We here at Tone Deaf love nothing more than reporting on everything that is music, however sometimes there might be a little bit too much focus on just the artists, and the myriad of work that goes on behind closed doors is forgotten. Remember record stores? For many (including us) record stores have always been a place of education, worship, and community – so to celebrate these great spaces each fortnight we’re reaching out to shine a much deserved spotlight some of our favourite indie record stores.
We recently spoke to Clay Pegus, the founder, owner and operator of Melbourne north’-side music institution Thornbury Records. Based in one of the city’s most creative suburbs and opened in 2011, the store was born from a love of vinyl and supporting local indie talent.
Over the past four years the store has gone from strength to strength- having released killer local albums on its own label (including the debut LP from Money For Rope and a Damn Terran 7″). Pegus graciously took some time to give us a snapshot of what it’s like to run a successful and respected independent record store today, and just a quick hot tip – every year they boast one of the best collections for (the vinyl lover’s Christmas) Record Store Day so be sure to pop by April 18th! For more info on Thornbury Records visit www.thornburyrecords.com
The Beginning & The Growth Of Vinyl
“I studied music production after high school, and always worked towards starting a studio, but that never really evolved beyond a money sucking hobby. I quit my job of seven years to give that dream a red hot go, but in the meantime I found the range of vinyl locally available to be a bit average and started thinking…
Thornbury Records first opened at the beginning of 2011. Downloads were still king and streaming services had yet to gain any real ground. In the four years Thornbury Records has been open, paid Spotify subscriptions have risen from 1 million to 12 million worldwide – hitting CD and Download revenue hard. Thankfully the vinyl resurgence has nothing to do with convenience and everything to do with passion, so vinyl has continued to grow steadily.”
The Current Climate Of Music Retail
“Thornbury Records was battle-born into the current music retail climate. Dealing with physical music products becoming much more of a niche market and the rapid uptake of online shopping is something I was prepared for. The majority of my time is spent developing and populating the online store and other systems to stay competitive with bigger online retailers.”
A Day In The Life Of Thornbury Records
“Each day of running Thornbury Records is an integral part of a weekly cycle to keep the range of vinyl up to date and the shelves stocked as they should be, but there are a few aspects that run common throughout.
After packing up online orders placed overnight there’s usually a skate down to the local Post Office in Thornbury, or if I want a more exotic experience, heading to the Northcote Plaza never fails to disappoint (visiting Coles #2 and losing my sense of direction is always a trip). Grabbing a coffee from Sookie Lala Diner next door is essential before opening, and usually proves to be a gateway drug to having lunch there as well (I highly recommend the Don Watson on rye, or the clusterfuck of cheese and satisfaction known as the jalapeno bagel).
Around midday the doors swing open and we’re looking at a bunch of hours of listening to music while putting off anything that can be done later. Then it’s time to close the doors and hate myself for following the internet on a magical mystery tour into the various techniques of botfly removal or legality of casu marzu cheese in its country of origin rather than processing records… and then it’s upstairs to finish that off the work.”
First Ever Record Sold
“It was a picture disc of Autobahn by Kraftwerk. Oh how symbolic of the long journey ahead.”
The Personal Connection
“Almost always being the one sitting behind the counter means that I get to know each customer a little more each time they come in, and I probably over share whatever is on my mind to anyone lucky enough to want to buy a record at that time. Getting work done while the shop is open is quite difficult as there’s always someone to talk to about records with or discuss why bottled water costs more than petrol yet we still buy the water and still complain about the price of petrol.”
The Strength Of The Local Music Community
“It’s hard to ignore the overwhelming number of local bands and indie labels that have personally brought in (or posted in pizza boxes) stock for us to sell, and how much cold hard cash we’ve sent back at them!
Maintaining a large collection of music on consignment is a huge task for record stores compared to the income it generates, but doing this well and fairly was one of the founding principles of Thornbury Records. Another founding principle was only selling music for the first time (new rather than used) so that every sale gives something back to promote the creation of more. These principles have made home-grown artists Thornbury Record’s most important relationships.”
Proudest Moments
“My proudest achievement would be knowing that almost every aspect of Thornbury Records was conceptualised, designed, built and improved upon in-house with very little external help.
Step inside Thornbury Records and you’ll be drawn toward to the vinyl, but the DIY ethos of the store is engrained in every aspect. With the Melbourne pub inspired “paint it black and nobody will notice” fit-out, to the awkwardly placed foosball table because “fuck you I want a foosball table” – Thornbury Records is more like Black Books without any books than a Sanity without any Nickelback.”
Record Repair Business, And The Importance Of Diversifying
“Everything that helps pay bills is important, but I felt it was my duty to make as many of these turn-tably things work properly so that customers could actually listen to the records we sell. I have a background in electronics and a soft spot for helping people out.
Within a blink of an eye every horizontal surface had a sad turntable with a job number stuck to it. It’s worth mentioning that I’ve also made at least 60 cents from the Galaga machine and close to $10 from the foosball table – so yes diversifying is important.”
Favourite Moments Since The Birth Of Thornbury Records
“Nothing can top Record Store Day (RSD) each year. After loads of preparation in the months leading up to RSD, the anticipation of getting the exclusive stock here in time and ready for sale is huge. After a couple of hours sleep, I like to sneak out the back-door just before we open to have a look at how far the line to the door extends. Each year the queue is significantly longer and is always a mind blowing display of dedication – the support everyone shows for the indies is like nothing I’ve seen before. It’s like black Friday at Wal-mart but with more love and less casualties. The next one is April 18, so the gears are already in motion.”
The Future Of Indie Record Stores
“I think any bricks and mortar stores selling new music products have some scary challenges right around the corner due to CD and DVD sales plummeting and cut-throat online competition, but stores selling used vinyl should be looking at a long and healthy future thanks to a new crop of vinyl collectors and with the newly manufactured records slowly filtering down to the used market.
The music industry in general will see some serious downsizing as the declining revenue from CDs and now even downloads isn’t anywhere near replaced by the rise in streaming and vinyl sales. Is this a bad thing for music? I don’t think so. The stuff I like comes from those trying to create music rather than money, and with the technological barriers for recording and distribution destroyed by the digital revolution we’re going to see a lot more cream rising to the top of a bigger thingy of milk…Poor people write better music anyway.”
