Ever wish you could get inside Oreo Jones’ headphones or the jukebox at the Chatterbox?
Irvington Vinyl & Books is teaming up with people who book music for local venues and festivals to curate collections of records that capture their vibe.
Some of the curators are from Indianapolis music venues such as the Chatterbox Jazz Club that specialize in presenting local music on their stages. There’s also a section for the Chreece hip-hop festival, curated by founder Sean “Oreo” Jones.
The new sections are Irvington Vinyl & Books owner Elysia Smith’s way of showing some love to the local music scene.
“I can’t tell you how many people come in that are new to the city and are like, ‘What do you recommend?’ And I give them a list of all these venues,” Smith said.
Now, she can direct visitors to the vinyl collections curated by each of those venues.
“You’ll be able to see what shows are happening at each, read a little bit about the venue and get a sense of what they’re bringing to the table through their curation,” she said.
A local artist in his own right, Jones can relate to the experience of going into a record store and discovering new sounds.
“Before I started doing things as an artist, I didn’t really know anyone in the city, and I remember just going into a record store and really falling in love with hip-hop by going to the hip-hop section and just grabbing CDs,” Jones says. “That’s how I grew familiar with artists like J Dilla, 9th Wonder, Mos Def, and A Tribe Called Quest.”
In the Chreece section at Irvington Vinyl & Books, Jones said shoppers will find releases from local and national acts who have performed at the festival over the years, in addition to albums that have paved the way for Chreece’s overall curation.
“It will be like our mood board essentially, but patrons of the store can get their fingers on it and support the artists who have fueled the fest in the past and present,” Jones said.
With a storied history of its own, the Chatterbox Jazz Club celebrated its 43rd anniversary in September.
Bartender Ben Rogers said the Chatterbox section at Irvington Vinyl & Books will highlight releases from the artists who regularly perform at the club, including Rob Dixon, Tucker Brothers, Carrington “Clint Breeze” Clinton, Sarah Grain & the Billions of Stars, and Mina & the Wondrous Flying Machine.
It will also feature albums that have helped shape the club, along with some standout selections from the Chatterbox’s jukebox.
“There are songs that people come in and play on the jukebox because it’s their song from their first date 30 years ago, and it still has that nostalgic feel to them,” Rogers said.
Smith plans to add venue-curated sections to the store one by one, with the Dorman Street jukebox up next and others to follow.
Rogers said he hopes Smith’s efforts to represent local music venues on the shop’s shelves will encourage Indy music lovers to grow even more connected to the city they call home.
“Hopefully, it will not only foster attention on us at the Chatterbox but also a cross-pollination of these spaces,” Rogers says. “Through that, people who are seeking a variety of musical entertainment can go all over the city and find it.”
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Seth Johnson is a Mirror Indy freelance contributor. You can reach him at seth.johnson4291@gmail.com.
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