Hey Travis....

[xjustinxschwierx]

because i live literally 5 minutes from the mall, and 20+ from any of those. i get to bull city and schoolkids as often i can. calm yourself.

you post on a vinyl messageboard but aren't willing to drive 20 minutes for a few of the best record stores in the state (if not the country)?

all day fucking rules, cd alley is the SHIT if you're patient and like digging, and the new record store IN THE GROOVE is supposed to be GREAT (carrying all of sorry state distro!).

not to mention you're only a few hours from charlotte and lunchbox records, or a few hours south of richmond.

seriously folks, it's fucking UNBELIEVABLE to me that in 2012 there are still people into "punk" that think it's awesome to shop at hot topic.

travis, I hope the place you work at is as soul sucking as it seems, and I hope they go out of business. It has nothing to do with twilight shirts or good vinyl prices, it's about taking money and spending it in the wrong place. get fucking fired or at least stop using this board as an outlet for fucking HOT TOPIC

Hot Topic puts plenty of money "in the right places" by buying exclusive color variants from lots of labels on this board, and given that they pay up front and there are no returns...that is a great asset for us small time labels...yes HT is what it is...but in the end if Travis can give back in those ways then hate on them/him all you want.

Flood and I work at a not-quite soul sucking day job for a huge corporation and we post on here all day long...I'm sure it's very similar to what a lot of most people on this board do and what Travis' day to day is like. HT as a distro is no different from any other distro on the board, just a different scale than most.

[flood]

Over the years as a label i've been fucked constantly by "independent" stores, and supposedly punk rock distros.. stores closed and kept my shit. distros went belly up and kept my shit and the money owed me. Jay & Travis have supported the shit out of my label for just about a decade now, always paid me, were always totally upfront about things, and have been all around great folks that i'm proud to call friends. As a 33 year old who loves music, and loves putting out music i could give two shits if people think somewhere is "punk" enough for them.. its a store who treats their suppliers extremely well and will actually hire you if you have a stupid haircut and visible tattoos and piercings... thats pretty damn progressive if you ask me.

[somethingvinyl]

because i live literally 5 minutes from the mall, and 20+ from any of those. i get to bull city and schoolkids as often i can. calm yourself.

you post on a vinyl messageboard but aren't willing to drive 20 minutes for a few of the best record stores in the state (if not the country)?

all day fucking rules, cd alley is the SHIT if you're patient and like digging, and the new record store IN THE GROOVE is supposed to be GREAT (carrying all of sorry state distro!).

not to mention you're only a few hours from charlotte and lunchbox records, or a few hours south of richmond.

seriously folks, it's fucking UNBELIEVABLE to me that in 2012 there are still people into "punk" that think it's awesome to shop at hot topic.

travis, I hope the place you work at is as soul sucking as it seems, and I hope they go out of business. It has nothing to do with twilight shirts or good vinyl prices, it's about taking money and spending it in the wrong place. get fucking fired or at least stop using this board as an outlet for fucking HOT TOPIC

While Hot Topic is just a corporate store no different than Wal-Mart or Best Buy, Travis is one of the nicest dudes on the message board. To wish his professional demise is childish and ignorant. I wish I had Travis' job, to be able to put good music in the stores that would get kids to venture outside of what is popular to hear real music.

[flood]

"While Hot Topic is just a corporate store no different than Wal-Mart or Best Buy"

gotta watch what you say here... Hot Topic is extremely supportive of the music industry, Wal-Mart uses it's weight to bully labels into making "censored" versions of hit records, and if the labels don't acquiesce it pulls all of their stock from the shelves. Theres a huge difference between a successful niche market retailer, and a corporate monster like wal-mart.

[kurtz]

i guess if i wanted to buy "local" vinyl, id have to go to philly, but as i have seen before, they dont have much selection.

The stores in Philly don't have much selection?! Are you kidding?

I can't go record shopping in Philly without spending $100+.

[mmhmm]

because i live literally 5 minutes from the mall, and 20+ from any of those. i get to bull city and schoolkids as often i can. calm yourself.

you post on a vinyl messageboard but aren't willing to drive 20 minutes for a few of the best record stores in the state (if not the country)?

all day fucking rules, cd alley is the SHIT if you're patient and like digging, and the new record store IN THE GROOVE is supposed to be GREAT (carrying all of sorry state distro!).

not to mention you're only a few hours from charlotte and lunchbox records, or a few hours south of richmond.

seriously folks, it's fucking UNBELIEVABLE to me that in 2012 there are still people into "punk" that think it's awesome to shop at hot topic.

travis, I hope the place you work at is as soul sucking as it seems, and I hope they go out of business. It has nothing to do with twilight shirts or good vinyl prices, it's about taking money and spending it in the wrong place. get fucking fired or at least stop using this board as an outlet for fucking HOT TOPIC

So, you've been called to the mat by a few people about the good Hot Topic is doing for labels. Why so quiet?

