Despite moving away from my home town of Slough a decade ago to the slightly (ha!) more vibrant charms of Leeds, I'll still be mourning at the end of this month when my number one childhood haunt, the Slough Record Centre, closes its doors for the last time.
Pretty much the only even half-decent independent record shop for miles around, heaven only knows how much time I spent in there when I was young.
The earliest purchase I remember making in there was the Shakin' Stevens single 'Lipstick, Powder and Paint', but the shop would later give rise to my Crowded House and Fountains Of Wayne obsessions, among other things.
I popped in for the last time when I was down south at Easter, and overheard one of the staff telling a customer that the downturn in trade was all down to the internet. While this may be so, I can't help but think they didn't really try and do anything to combat it. A quick Google search suggests that they've never set up a website to try and diversify a bit (although is there actually a music scene in Slough you can, say, sell tickets for?) - the likes of Crash and Jumbo in Leeds are fantastic examples of how indie stores can exist and maybe even flourish in the current climate, but then Leeds has the student backbone that Slough doesn't.
Aside from one major rejig of its interior, the SRC still resembles something from the '70s, and I suspect a fair amount of the stock hasn't changed since then either.
As in my schooldays, my last visit focused on the bargain bin. I picked out some good stuff, including the Divine Comedy's 'Diva Lady' single, a Finn Brothers single I didn't have (yup, the b-side was probably the millionth live recording of 'Weather With You', but, you know, for the sake of completeness and all that...), and a very unexpected find in the shape of Sondre Lerche's 'Two Way Monologue EP'. I've been very much enjoying Mr Lerche's new album, so it was nice to get hold of some older stuff. Among the tracks is, aptly for this post, the excellent Days That Are Over.
Nice one SRC, and thanks.
MP3: Sondre Lerche - Days That Are Over
Buy the Two Way Monologue album from Amazon.co.uk...
...or, er, alternatively from your local record store!!!
