ONE of the town’s independent record shops has had a brush with fame after featuring as store of the month in one of the most influential music magazines.

Red House Records, which is based inside Holmes Music, appeared in this month’s issue of MOJO and owner Paul Holmes is delighted with the accolade.

“It’s very nice because Mojo is a widely-read magazine,” said Paul, who runs the store in Faringdon Road, near the town centre.

“I’m not sure the criteria but they usually send out a representative to the store who reports back.”

Paul is hoping the glowing write-up will entice more customers through the door to explore the treasure trove of new and second-hand vinyl, from artists like Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin to undiscovered niche bands.

“The industry is not as easy as it used to be because we are up against everyone in the world,” he added.

“The magazine really puts places on the map. A lot of people use it to find places to travel to around the country.”

Paul, who has more than 300 records in his own personal collection, has revealed the most expensive vinyl he has ever sold was a first edition of Pink Floyd’s Dark of the Moon which was snapped up for £200.

He travels far and wide to get his hands on the exclusive records and counts Julian Cope of The Teardrop Explodes as one of his customers.

With the deaths of iconic musicians, including Dead or Alive frontman Pete Burns, 57, this week, Paul has also seen a surge in collectors wanting to get their hands on their tracks as memorabilia.

“When David Bowie and Prince died we had people asking about their music and it increased the interest,” Paul said.

“We can also order vinyl in for customers and can usually track down any hard to find titles.”

And he added: “What I love about running a music store is discovering new bands. It’s nostalgic for me, a record place was my favourite place to be growing up, so to have one of your own is a great place to be.

“I am constantly trying to find places to put stuff in the shop as we get so many records coming in and just don’t have enough space.

“People like the sleeves and packaging and it’s nice to be able to watch it working. Record collections are a bit of a statement, it says a lot about who you are.”

For more information on the shop go to: www.redhouserecords.co.uk or search the shop on Facebook.