Aidy got together with Adam Gow from the Once A DJ podcast to talk about his story and the history of Vinyl Underground. 

Watch the the full podcast here on Youtube, or check it out on Apple or Spotify.

For those who like it analogue, here are some nuggets from the podcast and a few pictures from the archive.

Our Story: How Vinyl Underground Began

From a bedroom in Northampton to over 30 years as one of the UK’s most respected underground record specialists—Vinyl Underground began not as a business plan, but as a passion.

The Records He Couldn't Leave Behind

In 1992 at an NEC record fair, Aidy—already a committed collector since buying his first Madness 7” from Woolworths—stumbled across a stall selling U.S. imports for £2 each. Including some of the Chicago and Detroit records he’d spent years hunting down on pirate radio tapes and through word-of-mouth.

 

Even though he had most of them, he bought around 70 on the spot and climbed into the back of his mate John Morrow’s car (John would later be part of breakbeat pioneers Foul Play), asking himself: What am I going to do with these?
When John asked the same question, Aidy replied without thinking:
“I’m gonna start a shop.”

He didn’t mean to start a business. He just realised he finally had stock—and an obsession he couldn’t ignore.

Starting in a Bedroom

Spurred on, and educated by key local heads such as Adam Naked and Alton Bailey, Aidy gathered about 500 records, typed up a paper list, and placed a small advert in Echoes magazine:
“Chicago, Detroit, Underground house music. Send SAE to Aidy's Vinyl Underground.”

He waited by the phone in the early days of mobiles, wondering whether anyone would respond.
Then it rang.
Stevie from Birmingham ordered some records—and still buys from Vinyl Underground today.
The shop had begun.

Going Direct to Detroit

By 1993, Vinyl Underground operated entirely from Aidy’s bedroom in his parents’ house. Couriers dropped boxes at the door; he played records down the phone to customers; and every afternoon he scrambled to clear the chaos before his mum returned from work.

But something bothered him: the most underground Chicago and Detroit releases were nearly impossible to get through UK distributors. So he started calling the U.S. directly.

Inside an Underground Resistance record was a promo sheet for Submerge . Aidy called the number. Eventually, contacts at Record Time in Detroit began sending him stock. This was the fax-machine era, so he’d sneak into his family’s furniture shop at night to check for new release lists.

Soon, Vinyl Underground was getting records before London. Soho DJs were phoning Aidy from five minutes away from six of the hippest shops in the capital—because he had what they didn’t.

Buying in the USA

In 1997, Aidy made the leap. He took everything he’d saved—a bum bag containing about £5,000—flew to Chicago with fellow dealer Chris from Pure Pleasure Music, and started knocking on doors.

At Guidance Records, they let him in immediately—they’d just been listening to one of his mix tapes. The pair drove to Detroit, visiting shops and distributors until they reached Underground Resistance.

Meeting Mike Banks at Submerge was like hitting the holy grail. Bank’s music had shaped Aidy’s entire taste. They talked, dug for records, and Mike even offered them “the tour”—a drive around the real Detroit, the birthplace of the sound. They couldn’t stay, something Aidy still regrets.

But the trip cemented relationships that sustained the business for decades. That’s where they connected with Walter Paas, a Chicago exporter who helped consolidate shipments, and built long-term ties across the Midwest.

Surviving When Vinyl “Died”

The late 2000s nearly wiped Vinyl Underground out. Digital DJing crushed vinyl sales overnight. By 2007–2008, Aidy was running the shop alone, part-time, with a dwindling turnover—barely enough to survive in a business with tiny margins.

He even tried moving to London, but when he returned to Northampton, his regulars were still there—waiting every Saturday. That’s when he realised: Vinyl Underground belonged in Northampton.

Around 2009, things shifted. Surviving labels were pressing tiny runs—sometimes only 300 copies—which made vinyl desirable again. The hardcore collectors had never left; they had only become more committed. And when new Chicago house from labels like Mathematics started echoing the raw, analogue spirit that had first hooked him, Aidy felt everything come full circle.

Still Here. Still Digging.

Three decades on, Vinyl Underground continues to do what it always has: specialise in the underground music the mainstream overlooks, champion the labels and artists pushing boundaries, and support the DJs and collectors who care about the real thing.

Record shops have opened and closed, vinyl has died and resurrected, technology has changed everything.

But Vinyl Underground’s philosophy remains unchanged:

Passion first.
Belief in the music.
Respect for the culture.

That first tiny advert led to Stevie calling from Birmingham. That call led to Eddie Richards visiting Aidy’s parents’ house to dig for records. And those moments built the foundation of a shop that has lasted over three decades.

The digging continues. The passion remains. And the records that can’t be left behind still find their way to Northampton.

Welcome to Vinyl Underground.