As someone who joined Twitter back in the early days and used it to find and learn from individuals whom I’d never have known about without such a service, to see it become the Hellscape of 2023 has been hard. So much so that I left.
The issue is, when it comes to starting something and finding like-minded people, it’s hard to beat. So when Unspun Heroes became a thing, it was a joy to discover that, in the main, ‘Music Twitter’ is a bit like those halcyon days of 2007/2008 where you could find a community and they would embrace you and allow you into their fold and, in many cases, tell other people what you’re doing. All without really knowing much about you.
And it doesn’t even matter if you like different music. Mostly.
It’s been fascinating being on the edges of ‘Music Twitter’ these past few weeks. And as I learn about the community, so I see the moments of beauty that make spaces such as this a delight to be a very small part of.
One of those is Joel’s Vinyl Adoption Agency, which is a service created by Joel from Brighter Day Record Shop. It is, perhaps, one of the loveliest things I’ve ever seen on Twitter, up there with the ‘I’ve found this kid’s teddy on a train and want to reunite it with its owner’ posts that were once a key ingredient of everyone’s Twitter experience.
Now, I don’t know Joel. I’ve not met him. I know he has a magnificent moustache and an eye for great vinyl. I know he used to, until just this week, stay up stupidly late on Thursdays to do a flick-thru of his recent purchases and find new homes for these from paying customers. (Please note, these are now a Sunday Service, the first of which will happen later today!)
But, above all of the usually commercial endeavours of a record shop owner, his freely giving away a record because it has little commercial value but is still deserving of some love is what stands out. Other people do flick-thrus. Others do reviews. Perhaps others do give things away on a regular basis (at least once a week for Joel) but he does it with absolutely panache and without ego. Hard to do on a medium that rewards self-promotion.
And so, in a sideways step from our usual Sunday Unspun Heroes blog posts, this week I wanted to point towards the community of vinyl-loving music nerds (moustache not required) and highlight someone, and something, that deserves our admiration and applause.
Joel’s choices are varied, so you never know what might come up. Today (Sunday, 28 May, 2023), it was Tighten Up. Next time it could be almost anything. What you can be assured of is that it’ll be interesting and offered up with self-effacement and wit.
If you’re not already following Joel, you should do so. Who knows, you might bag yourself a free vinyl records and be able to give it the love it deserves. That kind of kindness is priceless.
Thanks Joel.
Occasionally, we’ll highlight someone in the community we see and enjoy. If you think of someone, drop us a hello in the comments, or via Twitter or Instagram.