Let's say you've just walked into a new record store, or opened up a new online storefront, or a new digital distributor (like iTunes or Grooveshark). What is it about this store that would make it a dream experience for you?

What would you like to see? Selection? Ability to hear the music first? Comfy chairs?

Why have you come into this store? Is it to discover new music? To collect records in your wish list? To complete an artists discography?

My experience would be a large store, with a varied selection of music on display but more in a warehouse in the back. Some sort of digital interface (perhaps an app on a smart phone, or a piece of hardware they hand you when you come into the store) would allow you to gather info on the music. So for example, if I scanned the bar code for "Cheer Accident - Fear Draws Misfortune" on the rack, it could tell me that the band has more albums, 8 of which are in stock in the warehouse. The device would be able to play samples through my headphones from any album by tapping the album cover on the screen of the device. If I like what I hear, I should be able to tap a button that would bring someone in from the back.

It would be amazing if there was a listening station where, before your purchase, you could plug in the device to chair kind of like the gamer chairs, comfy and with stereo speakers by the head, and it would stream samples of artists you had been interested in. Then, after sampling for a while, I could select the albums I was most interested in, go to the till, and pay.

It would be a marriage of digital and real, allowing me to gather information on bands and make informed decisions on the artist, allowing me to hear samples without having to go to youtube, myspace, etc..., while at the same time giving me the pleasure of seeing, holding, and examining the physical medium if possible.

 

That's not asking for much is it? Last time I was there they're obviously not hip to prog at all.

It just get's mixed in with rock and metal and, to my knowlege, no titles from labels like Profound Lore and others.

 

My nearby HMV hardly has an CDs at all now (DVDs and games taking over) but they are running a promotion recommending a very small selection of prog CDs at the moment ("if you like this then we recommend this" sort of thing). Other than that, you can occasionally find prog CDS in with the metal (e.g Kayo Dot) but generally they don't extend further than a small selection of the major bands (Yes, ELP and Tull).