Put the expression "crate-diggers" into any sentence and it will catch my eye. The Warner Music Group has launched Run Out Groove, a new fan-driven, vinyl-only label that is going to let the public, or more accurately the crate-diggers among us, choose which records from the WMG trove of labels this new label will release. WMG, don't forget, owns the catalogs of Atlantic, Warner Bros., Reprise, Elektra, Sire, and Rykodisc, so the choices here are nearly endless.
According to WMG publicist Chris Macowski, the material to be voted on will either be unreleased tracks, out-of-print records, or new collections compiled from the WMG vaults. The albums that win the vote will be issued in individually numbered, multi-colored, 180gm vinyl copies that will be pressed in the Netherlands at Record Industry and put into printed lyric inner sleeves and a UV or aqueous gloss tip-on jackets from Stoughton Printing in California. The records will be available for 30 days through online pre-orders at the label website. After that they will be available at participating retailers who can also be found on the website. Macowski confirms that if you vote, you are not obligated to buy a copy of whatever record wins.
The first record to be released, though it wasn't chosen by fans, was The Motor City Five by the MC5. While it has sold out at the website, that title may still be found in stores. The second title, this time voted in by vinyl enthusiasts and currently available for pre-order, is It's All Live Now by Echo & the Bunnymen.
Most intriguing are the next slate of candidates, which can be voted on immediately at the above website. The three choices, all from different genres, are Solomon Burke's Best of Atlantic Soul 1962–1965, Secret Machines' Now Here Is Nowhere, and Golden Smog's Down By The Old Mainstream. It will be fascinating to see how fast the choices at Run Out Groove get interesting . . .or not.
