I remember reading somewhere that some record store owners get frustrated with customers who use their phones to look up records on Discogs. I suspect they believe the customers are solely looking at the pricing – i.e. can I get this way cheaper online. As someone who is constantly looking stuff up on their phone at record stories, though, I often use Discogs and other sites as a way to get some basic info about a band I’ve never heard of, and if there are embedded YouTube links to their songs a chance to give them a listen before deciding if I want to buy. For me looking things up on Discogs while at the store make the sale more likely, not less.
An example of this was Afrodisia Città Libera’s 1985 maxi-single Stati D’Ansia, which I pulled from the darwave bin at Rome’s Welcome To The Jungle Records. The first thing that caught my eye, in fact, was the one comment a user made about it – “One of the best Italian post-punk records ever”. Now, sure, this guy could have crap taste, but it was a promising start. And after playing a few seconds of one of the embedded videos I put Stati D’Ansia into my buy pile.
With just 13 songs clocking in at a total of 13 minutes, it’s over before you know it. But oh, what a glorious 13 minutes! Dark synths and plaintive vocals create the impression of being lost, not in a physical sense but something more… internal. There’s a hint of desperation here, longing, but also of resignation. A beautiful record from start to finish.