The Last Vestige puts ‘style’ back into stylus

by Chelsea Kruger

ALBANY, NY – In a poor economy, a Pine Hills music store battles the digital music age and assists in the comeback of an almost forgotten format of music: the vinyl record.

The Last Vestige Music Shop carries a wide array of vinyl records, which were last popular in the 1960s through the 1980s and is more successful better than most music stores today. Since the economic downturn and advent of mp3’s, many music stores, such as the Circuit City in Crossgates Commons on Washington Avenue Extension, have shut their doors after being unable to compete with the ease and cheapness of digital music.

Aware of this fact, the owner of The Last Vestige continues to offer obsolete forms of music, including eight tracks, audio cassettes, and vinyl records as the store’s primary focus. The Last Vestige still sees a relatively steady stream of revenue, whether it be from pedestrians or online shoppers.

The sole proprietor of The Last Vestige Music Shop, Jim Furlong, has been selling vinyl records since the early 1980s. Up until 1984, Furlong operated an exclusively mail order business via telephone where he sold vinyl records from his home to customers all over the world. Furlong has been collecting and trading records to expand his collection since this time frame.

Selling outdated forms of music recording was somewhat of a hobby turned job to Furlong, he said.

“I’m a big fan of music,” said Furlong. “All kinds of music.” Furlong currently enjoys listening to jazz music, but when he first opened The Last Vestige, he listened to the trendy punk and pop music of the 1980s.

Read the rest of the article here:   http://blog.timesunion.com/pinehills/the-last-vestige-puts-%e2%80%98style%e2%80%99-back-into-stylus/22/