Vinyl records gain popularity in Kalamazoo
By NANCY CAMDEN
Sales of vinyl records make up a tiny fraction of the market compared to CDs and MP3s. Yet stores reported more than 6 million new and used vinyl records in 2013. That's a 20-year high for the format.
For sixteen years, Richard Bowser of Kalamazoo has done a weekly radio show called Sounds in Space on WIDR at Western Michigan University on which he plays all vinyl records.
“I love music and I love listening to it on records,” says Bowser.
He has around 3,000 vinyl record albums in his home collection.
“I’ve got the iPod. I’ve got all of that stuff," he says. "I’m not trying to preserve the past for its own sake. This is just something that has always stayed with me and it’s really fun.”
Bowser also does a monthly show called “Dance Party” at The Home Bar with his friend, who goes by the name of Bat Guano. It’s for his friend’s show on WIDR called SwaG! Bat Guano is also an aficionado of records and music.
