One of 4 brand new LP shelves, with space to grow the collection

It’s been half a year since the end of the Indiegogo fundraiser for the MRR Archive. Since June, we’ve been busy inventorying, cleaning, rehousing, green taping, and cataloging all 49,955 records we own. We’ve been digitizing back issues, scanning special covers made by Tim Yo, conducting dozens of research requests for punks and scholars, and tracking down records we’re missing from the collection. Hundreds of shitworkers from all over the world have helped us out, some for just an hour once and some for 5 hours each week.

Old shelves crammed with LPs

Each month, we get in 80-120 records for review and the constant growth of the collection was overwhelming our shelf capacity. With the money earned in the fundraiser, we were able to buy four new shelves to accommodate thousands more LPs. We bought tens of thousands of poly bags and put them on every single LP. We’ve purchased new shelf liners, baskets for supplies, a library kick stool for hard-to-reach top shelves, and custom wood alphabet dividers.

Archival boxes for our collection of back issues

These funds have also made it possible for us to buy archival boxes for our paper collections. Our full run of magazine back issues is now properly stored in acid-free containers, and our collection of letters, postcards, and newspaper clippings will soon be rehoused in acid-free folders and boxes. Much of the paper ephemera we have is truly one-of-a-kind, consisting of hand drawn art and flyers, and its long-term survival is crucial. Digitizing and rehousing these materials is a smart move to increase access and decrease handling of fragile papers.

We will be launching the MRR Archive website on June 1, 2017. The first phase of the launch will have the fully digitized MRR back issue archive, with over 400 issues dating back to 1982! Shortly thereafter, we’ll be launching a searchable database of our record collection, with reviews for every record we’ve ever reviewed.

Want to help out? We need Bay Area shitworkers to help out with inventory and rehousing, and remote shitworkers can contribute data entry. We especially need some database and technology help! Do you have any experience with CollectiveAccess? Can you fix a Mac? Please get in touch with us at .

We’re having a work day on January 21 at MRR HQ. You can find more information and RSVP here.

A selection of rare records from our collection!

As MRR enters its 40th year, we are undertaking our most ambitious project ever: creating a comprehensive online database of our record collection and music reviews. The project will also see out-of-print issues of the magazine fully digitized. You’ll be able to access it all online for free. We’re in the home stretch of a fundraising campaign, and we just passed our reach goal of $25,000. The money will ensure that we can do this project quickly, accurately, and efficiently. Consider donating if you have the means, and spread the word! More information is available here.