Guestroom and Size Records aside, it's rare to see a 12-inch vinyl in the wild. Jonathan Fowler of Fowler Volkswagen of Norman aims to change that, as his dealership is the sponsor and one of the distribution points for the "Checking It Twice: The 2010 Nice People Holiday Companion."
He partnered with Chris Harris of metro label Nice People Records to put 1,000 free albums into as-yet-to-be-announced local stores.
The release features 16 central Oklahoma artists " Locust Avenue, The Boom Bang and Evangelicals among them " spread across 10 mostly original, holiday-themed tunes. Notable collaborations include tracks pairing Gentle Ghost and Brine Webb, Depth & Current and Skating Polly, and Penny Hill and Samantha Crain.
"We're really proud of what's going on down here," Fowler said of the burgeoning music scene. "We wanted to do something that brought business and music together in the local scene."
While every act submitting a tune was included, Fowler did note a "backlog of interest" that he hopes will lead to future free local vinyl, as long as Harris and the public are interested.
As of today, the MP3s of "Checking It Twice" also will be available online at nicepeople.bandcamp.com. You can hear the whole disc performed by the contributing artists at Dec. 11's free concert at University of Oklahoma's Meacham Auditorium, but supply of the physical album is short.
"Once they're gone, they're gone," Fowler said. "Stephen Carradini
