With the exception of jumping on a few flights to hit a shop or two in other cities and the Waxpaper Records Pop Up outdoor record show earlier this year, it’s been almost 2 years since attending an official and proper record show. But that all changed this past weekend when the homie Quinn (Funk Trunk Records) brought back his CRATES Record Show which he now throws in Richmond, Virginia. So early Saturday morning I packed my bags, jumped on the noon’ish Amtrak and took the 5.5hr scenic train ride through Delaware, Maryland and Virginia until arriving downtown Richmond where I met up with my German Butta Brother, Scarce one who was also in town for the show.
It was a much needed outing amongst a room full of buyers who feverishly gathered around dealers tables all trying to get their vinyl fix and score long wanted gems and dealers from all over. For many dealers, record shows are how they make their living and while some opted to sell via Instagram to stay afloat, others dislike that idea and prefer the more conventional hand to hand whether at a show or brick and mortar location which I totally understand. Being at CRATES really show that personal interaction and conversation about records and hearing stories about scores is what drives each of us to continue digging.
One of the always unique things about the CRATES show is that it’s almost always thrown at a local brewery and what’s better than enjoying local beers while digging for records!? For the debut of the Richmond show, the event was held at Triple Crossing Beer which served up great beers, gourmet pizzas and the largest soft and hot pretzel you’ve ever seen.
It definitely felt great to be back in the mix with the record community and hopefully this is the jump start to more shows coming up in the near future. Big shout out to the homie Quinn for pulling it all together and making it happen. You sir are a value to the record community and you always put your best foot forward when throwing these shows.