Hello again!
I seem like I haven’t posted in a while, whell it may even be a week and quite possibly longer, but I’ve been busy having fun away doing things etc.
What I’m annoyed about this time is the general uselessness and general crapness of large record stores, i.e. HMV and Virgin. They stock roughly a million of the CD’s that recently came out, which is more than just fairly pointless as no-one should really buy them. The majority are in fact crap, as they are all aimed at a Radio 1 listening audience, who will listen to any old shit that they are told to and then maybe even make a purchase of this music so it can then be forgotten about maybe a week or two later, and in extreme cases a month later! They don’t seem to have any GOOD music, not that I like obscure bands or anything, but I couldn’t find The Grateful Dead in a 3 storey Virgin in Edinburgh!!!!!! If you are really into your music and want to get what you want, then independant record stores are the way to go, but most importantly, Fopp (N.B. It may not still be considered a small independant as it has expanded to fairly large proportions, but it started off small fairly recently…). Fopp is what everyone needs in terms of a great music store. They stock a very large range of artists (apart from Classical) and don’t forget the DVDs and books, the people working there generally know what you are talking about and are helpful and the prices are minimal! It is just amazing to see how much HMV and Virgin are missing out when you visit Fopp! No wonder people are predicting the decline of the CD when most people buy them from such rubbish outlets! I, as almost an Edinburgh resident, enjoyed the original Edinburgh Fopp on Cockburn Street, which I loved very dearly and shopped there when I could. When the HUGE two floor monster opened on Rose Street I was amazed at how amazing it was, 2 whole floors of truly great and cheap stuff! But, when you’re used to Edinburgh sized retail shops and you happen to visit the flagship Fopp on Tottenham Court Road in London, I was truly amazed – it was retail therapy at its best. In a way I pity the people the people that shop there regularly as they will start to get used to that degree of greatness!