East London's vinyl scene is set to shine with a one-day record crawl called The Dig, uniting 14 independent stores on Saturday, June 27. This free event invites vinyl lovers to explore the area's diverse record shops, each offering unique specialties, live DJ sets, and exclusive merchandise.
What is The Dig East London?
The Dig is a multi-venue celebration of vinyl culture, community, and discovery. Organized to showcase East London as a premier destination for record shopping, the crawl allows attendees to navigate between stores in Shoreditch, Hackney Wick, Bow, and Dalston. Participants are not expected to visit every store but are encouraged to explore and discover unexpected finds.
Louis Rooney of Rook Records explained the motivation: "People often say they never knew we were here. This event promotes ourselves to East London and reinforces that it's the place to go for record shopping. Every store has a different speciality, so there will be something for everyone."
Participating Stores
The 14 stores taking part include Rook Records, Love Vinyl, BBE Record Store, Jelly Records, YoYo Records London, Kristina Records, Vinyl Delivery Service, Flashback Shoreditch, Hidden Sounds, Caravan, Stranger Than Paradise, Recycle Vinyl, Kingsland Records, and Rough Trade East. Each venue will offer distinct experiences, from live DJ sets and giveaways to one-off stock drops. An after-party will be held at BBE Record Store.
Event Details and Support
The Dig is free and open to all. Attendees can start at any location, with opening times varying by store. The event is supported by the Entertainment Retailers Association, the organization behind Record Store Day UK, and aims to extend the cultural impact of independent record stores beyond traditional release formats.
