ITHACA. N.Y. — Crate digging is alive and well at Ithaca’s Angry Mom Records. The record store received the New York State Empire Award Monday, honoring its seventeen years of music curation, affordability, and community building among artists and listeners alike.
The award recognizes businesses and organizations that demonstrate excellence while positively impacting their communities.
George Johann, who founded the store in 2009, called Angry Mom a “central hub” of The Commons. He said affordability is a core principle of the store’s business model.
“We have been able to evolve and expand our physical space, which now holds one of the area’s only all-age live music venues. We remain humble, but are also excited about what else we can accomplish in the coming years,” Johann said in a statement.
This weekend, Angry Mom hosted several performances for the Ithaca DIY Festival. Local bands like Evil Sex Witch and Open Swim played at the venue, bringing crowds of moshing locals, college students and wandering journalists.
When they aren’t hosting all-age events, Angry Mom sells vinyl records, CDs, cassette tapes and even used audio equipment like speakers and turntables. Their selection ranges from jazz to punk to experimental, and according to their online selection, they even have a little of honkey tonk and techno.
While Angry Mom has an always changing crate of new arrivals, which are full price, some of their greatest treasures are the second-hand media they stock. Their wall of CD’s is stock full of affordable $5 albums.
Photo provided
State Senator Lea Webb, who represents Tompkins County in the state legislature, presented them with the award ahead of Record Store Day on Saturday, April 18. Every year, Record Store Day recognizes the impact of independently owned record stores around the country.
“Music is one of the ways we develop community, and Angry Mom Records has been cultivating those connections for years,” Webb said.
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