Each month, we chat to someone with a passion for collecting: vinyl, CDs, DVDs, blu-ray, dust... or any other type of physical media. We love what they’re about, and you will too! Be awe-struck, be jealous, or just be inspired with new ideas for your own cool collections.

This month, we meet Mitch: vinyl enthusiast and all-round top bloke. Take 5 minutes to read his brilliant story. (Psst - wanna be featured? Email us! If we feature you on our blog, you’ll get $50 to spend in our store!)

Tell us a bit about yourself.

My name is Mitch, I’m a musician and I live in the Northern suburbs of Brisbane. I grew up in a music loving family in Cairns and moved down to study music at uni and ended up staying. I’ve been happily unmarried for over 16 years to a beautiful and talented violinist and we have a precocious 5 year old boy.

What do you collect and when did it start?

My collection isn’t large by some standards (about 1000 pieces, give or take). I’ve been collecting, on and off since I got my first album “Chipmunk Punk” from Santa for Christmas when I was four. The albums (and singles) on my shelves have been influenced, shaped and recommended by family, friends and fellow musicians. Pop, Rock, Prog Rock, Metal, Punk, Jazz, Bluegrass, Classical, Soundtracks and Frank Zappa (who covers all those genres) are all part of my vinyl library.

How would you describe your taste?

I guess my love of playing vinyl stems from being a kid and cleaning the house with with my mother. She’d put albums on while we did the chores. I started with her collection ranging from The Beatles, INXS, Michael Jackson, Paul Simon, Joan Armatrading, Phoebe Snow, Wings and many others. But as I began to learn guitar at the age of ten, I was introduced to new sounds by my Canadian guitar teacher.

I love the sound of guitar and he introduced me to all the instrumental guitar groups from the ‘50s and ‘60s like The Ventures, The Shadows and The Surfari’s. By the time I reached high school my musical world exploded around me. I was discovering classic rock like Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Jimi Hendrix alongside more modern bands like Def Leppard, The Cult, Slayer & Pantera.

Then I finally reached the ability to play the music I was listening to on guitar. Grunge became the platform that I could converse with other musicians. Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice In Chains and Soundgarden were bands I would sit down and listen to and try to play along. By the time I reached uni in Brisbane I was listening to and playing a lot of jazz.

I try and find good in all genres and styles, but there are some things that don’t appeal to my musical tastes. Twelve-tone music under the Classical umbrella (I’m looking at you Schoenberg), unintelligible, guttural screaming in heavy metal and sexist rap lyrics. Other than that I’m pretty easy going.

Music is a love for me and I love exploring its streets and side streets.

What's your most prized item in your collection? 

There are two albums that I own that have become the jewels of my collection. They are both by a band called Phish, who are not well known in Australia. I bought their albums “The Story of The Ghost” and “Farmhouse” for about $30 each in ’98 and 2000 respectively when they were released. They’re now worth between $200-$500 because of their scarcity.

Tell us about your love of music and what your collection means to you.

I used to have a quote from Shakespeare pinned up in my room “If music be the food of love, then play on”. The Bard pretty much hit the nail on the head with those words as far as my life is concerned. My vinyl shelves and CD shelves are my very own TARDIS. I can go into them and they will transport me back to the time I heard them and what I was doing. Also, when I watch movies I usually have to watch them a second time to get the story. Because I am hopelessly attuned to what the music is doing to affect my emotions in any given scene. There are a lot of movies out there that would be utter crap if it weren’t for the music that underpinned them. And if you ever want to see a movie saved by music, then watch “Roadhouse” starring Patrick Swayze.

Give us your top 10 albums of all time.

This is always the hardest question. I’ll answer this different every day. But there are a few that never leave the top ten. Here goes, in no particular order:

1. The Grand Wazoo - Frank Zappa

2. Bright Size Life - Pat Metheny

3. Billy Breathes - Phish

4. A Kind of Blue - Miles Davis

5. Red - King Crimson

6. Physical Graffiti - Led Zeppelin

7. Abbey Road - The Beatles

8. Thriller - Michael Jackson

9. Dirt - Alice In Chains

10. Are You Experienced - Jimi Hendrix

There will be albums I have forgotten, but I’m relying on my brain and not my legs and fingers to do the looking. So it will be a different top ten tomorrow. It all depends upon my mood.

Give us some cool fact/trivia that we don't already know:

Sonically speaking, vinyl technicians recommend that the loud cuts be put at the start of the album. This is due to the fact that the needle travels slower through the outer grooves of a 12” record, than at the centre. This slower rotation gives the lower, wider frequency notes a better chance to be fully realised and heard.

How do you store your collection?

For a while, it was in milk crates, moving cartons and the like. Now…. now it’s in a 4 x 4 Ikea copy, cube shelving.

What are you coveting? What’s your holy grail? Do you own it yet?

I haven’t yet met a record collector who has achieved everything on their “List”. And any collector who doesn’t have a list is either lying or isn’t a true collector. The record that I covet of all my friends is The Black Crowes - Southern Harmony and Musical Companion. It’s owned by Will of our originals band, Good Will Remedy.

MY Holy Grail is Phish’s first three albums. Junta, Lawn Boy and A Picture of Nectar. But I have a mental list of about ten to twenty albums that I would also love to own.

Anything else you'd like to tell us?

I’m no audiophile and only have one turntable, it’s part of a Sansui system that used to be my parents. And I’m no purist as to original pressing or reissued versions of albums. But I do take good care of my albums and make sure they’re always clean.

Such a pleasure chatting with you, Mitch! We're confident you'll spend your $50 store credit on the good stuff. Wanna be our next Cool Collector? Drop us a line here.