TITLE Store’s Ian Underwood is at home amongst the records, books and film collections of the Crown Street store.
He floats between the shelves and answers questions from browsing customers with ease and enthusiasm, as if it were his personal collection they were perusing.
“I’ve spent my entire adult life in the music industry,” he tells me. “I played in a bunch of bands from the eighties till early-2000s, I’ve worked for and run my own record labels. I’ve also worked as a roadie and tour manager.”
Ian was introduced to TITLE through parent company Fuse, where he oversaw artists and worked in graphic design.
“Fuse used to be a really cutting edge music distributor. We imported lots of jazz and world music, as well as everything else.
“The idea was that TITLE could be an outlet for some of those great products. Surry Hills was the first store, and we have the big flagship in Barangaroo now.”
“But the DNA of TITLE is really in Surry Hills.”
It’s a highly curated space with the idea being that everything in the store has its own worth as a piece of art.
“Part of the experience is that people can come in and talk about music, art and film. I’ll have random conversations about The Beatles, twentieth century historians or some of the new young spec fiction.
“I like having the ability to turn people onto things. Like this morning someone bought their first turntable and I helped them choose their first album: The Beatles Best Of, the red and blue album.”
TITLE celebrates quality art and artists that transcend time. Their simple doctrine rings true to those who appreciate the same: it’s not about what’s new; it’s about what’s good.