[sjb2k1]

because i live literally 5 minutes from the mall, and 20+ from any of those. i get to bull city and schoolkids as often i can. calm yourself.

you post on a vinyl messageboard but aren't willing to drive 20 minutes for a few of the best record stores in the state (if not the country)?

all day fucking rules, cd alley is the SHIT if you're patient and like digging, and the new record store IN THE GROOVE is supposed to be GREAT (carrying all of sorry state distro!).

not to mention you're only a few hours from charlotte and lunchbox records, or a few hours south of richmond.

seriously folks, it's fucking UNBELIEVABLE to me that in 2012 there are still people into "punk" that think it's awesome to shop at hot topic.

travis, I hope the place you work at is as soul sucking as it seems, and I hope they go out of business. It has nothing to do with twilight shirts or good vinyl prices, it's about taking money and spending it in the wrong place. get fucking fired or at least stop using this board as an outlet for fucking HOT TOPIC

"i post on a vinyl message board" what the fuck does that have to do with anything?

keep talking like you know my financial situation, bud. these days shipping is cheaper than the gas it takes for me to get to these places. at the end of the day i'm doing the best i can to support bands i love and local stores with the finite resources i have.

but please, continue to tell me my business...on a message board.

[ene]

is it really that hard for people to understand why some some people are frustrated at their sub-culture being commodified? even if its by a company who pays on time and helps people out. obviously its not a black and white situation, but i understand the "how dare you say anything about about hot topic!" about as much as i understand the "death to all hot topic employees."

[mikepapalone]

i guess if i wanted to buy "local" vinyl, id have to go to philly, but as i have seen before, they dont have much selection.

The stores in Philly don't have much selection?! Are you kidding?

I can't go record shopping in Philly without spending $100+.

i called up a few places and they didnt have any of the stuff i was looking for. but maybe im looking in the wrong places. if you can, give me a list of some good places to go, and ill check em out! thx

[flood]

is it really that hard for people to understand why some some people are frustrated at their sub-culture being commodified? even if its by a company who pays on time and helps people out. obviously its not a black and white situation, but i understand the "how dare you say anything about about hot topic!" about as much as i understand the "death to all hot topic employees."

wake up man, punk rock's "image" was more or less started by a clothing store to begin with, it was started as a commodity.... lets not romanticize a false history.

[anomynous]

seriously folks, it's fucking UNBELIEVABLE to me that in 2012 there are still people into "punk" that think it's awesome to shop at hot topic.

travis, I hope the place you work at is as soul sucking as it seems, and I hope they go out of business. It has nothing to do with twilight shirts or good vinyl prices, it's about taking money and spending it in the wrong place. get fucking fired or at least stop using this board as an outlet for fucking HOT TOPIC

I hope Travis becomes CEO of Hot Topic and never gets fired just to spite you.

[kurtz]

The stores in Philly don't have much selection?! Are you kidding?

I can't go record shopping in Philly without spending $100+.

i called up a few places and they didnt have any of the stuff i was looking for. but maybe im looking in the wrong places. if you can, give me a list of some good places to go, and ill check em out! thx

Check out this thread

http://vinylcollective.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=70398&start=0

Even if they don't have anything specific you are looking for, just go and browse. You will find stuff you are into.

[ene]

is it really that hard for people to understand why some some people are frustrated at their sub-culture being commodified? even if its by a company who pays on time and helps people out. obviously its not a black and white situation, but i understand the "how dare you say anything about about hot topic!" about as much as i understand the "death to all hot topic employees."

wake up man, punk rock's "image" was more or less started by a clothing store to begin with, it was started as a commodity.... lets not romanticize a false history.

im really sorry you feel that way. i also wasnt talking about punks "image"

[zacaroo21]

Best Buy and most big chains sell a lot of music at a loss. It's how they get you in the door to sell you a Bose sound system or Dre Beats headphones or other worthless garbage with high profit margins. So if you're only ever buying cheap media/clearance items, you could potentially be taking away from their bottom line.

