USA – 2012 – 70 MIN – COLOUR - FEATURE - IN ENGLISH
A FILM BY C. SCOTT SHUFFITT

NON-THEATRICAL: AVAILABLE FOR TV, VOD & FILM FESTIVALS ONLY

On February 13, 2010, John Timmons (owner of ear X-tacy Records in Louisville, Kentucky) held a press conference to inform the local community that his business was in financial trouble and would potentially have to close its doors after nearly twenty-five years of service. How could this happen? How could this cultural center within my community close? What would my city look like without its influence? All these questions started running through my mind and a few days after the press conference, I decided I had to look deeper into this story.

Ear X-tacy is a landmark within Louisville. It has hosted scores of in-store performances by a growing list of artists that include the Foo Fighters, My Morning Jacket and John Mayer. Jim James, lead singer of My Morning Jacket, says that there would be no My Morning Jacket if it were not for ear X-tacy. The store has consistently been ranked at the top of its industry by magazines including Playboy, Rolling Stone, Paste, and Spin. Timmons, who worked in record stores for over thirty-five years, has been a mentor and vital influence in the local community, and was instrumental in the organization of Louisville Independent Business Association.


DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT
The ear X-tacy story didn't pop up on my radar immediately it was though facebook that I started hearing about the shop being in trouble.

I missed the first press conference, but I was thinking a lot about the situation and what the store meant to me, and the community. A day or so after the press conference I woke up around 5 am and it was then that I decided to move forward with the documentary. I called John the next day and told him about my idea and he was willing to give me an interview and open up the store to me. Our first interview was on February 22nd 2009, from that point I've spent hours with John and his staff and have traveled to Birmingham, Chicago, Atlanta, Nashville, Cincinnati, Lexington and Austin following the store of what indie record shops mean to their communities, what struggles the owners are facing and how they are facing them.