Wandering the streets of the quaint market town of Wimborne in Dorset, you still hear gasps of “Square Records has gone”. Its former home of almost 40 years lies empty in prime position next to the town’s 12th-century minster, which gives Wimborne Minster its full name. But you only need walk around the corner towards the River Stour to find the newly located Square Records. No longer on the Square but still on the High Street, it’s undergone a complete makeover and now sports an orange and blue frontage with a light and airy interior and the familiar fare of records, CDs, band T-shirts and music books.
Wimborne’s residents claim proudly that the town has more pubs per square mile than any other in England, while every June, the streets come alive with Morris Dancers, musicians and drinkers for the annual folk festival. The town crier, Chris Brown, is so rock ‘n’ roll, he’s been on stage several times to introduce The Flaming Lips and he DJs many a West Country festival under the moniker DJ Dapper Dan. There have also been a surprising number of musicians spawned from the town’s cobbled streets – these include King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp and singer Ed Dowie, who released his solo debut on Lost Map Records in 2017, along with doom band Electric Wizard and Brothers In Sound (a 90s trio signed to The Beta Band’s Regal Recordings).