Nate Mitchell holding an early REM EP. “Radio Free Europe.” REM’s two founding members met at The Wuxtry.
(Photo/Gray Barbee)
Nathaniel Mitchell is the store manager at Wuxtry Records, serving the Athens community for over 13 years.
Q: “How long have you lived in Athens?”
A: “Over 15 years, since early 2006.”
Q: “So what’s your job at the Wuxtry?”
A: “Store Manager.”
Q: “How familiar were you with the Wuxtry’s impact on the Athens music scene before you started working here?
A: “I guess I knew about REM starting in Athens. It wasn’t until I first visited the town in 1999 and stopped in here and bought some music, I think it was probably around that time I was explained the history of the store. It was kind of responsible for the beginning of REM.”
Q: “What would you say to entice people who consider themselves big music fans but don’t collect records or don’t see the value in it into giving it a try?
A: “Well, you might remember just a few months ago a lot of people were protesting Spotify carrying the Joe Rogan podcast. Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, these are pretty major artists and they just pulled their whole catalog off Spotify. I mean, that’s like the main streaming service most people subscribe to. I tell people, owning a physical copy of the album It’s your copy, they won’t be able to change those songs once they’re released. I mean, it might get another pressing, there’s definitely albums that had songs taken off of them or changed artwork. So yeah, I feel like invest in stuff that you like.”
Q: “What do people need to know about upcoming events at the Wuxtry and around Athens?
A: “I guess the big one, I almost feel like this has spiraled a bit out of control as far as how popular it ended up being but I’m not sure if you’re familiar with the 60s TV show and TV band, the Monkees. Just in the past week or so it was an unexpected announcement that Micky Dolenz, the last surviving member of the original four piece, had recorded a four song EP that was him covering REM songs. They were asking if it was alright if they used a photo of the storefront with the album cover; I said fine, no problem. I kind of jokingly asked, ‘any chance that Mickey might be able to do an in-store appearance for his record signing?’ And they’re like, ‘Well, I don’t know, I have to check with his manager.’ And I got a call from the manager and it was possible. And then after that, I got a call from Micky Dolenz. They are thrilled to come here. At this point, we’ve had over 300 people call in and preorder the album coming in from all over the place.”
Why I Wrote the Story:
I’ve been an avid record collector for five years now, the Wuxtry is the business that I frequent the most often downtown. I learned that you have to be on your toes at all times during an interview whether its because you have to be ready to ask follow up questions or troubleshoot with your recording or any number of other problems.