Featured Store: Rotten Records

Life, Vinyl & a Second Chance: Inside Cornwall’s Rotten Records
Graham Jones visited the UK’s most Southern mainland record shops in Helston Cornwall to interview owners Nick and Ana. Tucked away down an alley on The Lizard, at the southern edge of Cornwall, Rotten Records isn’t just another independent record shop—it’s the result of resilience, passion, and a belief that it’s never too late to chase a dream.

What made you open a record shop?
We had wanted to open a record shop for several years, but we knew we wanted to wait until we moved to Cornwall before taking the leap. When we first moved down, Nick was very unwell and, in 2023, had to undergo a triple heart bypass. Thankfully, he made an amazing recovery.

That experience made us both realise that life is too short, and we needed to make our dream a reality. So, we opened our shop in November 2025.

We knew from the start that we wanted to specialise in rock, metal, punk, and thrash—genres we love and know well as collectors and music enthusiasts. The name Rotten Records is a nod to Johnny Rotten from The Sex Pistols, one of our favourite bands.

The shop has an old-school record store vibe, with huge A-frame black wooden beams, vintage tour posters, T-shirts, and memorabilia covering the walls. Bright neon lighting adds a modern edge, making the space feel vibrant and full of energy.

What are your memories of your first day?
Our first day was absolutely mind-blowing—we couldn’t have asked for a better turnout. Being in a Cornish town right down on The Lizard, we weren’t sure how locals would embrace a record shop, although the build-up to opening had been very positive.

Opening day confirmed that this was exactly what the town had been craving. We quickly realised there are so many music fans in Cornwall, of all ages and with a wide range of tastes.

We had whole families coming in to buy their first-ever records and record players, as well as customers discovering bands they had never heard before. There were queues out the door for most of the day. To top it all off, a local punk band played a full electric set inside the shop, and we even had a giant inflatable Gene Simmons for people to take photos with. It’s a day we’ll never forget.

How was Record Store Day?
It was absolutely bonkers. We had people queuing from midnight and the atmosphere in the shop was brilliant. Being a new shop we were wary of not getting all our requirements but the reps from the record companies were brilliant ensuring we got nearly all the stock we wanted.

Any funny tales?
One customer really surprised us. He must have been in his 80s—lovely gentleman. We expected him to ask for The Beatles or Elvis, but instead he was keen to pick up Skrillex and Rammstein—for himself! It shows your never too old to enjoy metal.

He’s now a regular and loves digging through our heavy metal section whenever he’s in town.

What releases from Proper Music are you looking forward to?
We are looking forward to Hard-Fi making their long-awaited return with brand new studio album Sweating Somebody Else’s Fever, their first in 15 years, out on June 19th via V2.

We are also looking forward to the newly mastered 2CD collection of Gary Numan’s collaborations with Radio Heart on Edsell. It covers the period 1987 1994 and includes the entire Radio Heart album, the four singles that featured Gary Numan plus their associated remixes, the Gary Numan written B-Sides plus two previously unreleased versions of “Radio Heart” including a new version.

The Vinyl Revival and the Shops That Made It Happen

Graham Jones is the author of ‘The Vinyl Revival and the Shops That Made It Happen’ which has features on over 200 independent record shops that he has visited. The book was made in to a film titled ‘The Vinyl Revival’ available on DVD. Both can be ordered from Proper, independent record shops, Amazon and other online retailers.

Read about the book, film and vinyl soundtrack here