Sometime in 2004, Steve Cape drove up the Interstate-81 corridor and “fell in love with the area” of the Shenandoah Valley.

In particular, he loved Mrs. Rowe’s Restaurant and Bakery in Staunton, the town in which Cape originally planned to establish Cosmic Debris Records, Harrisonburg’s first and only independent music store since the March 2009 shuttering of Plan 9 Music.

“I said, ‘I need a college town,’” explains Cape, “then a friend of mine did some research for me and said Harrisonburg was a much bigger town with more students.”

Though big rock names are less likely to grace Cosmic Debris in the more isolated Harrisonburg, Cape says he and Cosmic Debris have already attained “cult status” in the Friendly City.

“What [Cosmic Debris Records] offers is a wide variety of CDs and vinyl that…people can’t find just anywhere,” said Eddie Bumbaugh, executive director of Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance, a non-profit that works to economically revitalize Harrisonburg’s downtown area.

Cape says he had stayed afloat since 1985 because he has noticed music trends—particularly the rebirth of vinyl over the past decade.  He explains that as records are converted from one form to the next—from analog vinyl records to digital CDs and mp3s, they lose sound quality because they are compressed so much.  Thus, the people who buy records are no longer collectors; they are simply music lovers looking to maximize their listening experience.

HHS alumnus Alex Hulvey, 20, says the store’s importance lies in its addition of diversity to the city’s music scene.

“…Music varies so much between genres. You have to sell more than what’s popular because if these times show us anything, it’s that popular music is kind of terrible,” said Hulvey, with a vinyl copy of the Patti Smith Group’s Radio Ethiopia in hand.

JMU junior Ted Olinsky, 21, was particularly excited to spot a vinyl copy of David Bowie’s 1980 release Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps).

“It’s pretty nice just to walk downtown and pick up an older album like this,” said Olinsky.

Cape identifies with the music lovers looking for the best sound possible.

“I’m just a fan of music,” said Cape, who grew up listening to his parents’ favorite country-music shows such as Hee Haw but whose favorite band is unquestionably the Beatles.  He couldn’t identify a favorite song or record, because he finds impossible to pinpoint a song he could consistently call his favorite when so many songs continue his passion for music.

“I love music—simple as that,” Cape said.