HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — Nowadays, listening to music is done with the push of a button. But if you ask a record collector, they’ll say the drop of a needle is way more fun.
Jarrod Maxwell, the owner of Maxwell’s Music, first opened his store on Clinton Row in 2018 and wasn’t sure if the demand would be enough to help it thrive.
“There was that kind of fear that just because it was a hobby or something I enjoyed, is there really a business behind it?” Maxwell said.
As it turns out, it was. Now, eight years later, Maxwell’s Music has moved to a new location off Memorial Parkway that’s three times bigger.
And it’s just steps away from Black Rose Records, which celebrated its second anniversary on April 12.
“We saw there was really a big demand for it,” Black Rose Records owner Sean Hale said. “People really were excited about it.”
“It’s funny because it was actually Sean’s idea,” Maxwell said. “Anyone that comes to our stores, there’s an immediate different feel. Yes, we both sell records, but at the end of the day that’s kind of where it stops.”
Hale and Maxwell both pointed to a number of reasons for the boom in vinyl collecting, from marketing and trend cycles to the desire for access to media that never disappears.
And when there’s so much demand, it’s all love between the two music stores.
“We don’t look at competition that way,” Maxwell said. “We look at it as if you’re coming to Huntsville, you see three record stores on Google, you’re gonna go to all three. Now, instead of having to go downtown and find me, you walk across the sidewalk.”
Being raised on physical media had a major influence on their individual tastes.
“Growing up in the 90s, for the most part, that’s all there was,” Hale said. “In my teens, that’s when you develop that sense of really who you are and who you’ll probably be for the rest of your life. When I’m out looking for records myself, there would be things I’d see and know, ‘Oh that’s a really good price, I’m sure I’ll find someone who wants it.’”
The constant search to find new music helps stock their shelves.
“That’s what people ask us a lot, like, what sort of stuff are you looking for?” Hale said. “It’s like… everything. We all want everything!”
“When something’s gone, we might not see another copy for a year,” Maxwell added. “So, when you go into a record store, my mentality is be open to what they have.”
For Maxwell and Hale, sharing that passion with others is also the most rewarding part of the job.
“I love doing this so much,” Maxwell said. “None of us are gonna be millionaires doing this, but we’re happy. And that’s the big thing for me, being able to share my passion, get people excited. I couldn’t tell you how many people I’ve got turned onto new music.”
“It’ll be quiet, relatively, other than some music playing and then someone will exclaim really excitedly about something they’ve been looking for or didn’t expect to find,” Hale said. “It’s a really good feeling to help get that stuff to people. You know, there are way worse things I could be spending money on! That’s what I tell myself to convince myself it’s okay.”
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