PLAY ME ON REPEAT
MY PLEASURE IS TO PLAY
The punk scene your NYC Mistress came into was very analog and mostly still is today in many ways. Bands continue to release a demo tape, usually an EP, and then there is the elusive LP. The bands that get to release an LP have usually been solid for years which is hard to maintain in a volatile punk climate. I’ve been in two bands that put out cassette tapes and one that got put out on two EPs. I quit the second band where I would have been on my third EP right before we were put out by a label I deeply respected. No LPs for me. C’est la vie.
I don’t believe in self releasing an EP. If no label is interested in releasing a band, then why bother with an obvious dollar bin record? There are dollar bins in 2022 but I can count on my fingers the record stores that exist today in NYC that still sell punk records. So many stores closed during the pandemic and so many just went fully online to sites like Discogs. Sometimes I pay more for a record than I would on Discogs just to support the independent brick and mortar record stores struggling to survive. I do have to admit that I am that person with her phone out looking up how much a record goes for online before I buy it. I used to have good luck finding solid and rarer records at the 12th Street Academy Records and especially with their rare records box. You must ask to see the box at the counter. That said, my current favorite record store in NYC is Generation Records.
Generation Records is very much connected to 70s and 80s punk. The events they host and records they release are fantastic and a lot of it has to do with New York Hardcore. I walked by when Generation was still closed during the pandemic and saw the owner through the window. I got his attention to say hi. It was May 2020 and we talked through the glass front door. He gave me a Misfits novelty item for free as a belated May 2nd birthday gift because I’m a huge Misfits and Danzig fan. I’m one of the ones who competes for the rare Danzig band records when they pop up and I often win as I tend to do. Nothing makes me wetter than a rare Danzig record! Anyway, it was good to see him. I had no idea how important that store would become to me during the pandemic.
When Generation reopened, I visited my friend who worked in the basement for their break every Sunday. It was good to run into people from the music scene in the shop. We were all starved for human-to-human contact with no gigs happening so having a place to see people was crucial. A lot of people started record shopping more than normal as there really wasn’t anywhere to go or much to do at that time. The business at the few vinyl record pressing plants doubled during the pandemic due to such an increased demand.
I don’t normally see anyone for Mistress business on Sundays as your favorite punk kinky escort needs her sacred days. Also, besides records stores and friends, I adore staying home and listening to my vast collection of records. Many of you have bought me records that I lusted over or have given me a select gift from your personal collection. These records are extra special to me. I enjoy having records because I love my music so much that I want to be able to touch it. I made a YouTube channel to share my favorite songs with you in a series of diverse playlists. It’s not a real mix tape but good enough these days.
I always play music when we tryst so that you get the full experience from the tone the music sets to the perfect lighting. I curate the music especially for us and do not use auto generated playlists. I love having memories of cumming to my favorite songs with you. I hope this blog and my playlists have let you into my world a bit more and make you want to put me on your metaphorical turntable on repeat.
The pleasure is to play- let me be the song stuck in your head as I make your heart skip a beat,
Your Vinyl Lover,
xx Mistress Ramona Ryder
