
I created Soul Sides 20 years ago because I wanted an outlet to write about my favorite records. The blog era feels bygone — and I clearly stopped regularly updating the site years ago — but the impulse to talk about records has never faded. It’s why I’ve created podcasts and newsletters but to mark the (quiet) 20th anniversary for Soul Sides — which has given me so much over the years — I wanted to create an homage to the record zines of the ‘80s/‘90s. This isn’t as comprehensively discographic as those OG zines but I imagine this is what Soul Sides could have looked like in ’84 or ’94 instead of ’04. So here it is: The Snapback, #1.
Side A = seven 45s, Side B = seven LPs. For this first issue, I wanted to go with a random assortment (very blog-y!) but I’ll likely get more thematic in thee future. I also mixed together 14 songs — one from each entry — for your listening pleasure.
If you’re interested in a copy, especially for folks seeing this post on the blog, hit me up at soulsides@gmail.com and I’ll send you ordering info to buy a copy with at a discount.
I also dropped off copies at a few of my favorite record/bookstores in case one is close to you:
Espacio 1839: Boyle Heights, Los Angeles
Ojala Books & Stationery: Highland Park, Los Angeles
Twelves: Long Beach
Groove Merchant: Lower Haight, San Francisco
Turntable Lab: online
Love it! Wish I was in the area to pick up a copy.
Also, happy 20th anniversary!
Congratulations, O! Super proud of you, and glad to have yet another incarnation of Soul-Sides to look forward to. I haven’t gotten over to Ojalá to page through the issue yet, but I’m already loving the design. And on a serious note, wishing you safety and good company through these burning days.
My RSS Feed reader brought me here, haha!
I would say blogging has transformed or, for better or worse, has been absorbed by social media. I still prefer accessing websites (or blogs for this matter) over peoples’ social media feeds.
I recently dumped “browsing social media” in favor of “adding social media into my RSS Feed reader,” as it bypasses any distractions, ads, algorithm selections, and etc. It makes media consumption much more palatable, and gives me control on what and when I want content.
I’ve added Reddit subs so far. I have yet to add Instagram profiles to my feed, notably for DJs and venues I want updates from.
Looking forward to more posts!