Rough Trade, the independent music retailer, are excited to announce the US launch of the Rough Trade Club, an Album of the Month membership curated by the shop’s experts (some of whom have been recommending music face-to-face to the great and good of the artist and label community since the late 70’s).
Each month, the arbiters of taste at Rough Trade will select and send an unmissable record (LP or CD) straight to your door, along with a raft of other members-only benefits that cater for all ages and tastes, predominantly those wishing to spend more time enjoying great music, less time having to find it. If they don’t like it, they may swap it out for another album in the shop’s top 10 list. Members of the club will also receive benefits including priority pre-ordering (order exclusive limited edition LPs before anyone else), access to members-only intimate events + exclusive giveaways, and more! The fun part is that the album of the month isn’t revealed until the package is opened (just like having a gift every month!).
Recent “Album of the Month” titles chosen by Rough Trade include: Kelela, Girl Ray, Max Richter, Mac Demarco, Big Moon and Holly Macve. In previous years, the likes of Bon Iver, Sufjan Stevens, MIA, The xx, all had their debut album’s selected by Rough Trade far ahead of wider acclaim.
Rough Trade first opened in 1976 in West London, on the doorstep of punk. Not simply a place to purchase from a curated selection of vinyl and CD, the shop (now with 5 locations) was (and remains) a celebration of music the art form, a community hub for curious minds, a place to hang out with friends and colleagues, an informal venue to witness the latest and greatest artists perform live, intimately, up-close. Fundamentally, our stores provide creative, independent minds a shared place of discovery and congregation.
While brick and mortar record shops continue to shutter, Rough Trade has been lucky enough to open more shops! Within the last 10 years, they have opened 4 new locations, which include the largest record store in the UK and a New York store, the East Coast’s largest and finest selection of new vinyl and CD.
Rough Trade has been selling records via mailorder since the 70’s and had a version of this club (simply called “Album Club”) for several years in the early 2000’s). The club was an immediate success. Paused to focus on more shop openings, Rough Trade is excited to re-form the club again.
As Rough Trade Club membership grows on both sides of the Atlantic, and the online stores enable an increasing number of music lovers to (re)connect with the joy of exciting music you can truly own, Rough Trade will forever seek to narrow the gap between artist and audience, offering a trusted, much loved interface between the two.
