Stephen Mejias

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In a sense, DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist are music historians and preservationists. In "The Hard Sell," they take us on a scratching, mixing, looping journey through musical genres and fads, from the wildly obscure to the completely commercial, while employing not one, not two, but <i>eight</i> turntables and a collection of original 45rpm seven-inch singles that would make <a href="http://forum.stereophile.com/photopost/showphoto.php/photo/84/size/big/… Fremer's hair</a> go straight.

At some point, I hope to post a long list of links (A Long List of Links) to sites that specialize in vinyl LPs. This will be for you, dear readers. But also for me! I have been collecting the web addresses and adding them to a Favorites folder. If you know of some sites that offer great selections of LPs (new or used) and you want to help me go deeper into debt (just kidding, Clifton), please do share! Together we will build a database of all the World Wide Web's most alluring online stores. (Not <i>those</i> kinds of stores! LP stores, you naughty naughties.)

It was a simple little thing that turned into so much more. Michael Lavorgna started it. Out of the blue and as sudden as spring, he sent an e-mail to me and speaker designer John DeVore: "Let's plan a trip to the Princeton Record Exchange!" And, just in case 60,000 beautiful LPs wouldn't be enough of a lure, Michael put a cherry on top: "The Triumph Brewing Company is right next door!"

It's not nearly as sexy as the Bellari VP129, but I was still happy to receive it. The Exposure 2010S's phono card ($219) arrived on Thursday afternoon, secured in bubble wrap and covered by Styrofoam peanuts. There were no instructions.

Ariel's two new favorite toys&#151one found in the garbage, and one bought with his hard-earned cash: The <a href="http://blog.stereophile.com/stephenmejias/like_an_old_friend/">Sony CFM-10 Radio Cassette-Corder</a> and the Bellari VP129, one-tube wonder.

I don't have to tell you that LP covers are cool. Right? You're already very much aware of all the bold colors and furious fonts and completely outrageous concepts. Photo editors back in the day must have had mad freedom. <i>Alright, cats, here's the plan: We're going to start with a gorilla. He's dressed in a tux. Give the gorilla a gigantic banana. But it's not really a banana. The gorilla will peel the banana to reveal an extremely voluptuous bartender. In one hand, she'll have a tray of martinis, while, with her other hand, she'll be lighting the gorilla's giant cigar. Dig?</i>