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SAM ROAKE
@samcorecords
Sam is from the south east of the UK in a small town near Brighton and has been a serious record collector for around 5 years. He quotes a number of musical influences, mainly from his family, however his father that seems the most prominent and it was him that introduced Sam to vinyl almost 20 years ago.
Speaking with Sam, its evident he is extremely passionate about music on a variety of formats but its vinyl that holds that special place in his heart like it does for all of us collectors.
Sam has around 1000 Lp’s in his record collection and states he will never be finished collecting physical music.
Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
Bloc Party - A Weekend In The City
Bloc Party - Intimacy
Bloc Party - Four
How long have you been collecting vinyl records?
I’ve been collecting vinyl records seriously for around 6 years i think, however i’ve actually owned records since i was around 13 years old, so thats about 17 years ago. Growing up i was always surrounded by music, and records in particular, due to living with my father who had his own record collection and audio setup. I get a lot of my music tastes from my father and we used to a lot of share music together. Once i had my own money to spend on records later in life and i started adding to stuff i already had then i started to really call it a collection. I started seriously collecting records just around the time i met my partner which wasn't timed the best and the only thing we ever argue about is the record collection! Mainly because they are always turning up on the doorstep!
How many records do you think you have in your collection and how are they organised?
Im quite anal about this and i have the Discogs app for my phone that allows me to keep track of my collection and at last count i had around 1050 Lp’s. I cant quite believe how many i actually have, its exploded really! Theres a lot of temptation to continuously buy records, from online in particular, as its easy to browse and find something you want to buy rather than going to physically dig in a record shop. My collection is filed alphabetically by band or artist name and by first name not surname. This makes it easier for me to find things more quickly.
Before you buy new music or dip into a new genre on vinyl, would you listen to certain albums from that genre digitally or just dive in and buy a record?
Probably a bit of both i think. The great thing about music nowadays is that you can go listen to an artist on Spotify or Amazon etc and it will recommend 20 other artists that you might enjoy that are similar to the original artist you were listening to. I tend to listen to first digitally if its a new discovery and if i really like what im hearing, i will then find out if their album is available on vinyl and go out and buy it.
Vinyl is obviously your preferred format. Why vinyl then?
Well i think you will get this answer from most collectors but its having the physical object in your hands isn't it! You get to study the artwork and sleeve notes and feel the record sleeve. Its also the sound of vinyl that when you put a record on you know you are listening to something decent. I don't think i've ever bought a bad record really! Yeah i've bought records i will listen to once and then maybe not revisit for a while but even then, having the record in your collection is good enough for me!
We talked about album art briefly, is this something important to you on a record?
Yeah it absolutely is. I have a background in design so this is something that i find always important. The LP has endured the test of time and is as relevant today as it was 60 years ago. And i think that format hasn't drastically changed at all which is a major reason i think that we are in the vinyl revival that we are currently enjoying. The LP will always be my preferred purchase like most collectors. I also like the fact that they when you buy an LP you usually get a download code included which gives you the opportunity to listen digitally to the album. You are getting much more for your money buying a record i think.
What was the first record you bought?
The first record i bought with my own money was by Millencolin and their album “Pennybridge Pioneers” which was back in 2002 i think. I was hugely into the computer game “Tony Hawks Pro Skater” and one of the tracks from that record featured on the game which made me go out and buy the record.
Do you participate in Record Store Day usually? What do you think of the concept?
I do and i don't and it always depends on a few things. For starters, whats on the list i suppose. Some years there have been things i've been wanting and others there hasn't. Its also an issue of not having a participating record shop in my town so Brighton is the nearest place doing it. If theres something im wanting, i tend to chance it and go the day after RSD. I do believe in the message and values of record store day though it isn’t always easy to participate on the day due to location difficulties. However I do feel that we should be supporting indie record stores as much as possible (especially in lockdown and all the time, not just one specific day) but then sometimes the appeal of record store day can also be its drawback, especially with the limited number of some pressings and the collectibility aspect to it. The Courteeners pressings are a good example as RSD solved an issue of their first two albums being out of print but equally caused the same issue afterwards due to the rarity of the reissue.
Tell me about whats on your want list and about any records you have been looking for?
So a lot of my stuff on my want list are records that have only had the one pressing or records released in the late 90s’ to early 00s’. Id use a band called New Found Glory as an example and their debut record which was such an important album throughout my childhood and growing up and one im desperate to have on vinyl. But that album turns 20 years old this year so im hoping it will get a repress to celebrate that anniversary. Im also trying to complete my Idlewild collection as im missing just one album of theirs called “Warnings/Promises”which has never had a vinyl pressing. But talking about reissues, some bands are starting to repress their records now to allow collectors who missed them first time round to have the chance to purchase them. The band Doves are a good example who released their first 3 records last year but annoyingly not their 4 which is such a good record!
And finally, we have been talking about Instagram and thats how ive been contacting collectors to discuss their collection. Whats your thoughts Instagram as a record collector?
I think Instagram is great and its a great tool or platform for a record collector to showcase their collection and music taste. I tend to post records that I know don’t always feature on a lot of vinyl based profiles and I actively like to showcase bands or artists that people might not be familiar with, who people then might go and check them out afterwards. I sometimes have a reluctance at times to post records from well established artists or classic albums as these tend to be common place on Instagram (and to be honest most people are much better at showcasing albums on instagram than me!) but also I guess most people already know that these albums and artists are great to listen to anyway.
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