ARLINGTON, Texas – “You here for Florence?” Ben Oberg asks, shooting a knowing look at the customers approaching the front counter.
Oberg, owner of CD Warehouse Records & Tapes, thanks the new guests for stopping in and hands them two promotional items: a bright orange tote bag and a thick, double-sided poster. The soft crooning of a female vocalist emanates from the speakers and fills the store.
As the minutes pass, more and more bodies enter and wander around the shop, perusing its wares and enjoying the music. The crowd steadily increases, everyone here for one thing.
They’d gathered to listen and experience Florence & The Machine’s new album at CD Warehouse’s release party.
‘I’m here for Florence’
One customer in attendance was Farrah Hymam. Having come in with her daughter and friend, it wasn’t long before the trio split up, making their way to different sections of the store. Hymam stayed toward the front, flipping through records and finding some hidden gems.
Despite pulling out records from various artists, Hymam had one motivator to come in.
“Oh, I’m here for Florence,” she said, proudly showing off the black Florence & The Machine shirt she was wearing, a smile bright on her face.
Hymam hadn’t been to the store before but said she was enjoying her time there. Despite the new album selling out before they got there, Hymam was still able to pick up some new (though technically old) records. She was even clued into a hack by Oberg to save some money.
CD Warehouse Records & Tapes opened in 1993 with multiple stores across the DFW area, two of which were in Arlington. The store had a few good years before the industry began to decline. With the rise of downloading and the introduction of streaming, physical media was sought after less. The original owner couldn’t justify keeping every location open, and as leases began to expire, there was simply no reason to renew. Oberg was given the option to purchase the store from him or move on.
He was not ready to move on.
New location, higher traffic
In the Spring of 2012, CD Warehouse came under new ownership. It was also at that point that CD Warehouse found its home at its current location. Oberg said the move was beneficial, especially because the store is now closer to the college and high school campuses. They also get more traffic due to being located on Cooper Street.
Not long after Oberg took ownership of the store, the resurgence of vinyl began. He said there were certainly some lean years, but they did their best to keep chugging along. In times like those, they needed to cut back. Sometimes it meant cutting back on inventory, other times it meant cutting payroll. Oberg said that typically that was reflected in his own.
“I’ll always try to make sure everyone else gets paid before I pay myself,” Oberg said.
From the beginning, Oberg has done everything he can to keep the store alive. CD Warehouse serves as a sanctum to physical media and Oberg knows the importance of preserving it. Digital content, while advertised as more convenient, isn’t always forever. Whether it being distribution rights changing hands or platforms simply deciding to no longer carry things, digital access to media is never promised.
“I’ve had things in the past like movies and records and stuff that were streamed and they’re just gone,” he said. “All of a sudden, they just vanish.”
Advantages of physical media
Oberg also mentioned the benefit of having something tangible. There’s also a collectible aspect like records coming in different color variants. Oberg also stressed the purity of sound. He said there’s a noticeable difference in quality when comparing sounds coming from a record than sounds streamed.
And it’s not just the team at CD Warehouse. The love for physical media has seen a broader resurgence in the past few years.
The Recording Industry Association of America shared in its 2024 year-end report that revenues from physical media came to $2 billion and were up 5% from the previous year, continuing a trend of growth. Nearly three quarters of physical media revenues came from the sale of vinyl records with $1.4 billion. This marks the 18th year of growth for the medium.
Independent record stores are also still holding strong against some of their big business competitors, especially in terms of vinyl. According to Luminate, independent stores accounted for just under 40% of U.S. vinyl record sales in 2024. They beat out mass market sales by 15%.
As for CD Warehouse, Oberg said they ship around 20,000 items a year, whether it be records, CDs or cassettes. The store ships worldwide though its international orders are typically bound for Japan, Canada or places in Europe. Oberg said they have shipped to every continent, even shipping once to Antarctica.
‘The best boss ever’
A new member of the CD Warehouse team, Josh Johnson, has worked there for three weeks. Previously working in landscaping, the shift has been big, but Johnson said he much prefers his new job.
“And Ben is like, the best boss ever,” Johnson said, earning him a laugh from Oberg.
Though different from his previous job, he’s had no issues making the switch. He’s even enjoyed doing some “pre-shopping” while stocking the aisles. The biggest problem he’s had? He joked it’s occasionally forgetting his alphabet.
In his first week working there, Johnson got to experience his first listening party with the release of Daniel Caesar’s “Son of Spergy.”
Oberg said that these listening parties have always existed, but record labels have been pushing them more since the pandemic. Stores will apply to host them and labels will choose who to send materials to. Though he’s unsure of what the criteria they use is, Oberg said they’ve been approved for nearly all of them.
Perhaps the most memorable is the party they hosted for the release of Twenty One Pilots’ album “Clancy.”
Oberg said that it pulled the biggest crowd they ever had. A few hundred people showed up, and the line wrapped around the building. They gave out a ton of prizes including wristbands and posters. A team from KISS FM also came stocked with their own prizes to give out. The event was ultimately split into two different sessions, ensuring everyone got a chance to hang out and listen.
“That was just something that’s kind of special,” he said. “Meeting all the new people, seeing so many familiar faces, and then seeing them again whenever we did the second one. That’ll always stand out in my mind.”
Though the release party for their next album “Breach” did not receive as many patrons, it was still very well attended.
Each listening party is unique
Not every listening party is created the same. Oberg said he can try to gauge how many people will attend beforehand, but you never really know. Even then, they’re not guaranteed to go off without a hitch.
In the case of Florence & The Machine, there was certainly one major bump in the road. The files sent to Oberg were corrupted, only allowing the first two songs to play fully before completely restarting. Oberg was quick to shift gears, playing some older tracks while he worked to sort out the technical difficulty.
Though it couldn’t be fixed, the energy remained high as the band’s back catalog played, and the raffle went on. One lucky attendee even got to leave with a pair of tickets for the band’s show in May.
In the end, Oberg sent guests on their way with many thank yous, some apologies and a couple recommendations of other stores also hosting parties with wishes that their files were not also corrupted.
