Going online

Other Music has become an institution of sorts in the East Village of Manhattan for its impeccable taste in music, and much like any other independent recordshop it prefers vinyl to any other medium. But citing the "undeniable" convenience of the MP3 format, the store will open an online destination at digital.othermusic.com next month.

In an interview with Wired columnist Eliot Van Buskirk, Other Music co-owner Josh Madell said the move to online started with a weekly email update from the store's website. The email update will offer a click-to-buy option and serve as a source for new music.

A few thousand albums will be for sale at $10.99 a piece, a dollar more than prices at iTunes, which Madell calls the Best Buy of digital music stores.

On competing with MySpace as a source for new bands, Madell said the social-networking site has an overwhelming amount of info on a myriad new acts, whereas Other Music's digital destination features only the best new bands, as selected by an expert staff.