Q&A Remix With Miranda Reinert

Today we welcome Miranda Reinert, who is a writer and podcaster based in Chicago, Illinois. She graciously answered a dozen questions. Let’s dive in.

Have you ever bought a record just for the artwork? 

I don’t know if it’s solely for the art, but I keep an eye on Landland Colportage’s website to see what they’re putting out because I love their art so much. I definitely own a lot of their releases I maybe wouldn’t have bought just because I think the way they do packaging is so special. 

What is your most memorable vinyl buying experience?

When I lived in Philly I’d go to Long in the Tooth records pretty regularly. It’s the best shop in Philly, I think, but I remember going there and getting so excited about the Get Disowned by Hop Along album being in stock. I love Get Disowned. Then I went home and found I already had two copies. Can’t remember I owned those already, but I’ll never forget being so excited to buy that album and then just pure confusion when I went to put it on the shelf.

What’s the first area you head for in a record store?

I typically walk in with an idea of what I really want most and head for where those records would be before I go through alphabetically. Like, for a long time I was looking for Weakerthans records and Joan of Arc records so I’d skip to those in any section I thought they could be in upon entering a store. I try to keep a list of stuff I really do want to purchase and remain focused when I’m in a shop.

What’s the most treasured album in your collection and why? 

I bought a Shinobu EP called Bardamu. It’s a 10 inch record in a “hand painted” sleeve, which really just means a bright yellow cardstock sleeve with the title and tracklist painted in red matte paint. I think it’s really special and I smile every time I see it. 

Are you a completionist when it comes to artists? Which artist do you have the most records from?

I’m not much of a completionist. I try to minimize what I buy and keep it to just what I’ll realistically really listen to which rarely means every record in an artist’s discog. I have more Death Cab For Cutie records than any other artist, though. I probably love more Death Cab records than any other artist.

What is your greatest “score;” could be on value or just rarity or something you were looking for the longest?

I spent almost 10 years pining over the Into It. Over It. 52 Weeks boxset. It’s four LPs in a big booklet style set. They only pressed it once back when No Sleep Records originally put it out and it was always just a little more expensive than I wanted to spend. Then, when I finally got it, I accidentally sliced the front of the case with scissors while opening the package. Lucky for me, Evan Weiss was kind enough to give me replacement empty outer packaging, but I still kinda laugh when I see it. Peak irresponsible vinyl owner. 

Do you have a favorite live record?

My favorite live records are Karen O’s Live from Crush Palace, The Weakerthans’ Live at the Burton Cummings Theatre and Castiotone for the Painfully Alone’s In Cambridge. Hard to pick between them. I think they’re all special.

Who/what got you hooked on records?

My high school boyfriend had a lot of records when I first started buying them and that’s probably where I started in earnest. His collection was a lot of big 2000s indie rock– The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys, The Shins, that sort of stuff. Through high school we got each other a lot of records and that was really what kickstarted me thinking about records all the time and listening to them with regularity. It also kickstarted my resentment toward purchasing records online. They never came in time for holidays or birthdays so I always did a little painting of the cover as a stand in. In retrospect, quite cute of me to do, but how annoying for nothing to ever be on time through the mail.

Tell us a little about your favorite record store.

I think my favorite record store is still the Reckless Records store that’s in the Loop in Chicago. It’s not the best one or the one I would say people should absolutely go to, but it’s the one I’ve always found the most interesting stuff at. It’s really small and out of the way as soon as I stopped living downtown for college and maybe I’m just sentimental about it, but I still love going there.

What’s the weirdest record you own?

It’s called Rail Sounds Steam and Diesel and it’s just that. It features steam locomotive sounds on one side and diesel locomotive sounds on the other. I took it from my grandparents’ house when we were cleaning it out so it could be sold. Not sure why anybody would need it or want it, but I have it because I’m overly sentimental about my family of Train Guys.

Miranda Reinert is a blogger, zine maker and podcaster based in Chicago. She publishes, edits and designs the twice yearly music magazine Portable Model. All her well considered thoughts on music and the internet can be found at Step One of a Plan and the Endless Scroll podcast. All her less considered thoughts on music and hockey can be found on Twitter or Bluesky.