Module 5: Where Is Baltimore Music Headed? & Research

Module 5: Where Next, Bmore?

By the look of it, Baltimore's music shops are surviving. Between some of the big guns like The Sound Garden, The True Vine, CD Depot and Dimensions in Music, their collections, vinyl included, are most certainly not going out of style.

"People will never stop buying vinyl," Al Shipley, music writer for Baltimore City Paper says. "Stores like The Sound Garden and The True Vine have a loyal fan base."

But that's not to say that Baltimore's music shops aren't changing. In late 2007, Towson-grown music chain Record and Tape Traders was purchased by Value Music Concepts. The sale wasn't unexpected, but the impact was apparent.

"It was immediate. Record and Tape [Traders] were closing their warehouse so they sent out a letter to all the local labels and bands on consignment to let them know to pick up their CDs," Shipley says. "Prices went up too."

This meant that Record and Tape Traders would no longer sell releases from local musicians, tightening their spectrum as a local music shop. With many locations in the greater Baltimore area, this was certainly a damper on local music distribution.

Back in the day, before digital music began to take the market by storm, local vinyl shops and labels ran the Baltimore Club market, creating a supply and demand for local DJs. When digital music started into the scene, these shops and labels began to see the results of the invasion. "A couple shops went out of business, and DJs started selling their vinyl to places like The True Vine," Evan Weinstein, a Baltimore Club promoter, says.

"It was a combination of the time and the market changing and technology," Shipley says. "Baltimore isn't a major city, it's a smaller place. Places like New York always have something going on, but here it may seem like things drop off for a bit. It takes a while for everything to gel back into place."

So what's next for Baltimore? When and how is the new phase going to take place? Maybe sooner that we thought. Popular musicians like Beach House and Dan Deacon are receiving exposure on the major indie rock markets and helping to solidify Baltimore as a impressive outlet for new music. Wham City, a collection of artists and their venues founded in 2004, are helping to harness the talent.