there is a tear in my eye right now as i hear about the closing of one of my favorite places on earth- ear-xtacy. i send thanks and healing vibes to john and everyone who has worked so hard at the store over the years…the presence of that sacred place will be sorely missed. people- let this be a big wake up call to us…we need these places to gather as a community and share ideas about music and art and love and life and…. for the love of god…. it cant all
take place online…or i fear that one day we will all wake up bleary-eyed and hung over from our technology binge and find the real world long gone… let us be inspired by places like “please and thank you,” “carmichaels,” “pops retail and consignment,” “heine brothers” and all the great independent ma and pa stores around the globe- leading us into a new era of what a creative business can be…we need to support these places and help create more…the mp3 has killed the idea of what a traditional record store used to be, but that should only be cause for us to re-invent and support things the computer can never kill…we need these real places… where you can still buy a record from a local band or a hard to find label or root thru stacks of used vinyl…or get a cup of coffee…or buy an old stereo system or a synthesizer or a pair of jeans…or learn a new skill…or teach a new skill…and love your fellow human in person and face to face and all in the same place. lets brainstorm. lets build more of these places. lets stick together. lets support each other. lets figure it out.” – jim james
Perhaps Mr. James would care to invest in the James Ear X Tacy Marketplace and keep the dream alive?
So, I know everyone is crying over ear X-tacy and what it means for local businesses, music in general and the landscape to come, but is it really that far reaching?
I have some local sources in the music scene , and they tell a different tale of shopping experiences. They are the target market of guys looking for unique, or local, or hard to find music , on vinyl or not. With dollars to spend.
” The problem is, you go in there, the staff is always too busy to help, have no clue how to really help in all music genres and it’s a disaster for the true audiophile.”
Ouch. So if that’s true, would ear X-tacy still be around? Or is it the greed of real estate owners who raise rates on small businesses who can never keep up the square footage prices?
Hmm. Are there any channels in which Timmons could save the brand while emerging into this century?
I cannot say I am a huge patron. I was in the days when I lived in the Highlands, but now I fall into the online only category. Curse of digital I suppose. So don’t shoot the messenger, I hate to see any local business hurt. Just offering another side of the story.
Just another perspective on a Louisville landmark that vanished into the night….literally.
