In total agreement with Simon over Rough Trade. I do rely on them enormously for that central body of music (indie-tronica+++) and they are generally pretty catholic. But YES no UK Garage! Simon cites the work of Paul Kennedy at Tower NYC; over here the only people (outside the small coterie of Planet Phat, Rhythm Division, Uptown and Blackmarket) who dealt with it were another flexi-giant, HMV on Oxford Street- but they've since dropped the ball.
In Rough Trade's favour Darren in Covent Garden (who I hit in person with my URL last Friday, if you're reading this mate, hi!) does stock Ragga, which is almost foolhardy in the face of market forces. I mean how many people really buy it? However, I'm a little imp when it comes to things like this, and (not wanting to overturn any apple-carts here, HEAVEN FORBID!) should Rough Trade start stocking UKG I'd probably take it as a sign of that scene's imminent collapse. Certainly I think I only ever bought a very few Jungle records from them.
And while I'm on the "react-to-reynolds-tip" have been mulling over this 70% thing (safe within the walls of a secure mental institution). There must be a point at which these scenes (UKG and Hip-Hop) become severed from their hot plastic mass and float like bubbles in a Mathmos lamp to the surface. That's the point when they stop being "real" in a sense and start to "project". Maybe that's also the point when HIP institutions (like Rough Trade) start to stock their stuff. Though certainly I'd have to tie myself up in theoretical knots to figure out how Platinum rap fitted into this equation.
Posted by Woebot at May 1, 2003 07:51 AM