xiaNaix
Active Member
"I'm 37. I'm not old!"
I have pictures of me when I was barely able to walk listening to my Dad's Olson stereo and Garrard turntable. My parents like to tell everyone about how I could pick out any 45 record from my collection they asked to hear and slap it onto my close-n-play record player. I couldn't even read but I'd always find the right one.
I remember, as a kid, having all of the Kiss and Alice Cooper albums. In fact, I have a vivid memory of my Dad brining me the "new" Alice album, "Welcome to my Nightmare." I would have been five years old. I was afraid of all the bugs on the back cover. I also remember sitting on the swing outside my grandmother's house opening up a copy of the latest Kiss album and getting pissed off because I couldn't figure out how to put together the "Love Gun" that was included inside. Whenever we'd go to someone else's house the first thing I'd ask is if they had any records. I'd then spend the entire time there listening to whatever was in their collection.
My parents divorced when I was around five years old. As a result, I spent nearly all of my weekends and summers at my Grandmother's house. One of my Uncles had his bedroom in the "back room" there. The walls were some sort of old wood paneling, probably from the 60's. He had a black leather pull-out sofa, some weird ash tray stand, and a ton of records in the closet. Most nights, his friends would come over to "smoke" and listen to music. As a result, I was exposed, at a very young age, to stuff like Zappa, Hendrix, The Who, Santana, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull, and a lot of second hand smoke. We also listened to obscure FM broadcasts of concerts and old 40's and 50's R&B (for you Detroiters, The Famous Coachman and Mr. Z). Even though his friends were in the twenties and I was just a kid they treated me like I was one of the crew. It left a lasting impression on me and, surprisingly, I never picked up the smoking habit.
My Uncle later started setting up at the local record conventions. I was always a fixture there, helping him set up and sell whatever vinyl or bootleg video tapes he was shilling. He'd always throw a few bucks my way so I could shop for whatever band or artist I was into at the time. I was still listening to stuff that would be considered "not cool" to most of the kids my age. I had a large collection of Zappa and E.L.O. records, as well as stuff like Moondog and The Crazy World of Arthur Brown. A far cry from the hair bands and early rap that everyone at my school was into.
The digital age arrived and, in my twenties, I branched off into industrial and electronica. My CD collection consists of stuff like Skinny Puppy, Alien Sex Fiend, Deutsch Nepal, Mentallo & The Fixer, and a bunch of other artists you've probably never heard of. Later, I started picking up stuff like Squarepusher, Amon Tobin, Mr. Scruff, Bonobo, and The Cinematic Orchestra. I also discovered nu-Jazz and artists like Nils Petter Molvaer. Meanwhile, I was still listening to the stuff from my youth. Somewhere along the way I picked up a taste for space-age pop and lounge stuff as well. Eclectic tastes to say the least.
Now in my thirties, I'm married and have a son on the way. We live in my Grandmother's old house. In order to facilitate the baby, all my stuff had to come out of the "computer room" and into the infamous back room. The walls are still that weird looking wood paneling but the leatherette and weird ash trays are long gone. There are a couple of holes from where my Uncle's speakers used to hang. I've got my Sansui 2000x and Benjamin Miracord 10H set up back here with a pair of recently secured KLH Model Six speakers. I'm buying vinyl and vintage equipment from garage sales and thrift stores. I look forward to having my son back here listening to old vinyl. The circle of life continues.
I have pictures of me when I was barely able to walk listening to my Dad's Olson stereo and Garrard turntable. My parents like to tell everyone about how I could pick out any 45 record from my collection they asked to hear and slap it onto my close-n-play record player. I couldn't even read but I'd always find the right one.
I remember, as a kid, having all of the Kiss and Alice Cooper albums. In fact, I have a vivid memory of my Dad brining me the "new" Alice album, "Welcome to my Nightmare." I would have been five years old. I was afraid of all the bugs on the back cover. I also remember sitting on the swing outside my grandmother's house opening up a copy of the latest Kiss album and getting pissed off because I couldn't figure out how to put together the "Love Gun" that was included inside. Whenever we'd go to someone else's house the first thing I'd ask is if they had any records. I'd then spend the entire time there listening to whatever was in their collection.
My parents divorced when I was around five years old. As a result, I spent nearly all of my weekends and summers at my Grandmother's house. One of my Uncles had his bedroom in the "back room" there. The walls were some sort of old wood paneling, probably from the 60's. He had a black leather pull-out sofa, some weird ash tray stand, and a ton of records in the closet. Most nights, his friends would come over to "smoke" and listen to music. As a result, I was exposed, at a very young age, to stuff like Zappa, Hendrix, The Who, Santana, John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull, and a lot of second hand smoke. We also listened to obscure FM broadcasts of concerts and old 40's and 50's R&B (for you Detroiters, The Famous Coachman and Mr. Z). Even though his friends were in the twenties and I was just a kid they treated me like I was one of the crew. It left a lasting impression on me and, surprisingly, I never picked up the smoking habit.
My Uncle later started setting up at the local record conventions. I was always a fixture there, helping him set up and sell whatever vinyl or bootleg video tapes he was shilling. He'd always throw a few bucks my way so I could shop for whatever band or artist I was into at the time. I was still listening to stuff that would be considered "not cool" to most of the kids my age. I had a large collection of Zappa and E.L.O. records, as well as stuff like Moondog and The Crazy World of Arthur Brown. A far cry from the hair bands and early rap that everyone at my school was into.
The digital age arrived and, in my twenties, I branched off into industrial and electronica. My CD collection consists of stuff like Skinny Puppy, Alien Sex Fiend, Deutsch Nepal, Mentallo & The Fixer, and a bunch of other artists you've probably never heard of. Later, I started picking up stuff like Squarepusher, Amon Tobin, Mr. Scruff, Bonobo, and The Cinematic Orchestra. I also discovered nu-Jazz and artists like Nils Petter Molvaer. Meanwhile, I was still listening to the stuff from my youth. Somewhere along the way I picked up a taste for space-age pop and lounge stuff as well. Eclectic tastes to say the least.
Now in my thirties, I'm married and have a son on the way. We live in my Grandmother's old house. In order to facilitate the baby, all my stuff had to come out of the "computer room" and into the infamous back room. The walls are still that weird looking wood paneling but the leatherette and weird ash trays are long gone. There are a couple of holes from where my Uncle's speakers used to hang. I've got my Sansui 2000x and Benjamin Miracord 10H set up back here with a pair of recently secured KLH Model Six speakers. I'm buying vinyl and vintage equipment from garage sales and thrift stores. I look forward to having my son back here listening to old vinyl. The circle of life continues.
