Running any independent business in this day and age is an uphill battle. But to be ten years into such endeavours, well, in 2026 it’s probably one of the most punk things you could do. Apt considering Defend Vinyl is Liverpool’s go-to for all your punk needs.
Tomorrow, the record store celebrates its tenth birthday. For any business involved in the music industry these days, such feats are a minor miracle. While the city boasts a healthy number of independent record stores, who still maintain a presence in the face of Rough Trade setting up camp earlier in the decade while HMV also continue to tick over, Defend has its own allure.
For residents in the inner-city suburbs of south Liverpool, it’s a stone’s throw away. In the case of Smithdown Road in particular, the shop is a vital part of the fabric. Firmly embedded in the community, any one trip to the shop sees new scenarios unfold each time. Whether it be regulars, newcomers or both at the same time, Defend Vinyl founder, Graham Jones shares many stories about the store’s history.
Alongside the constant flow of new releases (and Jones’ own collection on display behind the counter), the second-hand selection is just a crucial for Defend. During one of my recent visits (which is usually just after pay day each month), the store is the benefactor of someone selling the family silver, so to speak. Splayed across the counter, everything from Dinosaur Jr seven inches and Sonic Youth records, to an early pressing of Loveless.
Over the store’s 10 years, recently Jones move further afield, too; earlier this decade starting Defend Vinyl Records. The label, home to likes of local acts such as Puzzle and Astles, while most recently, they’ve released music from abroad – the latest, coming from down under with Marlophone’s Remembered Adventures In Widescale.
It’s all systems go, and 10 years down the stretch, hopefully, here’s to another 10! Happy Birthday, Defend Vinyl!
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Sun 13: First of all, happy tenth year anniversary. When you first opened the shop, did you ever think you’d reach this milestone?
Graham Jones: Thanks! I don’t remember thinking that far ahead to be honest, although maybe some part of my subconscious felt like ten years was an achievable goal. At the very start I was generally aiming pretty low. My initial target was to stay open for six months. I thought if I achieved that at least I could say I’d done something I’d always wanted to do, which was open a record shop, even if it had been a complete failure. Those initial six months flew by without me really noticing, and then suddenly we were celebrating the shop’s first birthday, which is still one of my favourite memories. If I knew at the beginning the target was to stay open for ten years, I think my brain would have melted.”
S13: What are some of the standouts over the ten years?
GJ: “Elvis Costello doing a live-stream from the shop was an amazing and surreal experience, and his ongoing support of Defend Vinyl has been incredible. He gave us a shout-out on the Stephen Colbert Show which was unreal. Moving from the original smaller premises further up Smithdown Road to where the shop is located now was also a massive moment. Defend Vinyl was two and a half years in at that point and naturally ready to grow. The bigger shop and better location meant more people knew where we were, and enabled me to do a lot of the things I had hoped to do from the start.
“Although we’ve sat the last couple out, participating in Record Store Day over the years was always a highlight. It may have its critics, and rightfully so in some respects. But it undoubtedly does bring record collectors together on the day. It’s a special kind of chaos for the shops involved. Since Defend stopped taking part in RSD, myself and my brother Paul have been making the trip over to Den Bosch for Record Planet. It’s the largest record fair in the world and somewhere I’d wanted to go for a long time. It didn’t disappoint at all, I’d recommend any record collector make the trip. It’s unbelievable.”
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S13: The thing I love about Defend is that you can really capture your personality within the records and the sleeves on the shelves. Do you consider the shop diaristic?
GJ: “It was important to me from the start that the shop had an obvious identity of it’s own and felt noticeably curated. I do feel like we’re lucky in Liverpool to have a lot of great independent record shops who each appeal to a different audience so there’s something for everyone. When I opened Defend Vinyl in 2016, I knew there was room for a shop like this that catered to fans of mainly US indie, alt-rock, punk and emo, as that was generally what my friends and me were into and we usually had to order our records online.
“As for diaristic, I’m guessing that’s a reference to the labels on the sleeves, ha! The hand-written stickers in Probe were a massive influence there. In a pre-streaming age those stickers were such a vital guide to what you’d take a chance on buying as well as a huge part of Probe’s personality. I initially tried to hand write my own but found it really time consuming as my handwriting isn’t good enough, so I realised the printer was the way to go. Myself and Eva (who worked here up until recently) decided to not take the descriptions on the labels too seriously, so there’s enough information on there for customers to know what they’re getting and hopefully some personality and humour comes through, too.”
S13: Your prices have always been reasonable, too. You’ve held firm in the face of inflation and this increasingly tough time for cost of living. Just how difficult is to maintain this?
GJ: “Having been a collector for most of my life, I’ve been on the other side of it, and know what it’s like when shops are expensive. Sometimes it means you’ll only give them a couple of chances before deciding it’s not for you. It’s tough for all businesses, but my philosophy from the start has been price to sell which I’ve found works for Defend. I feel like there’s something for every budget here; there’s the higher end rare records which will set you back a bit more right down to the super cheap £2 bargain bin stuff plus everything in-between.
S13: Your location is something I think separates you from a lot of the other record stores in the city, giving it an extra feel for community. How much is Smithdown Road a part of the label’s story?
GJ: “I don’t think Defend Vinyl would exist in the same way if it wasn’t for Smithdown Road. When we opened back in 2016, we were one of many independent businesses along the road. And looking back, it felt like everything fell into place at the right time both for me personally and for where Smithdown was at the time too. A friend of mine (David Johnson from Puzzle) actually found the original premises for me almost by accident and gave me a heads-up it was available. I was a few doors down from Craft Taproom (now Black Cat) who were about six months away from opening so it was great to be able to see their daily progress. And taking part in the Smithdown Festival for the first time the following year was also a highlight. It’s been a huge part of our story from the beginning.”
Defend Vinyl's Graham Jones (photo: Stephen Kerrison / Paul Rafferty)S13: Over the last couple of years, you’ve launched a label to coexist with the shop, too. How have you found the label’s journey so far?
GJ: “Launching a sister-label was something I had always hoped was possible from fairly early on in the shop’s lifetime. It’s grown really organically, much like the shop. We started back in 2021 with the vinyl release of the second Silent Sleep album, Stay The Night, Stay The Morning Too. Chris McIntosh (who is Silent Sleep and co-runs the label with me) was telling me he had gotten the rights to his songs back after some complications and we literally messaged each other simultaneously suggesting we should put it out on Defend Vinyl Records. So it was fate. During that time Puzzle were finishing off their second album Halfway Home. Both Chris and I had been Puzzle fans for a long time and were super excited about hearing their new record.
“We were probably still a bit apprehensive at that stage to ask if they wanted to release their album with us given we were still so new but thankfully they did and it all worked out! From there it’s been a real pleasure getting to know and release music by new and exciting bands and artists like Dune Boy, Bill Nickson, Astles, Haarm. Plus bands from around the world like Hammer No More The Fingers from North Carolina, and our latest release, the amazing debut record from Sydney band, Marlophone, Remembered Adventures In Widescale. Prior to running the shop I’d always played in bands so now helping new bands get their music out into the world feels like the next logical step.”
S13: Lastly, what’s in-store for the next ten years?
GJ: “Similarly to when the shop first opened, I think my brain will melt if I think about the next ten years. In terms of immediate plans though, next year we have some really exciting releases lined up on the label, which we’ll be announcing soon. Other than that I’ll be happy to see Defend Vinyl continue to grow, and a nice big sleep at some point would be great too.”