And dude. Shopping at Best Buy is not "buying local". I'm sure residents of Arkansas don't harbor any illusions of "keeping it local" when they shop at Wal Mart.

I guess my offhanded remark didn't come off so well...I don't shop at Best Buy to be that "I shop local" guy - not in the least.

[maneatingcow]

seriously folks, it's fucking UNBELIEVABLE to me that in 2012 there are still people into "punk" that think it's awesome to shop at hot topic.

C

While I don't want to sit here I defend Hot Topic or other mega chains, nor do I want to rehash what I said earlier, I do have to respond to this.

It's seriously unbelievable to me that in 2012 there are still people into "punk" that think it's awesome to have the mentality that if your not like me and do what I do or shop where I shop, then your not as "punk" as me.

Punk rock should not be a hierarchical society, where sitting at the bottom is your evil Hot Topic shoppers and at the pinnacle is your Vegan, exclusive bicycle riding, anarchist tattooed, atheist, with purple mohawks. Punk rock should be all inclusive, not exclusive. The only litmus test that should be to prove punk rock is if an individual has an open mind.

[Guest]

I would imagine it is easy to pay for distro stock up front with no returns when you make 95% of your sales in clothing and fashion accessories. If I had a distro that sold 10 trillion Twilight shirts a year I would pay every fucking label in the world for stock and never return a damn thing either.

I harbor no ill will toward Travis...I just think HT should be a last resort since there are a million other places to buy records from. If I can buy everything I want without shopping at HT exclusively, then everyone else can do it too.

Besides, think of it this way...if no one buys records from HT, EVERYTHING GOES ON CLEARANCE!

[flood]

wake up man, punk rock's "image" was more or less started by a clothing store to begin with, it was started as a commodity.... lets not romanticize a false history.

im really sorry you feel that way. i also wasnt talking about punks "image"

As someone who has been extremely involved in my local music scene for over 15 years nothing makes me more disgusted than elitist assholes.

1) you're going to buy your cds and tshirts from someone. theyre a commodity. they're being made by corporations, and for the most part sold by them... hell most bigger bands are incorporated or are at least LLC's.

2) small business does not necessarily equal moral or just. The dudes working at the local indie store generally make the same or less than their big box equivalent.. and as many labels will tell you.. you're more apt to be screwed monetarily from the oh so punk rock store down the street who will more often than not give you the run around when you're trying to get paid on your stuff.

3) kids have to start somewhere. nobody wakes up one morning punk as fuck... everyone here got into it because (if you're my age) you heard green day or the offspring or in the case of the younger folks... you heard blink or sum 41 or whatever. Hot Topic is a gateway, and in a lot of cases HT might be the only "record store" that some poor kid has access to. And they do carry a ton of legit indie labels stuff... i have a better chance of getting an asian man release in there than i do at most of the record stores in my area...

4) theres much bigger issues to worry about than the punk points of the place you got your misfits tshirt.

[imaxcowboyx]

I went into my first hot topic like a month ago in Hawaii. I asked the girl working if they have any records and she didn't have any idea what I was talking about. Once I found them I think they had 2 Throwdown - Haymaker/Vendetta's, 5 Thursday/Envy splits and 2 Deftones records. Pretty disappointing.

i just think it's disappointing you spent time in a mall while in Hawaii

Shoulda been out there catchin some rays!!

[jpearin]

im really sorry you feel that way. i also wasnt talking about punks "image"

As someone who has been extremely involved in my local music scene for over 15 years nothing makes me more disgusted than elitist assholes.

1) you're going to buy your cds and tshirts from someone. theyre a commodity. they're being made by corporations, and for the most part sold by them... hell most bigger bands are incorporated or are at least LLC's.

2) small business does not necessarily equal moral or just. The dudes working at the local indie store generally make the same or less than their big box equivalent.. and as many labels will tell you.. you're more apt to be screwed monetarily from the oh so punk rock store down the street who will more often than not give you the run around when you're trying to get paid on your stuff.

3) kids have to start somewhere. nobody wakes up one morning punk as fuck... everyone here got into it because (if you're my age) you heard green day or the offspring or in the case of the younger folks... you heard blink or sum 41 or whatever. Hot Topic is a gateway, and in a lot of cases HT might be the only "record store" that some poor kid has access to. And they do carry a ton of legit indie labels stuff... i have a better chance of getting an asian man release in there than i do at most of the record stores in my area...

