Corner Record Shop serves up local tunes

The Corner Record Shop & Audio located on West Main Street in the Tiffany’s mini-mall.

By Emilie E. Tole
Western Herald

Every Sunday night at 7 p.m., The Corner Record Shop of Kalamazoo hosts a concert. This week, the Shop will say farewell to February with an eclectic showcase.

“This is a pretty funny show, actually,” Corner Record Shop employee Sean Hartman said.

With performances ranging from ukulele to metal, the Sunday night show will provide attendees with a diverse line-up of music consisting of artists From Hell, Psycho Uke, and Hope for Me.

From Hell is the side project of Hartman’s fellow employee, John Rios. In this project, Rios occupies the guitar while providing vocal intonation.
Following From Hell will be John Payne, who performs as Psycho Uke.

“[Payne] hangs out at the store all the time and has a solo project called Psycho Uke,” Hartman said. “He plays a ukulele and uses a drum machine.”
Hope for Me, the third band to present, is a local group from Richland, Mich.

Hartman described the band as a two-piece-guitar-with-drums ensemble, producing harder rock that is reminiscent of metal.

The Corner Record Shop has two locations, one in Kalamazoo, the other in Grandville. However, the Kalamazoo location is the only one that is dubbed as a music venue.

“Every Sunday night at 7 p.m., we host a show,” Hartman said. “And then every once in a while there’s a show on a weeknight.”

Due to the frequency of show dates, the Corner Record Shop hosts a wide variety of music.

The average audience consists of about 20 individuals, comprised of many people passing through and dropping by as well as customers meandering through the records and deciding to stay for the show.

“All kinds of people come to these shows,” Hartman said. “It’s not just the friends of the featured band.”

In addition to providing live, weekly entertainment, the Corner Record Shop also strives to help out musicians. Musicians of all ranges of skills and genres are allowed to perform, and anyone who is interested can call and be booked for a concert.

“[We also] stock any local band’s recorded album free of commission,” Hartman said.

The shop also offers a range of customer services. The employees repair broken turn tables, amps, and receivers, help customers find just what they’re looking for, and order new copies of albums that may not be found in chain department stores.

Every concert held at the store is free of charge, but donations for the traveling bands are always welcomed.

The Corner Record Shop is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekdays and opens at noon on Sundays.

The Corner Record Shop can be reached by phone at 269-381-0218 or visited online at www.cornerrecordshop.com.

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Posted by kleonard on Feb 25 2010. Filed under A & E, Weekend Scene. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

Kallie