Kathlyn Hotynski

Last weekend, the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library had another one of its annual book sales. Down in the basement of the library, among screaming toddlers and old men in floppy hats, there it was – all you could carry out in a bag for only five dollars. It just reminded me that there is nothing better than sorting through a bunch of old, cruddy books just to find one that really trips your trigger.

In a way, it’s very much the feeling you get when you go into Eau Claire’s very own independent record store … Oh, that’s right, a town with a student population of more than 10,000 still can’t afford to have a record store. My bad.

I don’t want this column to start off as another laundry list of complaints, so before you start sending in angry letters (or friendly letters, smarmy letters, threatening letters or epistles of any sort) just hear me out. The last record store in the area, Union Records, closed more than two years ago now. Through a winning combination of odd store hours (something like whenever the manager came in – around 2 p.m. – to about 5 p.m.), nonexistent customer service, and the ability to lose your order multiple times, they managed to alienate every customer they ever had.

But this column is not about them. This column is about hope. This column is about the freedom to choose. This column is about me being able to buy vinyl someplace that doesn’t end in “-iapolis”.

So what would a record store need in order to survive here? Here’s a manifesto of sorts that I think would lead to a successful record store here in the Chippewa Valley.

It would need great customer service. It would need to be able to compete with prices that have been driven down by the Internet. It would need people on campus to realize it exists. It would need to be in a space that is close to campus, that is interesting to look at, and that has neighbors that would not be offended by the blaring of the new Black Eyed Snakes record at nine in the morning.

It would need a vibrant and cool Web site designed by local graphic designers that would allow people to order things online. It would need our loving care and support. It would need us to go in and try new things and buy local. It would need to be able to work with UAC and different venues around town (The Stone’s Throw, Racy’s, The House of Rock,) to bring in regional and touring artists for in-store signings and pre-concert get-togethers.

It would need to be able to not only have a record by The Arcade Fire, but also the new Kelly Clarkson or Shaggy. It would need to have an extensive used record collection that would be available for dirt cheap prices. It would need to co-sponsor events with UW-Eau Claire, The Regional Arts Committee or Volume One magazine so that we could get the sort of exciting, mind-blowing entertainment that we, as a community, deserve.

So where would this theoretical record store exist? As far as I can tell, the best place would be on Water Street. Unfortunately, most – if not all – of the business stalls along Water Street are filled up with bars, restaurants, flowershops and more bars. So, at least for the immediate future, it seems that Water Street is out of the picture. The second best place to open our imaginary record store would be somewhere downtown. Downtown Eau Claire Inc. (DECI) has spent tons of money trying to get business owners to move back downtown.

It has worked. Eau Claire’s downtown is in the middle of a huge revitalization. Imagine being able to have a Saturday afternoon where you can browse through old records until going out to eat at Hay Market Grill and then catching the Old 97’s at the State Theatre. Maybe it’s the music nerd in me, but I get breathless even thinking about it.

In short, we don’t need all the stuff I listed. It would be nice – it would be icing on the cake. What we really need in Eau Claire, be it for music or art or sports or whatever, are forward-thinking people who aren’t content with what we have. People who will strive for something more, and who will take chances so that the community can reap the benefits. Oh, and money. That seems to be sort of important, too.