New record shop Downbeat Records to open in Limerick in August

Music
05 Jul 24

Credit: Isabella Mendes

"A good record store is about more than the music, its about the culture and the community," Downbeat Records' Frankie O'Mahony tells us.

Limerick city centre is about to become home to an exciting new community-oriented record store – following today's announcement that Downbeat Records is opening at The Wickham Way in August.

The store is set to stock new and used vinyl records and books, with a particularly strong emphasis on soul, jazz, electronic, rock, metal, hip-hop, reggae and world music. There will also be a dedicated listening desk in store for customer use.

In the run-up to the opening, Frankie O'Mahony, the mastermind behind Downbeat Records, has been busy buying up quality record collections, and sourcing stock from the UK, US and beyond.

Downbeat Records also plans to serve its local community of artists, musicians and record collectors by launching its own label for Irish output.

"A good record store is about more than the music, its about the culture and the community," Frankie comments."I have found that many musicians and artists are stuck in a loop where the only means to gather socially tends to be in late night venues surrounded by large crowds.

"We hope to welcome anyone with an interest in records and music to stop by and hang out, chat music, buy music and meet other people interested in a wide variety of sounds. We want to provide that space to the local music community."

Frankie kicked off his own career in the mid-'00s, promoting reggae sound system dances with his friends in Limerick, before moving to Bristol in 2011 to launch the Roots Factory brand as vinyl record label. Over the years that followed, he worked in the iconic Bristol-based store and label Idle Hands, and at Rough Trade, where he was head music buyer for used records.

While in the UK, he also pursued his passion for DJing and music production – performing at over 100 events, and producing records for London-based labels like Conscious Sounds.

Last year, Frankie returned to this side of the Irish Sea, and took a role as head music buyer at HMV Ireland.

Although he learned a lot from those larger companies, he says that he always admired how involved Idles Hands was in the culture and the community.

"So, in 2024, I've decided to take what I'm passionate about, and what I've learned and bring it home to Limerick."

The Wickham Way, where Downbeat Records is located, is a warehouse-style market of independent stores and stalls, featuring food, coffee, crafts and more – as well as weekly markets.

Stayed tuned for further news about Downbeat Records' eagerly anticipated opening in August...