The beautiful, bright yellow, limited edition vinyl LP of Verso Records: Volume One has arrived — and it’s time to celebrate the artists, conspirators, and community that has brought forth the first vinyl record ever to be recorded, produced, and released by a public library.
Saturday, June 3, marks the official release of the album, which culls 12 live tracks from Connecticut and tri-state area artists, recorded by Audio Studios Manager and in-house sound engineer Travis Bell at The Westport Library’s Verso Studios.
The Library will be celebrating the occasion with a record release party, to be held at 7 pm in the Trefz Forum, featuring live performances from four of the bands and artists represented on the album. Registration can be found here.
The release party is free and open to the public. There is also a $25 ticket option that includes a copy of Verso Records, Volume One and a free drink. For those without a record player, a digital copy of the album will also be available for $10.
Verso Records, Volume One features a diverse array of talent across all genres (rock ‘n’ roll, jazz, hip hop, folk, indie) heralding the oft-unsung heroes of the region. Standout tracks include indie-rock band Daniprobably’s “Cowboy,” produced by Grammy Award-winning producer Peter Katis (Interpol, The National, Kurt Vile, Sharon Von Etten); futuristic hip-hop from MIGHTYMOONCHEW with “Jus Bcuz,” produced by influential hip-hop icon Dooley-O; Alexandra Burnet & The Stable Six’s lush, ethereal, eight-piece arrangement of the meditative “You’re Okay,” and many others.
The album is currently available for pre-order at versorecords.westportlibrary.org. Preorders can be picked up at the release party, or they will be shipped starting June 5.
“The fruits of our grand vision and tireless labor are here,” said Westport Library Executive Director Bill Harmer. “I am thrilled to be celebrating this momentous achievement for Verso Studios. This is a historic snapshot of the current Connecticut and tri-state area music scene. This album is eclectic, powerful, fun, and shows the world what community and vision can do when we band together.”
The night will be punctuated by a social listening party and live music by returning Verso rockers The Problem With Kids Today (New Haven), indie rock mainstay Ports of Spain (New Haven), Lulu Lewis duo Dylan Hundley & Pablo Martin (NYC), and dreamy folk/americana artist Kierstin Sieser (Middletown), backed by a few familiar faces.
Many of the Verso Records, Volume One artists, bands, and crew will be in attendance, as well as many Verso-related artists and VersoFest talent.
