people you probably wouldn’t find hanging out at Wicked Discs or Paul’s, even before the onset of downloading.

However, downloading, both legal and illegal, has had devastating consequences for popular music vendors like Tower and Virgin Records. In 2007, BigChampagne LCC, a private research company that monitors the exchange of online media, reported that 1 billion songs per month are traded on illegal file sharing networks. According to the Wall Street Journal, in 2006 alone, more than 800 specialty music retailers, including Tower’s 89 stores, were forced to close their doors.

Less discriminating than Paul’s or Wicked Discs, Dave’s Music Mine, a used CD store in the South Side, suffered similar losses because of downloading. Before the arrival of Napster, owner Dave Panasiuk had a second location above Kinko’s on Forbes Avenue in Oakland, in addition to his South Side store. During the peak of the Napster Era in 2003, he was forced to close down. The majority of his clientele were college students who no longer seemed interested in purchasing records when they could obtain music online for free.

“For me, downloading is much more convenient than having to go out and buy a CD,” said Pitt sophomore Ted Permigiani, a history major.

Dave’s Music Mine now makes about 50 percent of its sales online through Amazon. Panasiuk has had to drastically reduce prices on used CDs in order to compete with iTunes, which offers most albums for just $9.99.

He spoke nostalgically about midnight album release parties and the long lines of customers that used to sprout up outside his store, eager to get their hands on a brand new album. Dave’s is no longer open past midnight on Mondays because of an ever-dwindling interest in popular CDs.

Selling only used vinyl, Jerry’s Records in Squirrel Hill is a different beast entirely.

“CDs aren’t collectible in the same way that vinyl is,” owner Jerry Weber said. Most of his customers purchase vinyl for nostalgic reasons, for the rich musical history behind a used record. Many of the albums in Weber’s store are 30, 40, even 50 years old.

“If you really love music, I mean really love it, you have got to get a record player. There’s 50 years of great music out there that you’re missing if you don’t,” said Weber.

While some people prefer CDs and mp3s because they find vinyl cumbersome to store, Weber pointed out that the size of records is often advantageous.

“Just think,” he said. “If there’s a good looking guy or gal on the front of an album, you get to see that person twice as big on vinyl as you do on a CD.”

Weber also explained that playing a record at a party is much more social than punching a computer key to start an iTunes playlist or popping a CD into a stereo system. He said vinyl brings people together in ways that other music media cannot.

Junior writing major Ross Scarano was introduced to vinyl when his mother received a record player for her birthday.

“My family and I sat around all weekend just listening to Steely Dan,” he said. Scarano became infatuated with his parents’ music, and now has his own vinyl collection, placing him among a minority of younger listeners.

“Not a lot of people collect vinyl. It’s unique,” he said. “Things sound different on vinyl and there is something inherently beautiful about that crackle.”

Weber doesn’t think downloadable music threatens his business in any way.

“Vinyl is different because it’s a collector’s item. I think it’s the used CD stores that are suffering from downloading more so than me,” he said.

In response to the iTunes era, Panasiuk has opted to limit the amount of mainstream music he sells. Adult alternative and indie records are now Dave’s Music Mine’s biggest sellers.

The demographic of Panasiuk’s clientele has also changed. Now the majority of his customers fall into the 35 to 55 demographic, a generation not accustomed to digital music.

“I’d say about 95 percent of regulars want nothing to do with computers. They’ll say ‘I don’t do computers’ or ‘my son has a computer but I won’t go near it,'” said Panasiuk.

Wicked Discs has also found a generational gap in willingness to embrace the digital culture.

“A lot of our older customers don’t have it into their heads that they want to listen to something that exists only on their hard drive,” said Vince, using himself as an example. “I like a lot of things about a CD. I like the artwork. As soon as I found something I didn’t have to flip over, I was pretty into that.”

Though downloading has been detrimental for Dave’s Music Mine, some good has arisen from having a smaller number of regular customers.

“Now, there is more time spent with each customer, because people still buying CDs really want to come and talk about music,” said Panasiuk. “It basically comes down to weather you want to hear the emotion in someone’s voice when they talk about a new record or read about it on a computer screen.”

Even for stores that say they haven’t been hurt by downloading, it’s impossible to entirely ignore the effects of the digital era.

Record companies themselves, it seems, are beginning to make adjustments. Olszewski explained that several of the larger indie labels have started including a downloadable version of the album along with the vinyl, with the intent of making their product more appealing to the modern listener.

The Curtises now order all of their merchandise online.

“I can listen to samples online, which is handy, or I can play a customer a sample here in the store. I can also tell a customer right away if I can order something for them, I don’t have to wait for a catalogue to come in,” said Vince.

“Before the Internet, there wasn’t a way for people who put out Pig Destroyer records to let people who might be interested hear their music,” said Daphne. “Only the Internet has satisfied that. It’s the only place people can go to play and hear whatever they’re interested in and then, hopefully, find a place to go and buy it.”