VINYL REVIVAL

HOW DALLAS BECAME A PLAYER IN THE RESURGENCE OF VINYL RECORDS

It may be difficult for some to remember 33.3 rpm LP (long playing) record albums, but for generations of kids, this is how they listened to the latest music by Glenn Miller, Chuck Berry, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and more.

Vinyl records were iconic, like rotary telephones, rabbit ears on TV sets, and homemade skateboards.

In the 1970s, Dallas record stores such as Sound Warehouse, the Melody Shop at NorthPark Center, Peaches, and Sound Town added eight-track and cassette tapes before moving into compact discs during the 1980s.

None of these stores survives today, particularly after digital downloads became the norm for purchasing music — now accounting for some 85 percent of

music sales. This technological evolution is dizzying, and, according to recent By David Muscari sales figures, it’s whipsawing. In 2020, for the first time since the 1980s, vinyl album sales generated more revenue than CDs, according to the Recording Industry of America (RIAA). Last year, Billboard reported that one of every three non-digital albums sold in the U.S. was vinyl. Singer-songwriter Taylor Swift was the format’s top selling artist, accounting for 2.6 percent of total sales in 2021; other vinyl leaders range from the Beatles and Queen to Harry Styles and Billie Eilish. While vinyl never completely disappeared, its growing popularity can partly be attributed to Generation Z, which is just as likely to purchase LPs as nostalgic Baby Boomers and Generation X. These “digital nomads,” as Los Angeles writer Stephen Jabaut describes them, have “long praised the simplicity of 90s culture…They love thrift stores and remnants of the not-yet-forgotten analog world. And that includes vinyl records.”

Audiophiles argue that vinyl’s sound quality is far superior to digital counterparts. Plus, fans feel that records are tactile, valuable collectibles, and just plain cool.

Enter Hand Drawn Records. The Addison-based recording company was founded in 2011 by the trio of Alex Cushing, Dustin Blocker, and John Snodgrass, who focused on local and regional acts.

Cushing was a global brand manager with Fossil Inc., while Snodgrass worked in energy and recruiting. Blocker is the only one of the three who had previously worked in music — he sang in a band called Exit 380 for over a decade.

They did well, and in 2017 the company expanded from recording into actually

pressing vinyl records under a different division, Hand Drawn Pressing.

It was a bold move, says Joe Fink, a former radio DJ from New Mexico who joined the company in 2018 and works at the plant in Addison.

He’s a fervent goodwill ambassador for the stacks of wax, as evidenced by his Mini Cooper, adorned with a Texas license plate that says it all: Vinyl.

Hand Drawn Pressing opened as “the world’s first fully automated record pressing plant,” quite a distinction for a small operation with only six employees at the time.

“They saw how difficult it was for any band to get records pressed because of the lack of machines, infrastructure, and facilities [and decided] ‘there’s got to be a better way to do this.’”

But as records slipped out of use, so, too, did the machinery that made them.

“It’s basically old technology, and if you didn’t already have those machines in your possession, you’re probably not going to get one,” says Fink. “Nobody is going to turn one over…beyond parts and pieces.” Hand Drawn found WarmTone, a Canadian company “that was trying to build a better mousetrap,” and bought a pair of its record presses. “Today, we have those two – which have cranked out more records in North Texas than any other presses in the state,” Fink claims. “Two more are on the way, so we’re basically doubling our production.”

Things have changed dramatically in five swift years. Today, the business operates 24 hours a day with two shifts and 25 employees in an 80,000-squarefoot facility.

Snodgrass recently told a Dallas TV station that his machines are “dropping an album every 25 seconds” but “it’s not enough.”

Hand Drawn pressed over 1.2 million copies last year and expects to double that figure in 2022. It services local artists and big names in multiple genres, including Al Green, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and Dave Brubeck. The lineup also features Steve Earle, American Aquarium, X, and Charley Crockett, and regional influencers CutThroat Finches, Heart of the City, Paco Estrada, Brandon Callies, the American Revival, and SouthFM.

But these are not your grandfather’s black disks. They come in vibrant shades – royal blue, deep purple, shocking pink, vivid orange, and just about any color you can imagine – capturing the imagination of consumers in Dallas and beyond.

Indie retailers sell almost half of vinyl LPs nationwide, and Dallas has plenty of them.

Spinster Records, a Bishop Arts District retailer, is a jewel with a curated selection of new and vintage albums plus turntables. The shop hosts in-store performances, book signings, and industry panels.

Josey Records in Farmers Branch boasts a massive collection, and Lucky Dog Books proffers records in both East Dallas and North Oak Cliff. Dallas used-book-giant Half Price Books also vends vinyl, and NTX Vinyl runs three locations in outer Dallas suburbs.

Top Ten Records in Oak Cliff opened in 1956 and has morphed from a store into a nonprofit resource for studying Texas music.

