A few short weeks ago, one could have walked through a wee Glasgow alleyway, around a cobblestone corner, up some stairs, and emerged in an unassuming room that just so happened to be an experimental music lover’s Mecca, by the name Volcanic Tongue. But sadly, after a decade in the game, the store is closing its doors for good. The VT site lists the time demanded by personal projects as the primary factor in the closing, including co-founder Heather Leigh Murray’s musical endeavors and fellow co-founder David Keenan’s debut novel The Comfort of Women. Then again, Keenan declared underground music dead barely a month ago, so perhaps they’re just gettin’ while the gettin’s good.
The VT website was noted for its weekly “Tip of the Tongue,” which will live on in my mind as one of the all-time sickest puns, as well as the all-time biggest drains on my bank account. But beyond its market function, the crew also put on a number of live shows, festivals, and talks in the UK and elsewhere.
As of now, the online store is still open, so act fast if you want the rite of passage that is the simultaneous low-balance-alert-text in tandem with the record-stack-mail-arrival. Farewell to a true resource in the underground music community, which gets my “Highest Possible Recommendation!” into record store heaven.
• Volcanic Tongue: https://www.volcanictongue.com
