Despite recently laying off his only two employees, B-Side Records owner Steve Manley says he has no plans to close the State Street record store he's run since 1982. "It's a labor of love for me," he says. "I hope to keep it open, one way or another, for as long as possible." Nationally, CD sales have fallen 20% per year for the past four years, according to Billboard magazine. The trend has turned record stores into an endangered species. "January is a particularly difficult month, and like last year, I am currently running the shop solo," says Manley. "I'll probably be bringing a part-timer back before long."
Madison music and Madison politics sometimes intersect. Mayor Dave Cieslewicz has reviewed albums on 105.5 Triple M. Guitarist Jim Schwall once ran for mayor. And current Dane County executive candidate Joe Parisi used to drum in the local blues outfit Honor Among Thieves. On Monday, Jan. 24, at 5:30 p.m., Parisi reunites with his former band to play a set at the Harmony Bar. The show is a fundraiser for Parisi's campaign.
Local guitarist Mike Scieszinski (PHUN, Run Side Down) debuts his new progressive jam band, Larry's Great Escape, at Mr. Robert's on Friday, Jan. 28, at 10 p.m. The band takes its name from a 97-year-old Door County nursing home resident who fled the captivity of long-term care.