4) theres much bigger issues to worry about than the punk points of the place you got your misfits tshirt.

Can someone sticky this?

[somethingvinyl]

"While Hot Topic is just a corporate store no different than Wal-Mart or Best Buy"

gotta watch what you say here... Hot Topic is extremely supportive of the music industry, Wal-Mart uses it's weight to bully labels into making "censored" versions of hit records, and if the labels don't acquiesce it pulls all of their stock from the shelves. Theres a huge difference between a successful niche market retailer, and a corporate monster like wal-mart.

Flood, this is a good clarification. At the end off the day, though they're both still in existence to make a big bottom line, whether one brand caters to music and the other doesn't.

[vinyljunkie]

because i live literally 5 minutes from the mall, and 20+ from any of those. i get to bull city and schoolkids as often i can. calm yourself.

you post on a vinyl messageboard but aren't willing to drive 20 minutes for a few of the best record stores in the state (if not the country)?

well this is an unfortunate product of the internet generation. And the "casual vinyl collector".

sure i COULD shop local and support local business and check out a lot of other stuff ive never heard of....but thats like a half hour away. fuck that. there is nothing near me.

Its really sad. For instance, i see one guy from Houston bumping his wantlist on this board every week. I have numerous items here in the store, and have had various items off his wantlist here locally in the past, which i have posted and let him know about. but because this city is huge and it is a half hour drive, the records just sit here in the store, and the wantlist will get bumped the next week.

and i dont mean to pick on him specifically but nothing bums me out more when i look on various messageboards where local kids complain about not being able to find a record, or best buy/hot topic being out of a record, or just posting "ive been looking for this record forever".......only to see those same records sit in my shelves and no one in the store, and never once see or meet these kids in most cases.

its very rare you will have an independent record store within walking distance. But if you really are into records, whats so hard about a small road trip for an hour or two to check out some great stores and meet some cool people? hell. you could facebook/twitter on your phone the whole way in the car if getting out in public scares you that much.

[vinyljunkie]

also

for the majority of the "collectors" now a days, any record store (even hot topic) isnt up to par as most people arent there to browse, or get into new music, etc. Very few people use a record store to find out about music now a days. Most people go into a store to find very specific wants, specific colors, and specific pressings. When a store doesnt have either of the colors of the 2 records the person has heard of, its deemed a store that "doesnt have much".

[mattisr1984]

checking the boards out for new releases is cool and all but there is nothing more fun than the thrill of the hunt. ive driven 25, 35, 45 min. to go to record stores - and even a road trip or two. the best part about record "collecting" is digging through the bins.

[flood]

"While Hot Topic is just a corporate store no different than Wal-Mart or Best Buy"

gotta watch what you say here... Hot Topic is extremely supportive of the music industry, Wal-Mart uses it's weight to bully labels into making "censored" versions of hit records, and if the labels don't acquiesce it pulls all of their stock from the shelves. Theres a huge difference between a successful niche market retailer, and a corporate monster like wal-mart.

Flood, this is a good clarification. At the end off the day, though they're both still in existence to make a big bottom line, whether one brand caters to music and the other doesn't.

at the end of the day every business relies on the bottom line. some labels and stores might be more altruistic than others... but if the bills dont get paid, they go away. And if hocking some twilight shit keeps a place open that sells actual records.. so be it.. all the indie stores around me either went belly up, or employ such annoying policies (like lets not price anything and look it up online when you bring it to the register) that i won't bother with them anymore... even living in a rich state i have to drive 35 minutes to get to a good store.. and thats kind of insane given the general population of the area

[suchashorttime]

also

for the majority of the "collectors" now a days, any record store (even hot topic) isnt up to par as most people arent there to browse, or get into new music, etc. Very few people use a record store to find out about music now a days. Most people go into a store to find very specific wants, specific colors, and specific pressings. When a store doesnt have either of the colors of the 2 records the person has heard of, its deemed a store that "doesnt have much".

gone are the days of going to a record store to buy 3 or 4 comps for less than $10, then going back the next day to buy 3 or 4 records because you REALLY liked a few songs on the comps.

but you can't really resist change, as much as it lacks romance or integrity. someone needs to grab the bull by the horns and give kids a reason to go to record stores again. i live in the burbs and have to drive an hour to the closest decent record store (which is pretty unfriendly, really loud, and has a pretty hit or miss selection). there just has to be a better way.