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 Manager Karl Alty with shop assistant Olly Hill |
Bugbears know how to get into the groove
FEATURE- BUGBEAR RECORDS
THE long-held dream of two music promoters came true on Saturday when they threw open the doors of their new record shop.
Bugbear, aka Jim Matteson and Tony Gleed, have been booking bands for the Parkway pub and venue of renown, the Dublin Castle, for more than 10 years, so it’s fitting that they have opened next door.
They have kick started many a group’s career and played host to many more over the years, including The Spinto band, The Guillemots, The Libertines, Travis, The Ordinary Boys, The Kooks, Graham Coxon, The Futureheads, Maximo Park, Art Brut and Supergrass.
Known as one of the places to play if your dream is to perform to an audience of industry bigwigs, the Dublin has always been on the map – and now acts that go down well might even get the chance to sell their records next door.
Jim said: “We’ve been promoting the Dublin Castle for 11 years but it’s also always been an ambition of mine and Tony’s to open a record shop. We felt there wasn’t a shop in Camden doing new vinyl.
“We plan to open until nine, and we hope people will wander from the venue to the shop.”
Manager of Bugbear Discs, Carl Alty, has been a Bugbear man since ’97 when he left Liverpool and found himself painting the Dublin Castle’s floor. “I was sick for two weeks from the fumes,” he said.
Proud of the company he works for, he rubbishes some unscrupulous promoters who make bands “pay-to-play” – a scam where promoters make bands sell their own tickets.
Excited about the location, he thinks being sandwiched between two venues – the other being the Green Note – should see them hit their stride. He said: “It seems like quite a few shops have closed down here in recent years. With what we’re selling and two great venues, we want to try to bring this place back to life.”
And Jim has big plans for the place – if he likes a new single, he’ll ask the band if they want to play in his shop, or do a signing there. I’m sure they’ll say yes.
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