Stores and fans celebrated Record Store Day at many of these outlets on April 23. Launched in 2008 by hundreds of independent retailers, the celebration took root as an annual salute to vinyl on a Saturday in April.

While the future is anyone’s guess, for his part, Fink is optimistic about his employer, Dallas’s increasing role in the industry, and vinyl in general.

“It just continues to grow,” he says enthusiastically, “and I don’t see it slowing down.”

Clockwise from far left: Josey Records in Dallas, raw vinyl materials, “Outta the Blues” by the Texas Gentlemen at Spinster Records; below left, scenes from Hand Drawn Records

HOSPITALITY with HEART

VALENCIA HOTEL GROUP’S DEDICATION TO SERVICE STANDS OUT

By David Muscari

With an impressive collection of seven boutique hotels in top locations in Texas plus San Jose, Calif., Valencia Hotel Group specializes in stylish, modern properties with an old-school dedication to amenities and customer service.

Visitors’ rave reviews are proof: Valencia Hotel Group hotels are nationally recognized for customer satisfaction ratings exceeding the 90th percentile.

Guests laud the quality of the hotels, describing them as “sophisticated,” “luxurious,” “welcoming,” and “relaxing.” It’s hard to argue with any of those comments.

For hotel associates, the true heartbeat of the company, all seven properties are places to love and to provide the best service possible to guests.

These attributes are most important to today’s passionate travelers, and they are baked into Valencia Hotel Group’s curated collection of urban cool.

Each property is unique, and each was intentionally built to showcase special, customer-driven touches. They all feature modern design with an appreciation for classic character that feels like a tip of a fedora to grand hotels of an earlier era.

Situated in five key markets in the Lone Star State — Austin, San Antonio, Lubbock, BryanCollege Station, and bordering

EACH PROPERTY IS UNIQUE, AND EACH WAS INTENTIONALLY BUILT TO SHOWCASE SPECIAL, CUSTOMER-DRIVEN TOUCHES.

Dallas in Irving — plus San Jose in California, each Valencia Hotel Group property enjoys an exceptional location.

All are centrally situated, convenient to the city’s best shopping and dining, and easily accessible to important thoroughfares and area destinations. In many instances, a rental car isn’t even necessary since the hotels are part of mixed-use destinations offering top dining and entertainment only steps away.

The group’s three Lifestyle Luxury hotels are the elegant Hotel Valencia on the storied River Walk in San Antonio, the George in Bryan-College Station, epitomizing fourstar lifestyle luxury; and the lovely Hotel Valencia in the European-inspired Santana Row in San Jose, offering interiors reminiscent of an opulent Spanish hacienda filled with seductive textures and lavish comforts.

Valencia Hotel Group’s Court Hotels of Texas have a hip retro appeal, which is

Hotel Valencia in San Antonio

as much about looking back as it is looking forward.

Ideal for getaways and staycations, these urban retreats are Lone Star Court in Austin; Texican Court in Irving; Cavalry Court in BryanCollege Station; and the Cotton Court in Lubbock. Each offers acres of landscaped courtyards for outdoor entertainment, including fire pits, lawn games, live music, pools, comfortable seating, and more.

The Valencia experience is distinctive and steeped in refinements with a wide variety of amenities and legendary customer satisfaction driven by hotel associates who are the center point of the company’s success. Their dedication ensures guests’ total fulfillment.

Without these extraordinarily-valued hospitality professionals who are proud of delivering firstclass, unparalleled service, the hotels are merely brick and mortar. The staff’s drive and dedication fuels a unique culture within the company.

It’s about family, teamwork, and “everybody bringing their own talents, and collaboratively figuring out how to get it all done," says executive vice president of operations Roy Kretschmer. “Valencia is filled with handpicked and highly trained employees who value their place in the hospitality industry, working together to make a real difference with their guests.”

He finds it particularly satisfying to help develop employees as individuals and future leaders, “watching them take on bigger roles, bigger challenges, and bigger responsibilities.”

Employees say Valencia Hotel Group is different from larger hotel chains and they treat facilities as if they were their own, a direct result of the brand’s deep culture.

“We can go head-tohead with anyone in the industry and be very proud of what we’ve accomplished,” Kretschmer says.

Due to the tremendous service associates give consistently and with passion, key print and online travel publications and sources have lauded Valencia Hotel Group with honors and recognition, including Condé Nast Traveler, U.S. News & World Report, TripAdvisor, Yelp, and others. Valencia Hotel Group ranks in the top tier of all U.S. full-service hotels insofar as profits and is a preferred resource for development and property management services for upscale hotels owned by third parties.

The George, Bryan-College Station

Dallas Holocaust & Human Rights Museum

Wild Bill

Cavalry Court, Bryan-College Station

Cotton Court, Lubbock

Lone Star Court, Austin