Twist & Shout Has a New Owner — How Patrick Brown Plans to Keep the Vinyl Spirit Alive

Twist & Shout is one of the largest music stores in the region and a legendary spot for Denver music lovers. The first location opened in April 1988. Four years later, Patrick Brown was hired at only 23 years old. Now, he owns the place. In retrospect, it seems like the obvious choice for Paul and Jill Epstein, the previous owners, to sell to Brown — he was their employee of over 30 years and the only employee to work at every Twist & Shout location. Brown was the only one the Epsteins could trust to carry on their legacy.

It’s funny to hear Brown recount Paul’s initial feelings about him. Jill interviewed Brown in 1992, and she liked him, but Paul felt that Brown was maybe acting a little “too cool for school” and was worried about how Brown would interact with his customers. 

“At first I was only allowed to open boxes,” Brown jokes. “But within a week they realized I was a little smarter than that, so they started to give me more responsibilities.” After many years and a handful of other locations and transitions, the Epsteins have now given Brown the ultimate responsibility — ownership of their beloved business. 

The conversation started when the owners of The Record Exchange, a similar music store in Boise, Idaho, announced that they would be selling the store to four employees. Paul pulled Brown aside and asked if he’d be interested in something similar as Paul’s retirement was drawing near. They shook on it that day, and Brown officially took over ownership in the spring of 2022. 

Before he was hired at Twist & Shout, Brown worked in a few restaurants and studied film at NYU. Music had always been a huge part of his life, so working at a record store seemed like a better fit than serving and busing tables. Brown didn’t originally plan on working there for so many years, but the positive culture that the Epsteins embodied has created an environment many employees don’t want to leave. Most of the current employees have been at Twist & Shout for at least five years, and half a dozen people on staff have worked there for more than 20.

It’s not just a great place to shop — it’s a fun place to work, and every employee gets to have an impact on the store. Brown doesn’t like to micromanage. His focus is on trusting his employees and creating a store where customers feel comfortable and artists are supported. 

Although Twist & Shout is known for its vinyl selection — they once had a vinyl-only location off Alameda — you’ll find not only a variety of genres but a variety of merchandise as well. CDs, DVDs, clothes and collectibles are just some of what the store has to offer. If you’re not an expert in vinyl or a lifelong lover of underground artists, that’s okay — Twist & Shout doesn’t judge. This is not the kind of music store where you’ll feel intimidated or uncool. Employees won’t judge you for picking out a Nickleback record (although, your friends might), or not knowing what song is blasting through their speakers while you endlessly scroll through the crates of records.

Twist & Shout’s philosophy, which began with the Epsteins, is why Brown has worked there for so long. “It doesn’t matter what somebody’s tastes are. They’re going to be interested in what’s interesting to them. My personal taste has no relevance to that.”

Brown has witnessed many ups and downs when it comes to trends in the vinyl world — a place that not everyone visits or even understands. With the number of convenient streaming services available today, some people have never considered buying a vinyl record while others exclusively listen to vinyl. Some people own small, affordable record players while others have sound systems worth thousands. It’s a controversial topic, and Brown sees all sides of it with an open mind. His primary goal is to get the music you’ll love into your hands in whatever format works for your listening needs. 

“Your listening habits have to work for you, it’s as simple as that. I think that vinyl absolutely has the ability to give you the best sound possible. But if you live in an apartment building with noisy neighbors and you have a cheap stereo, it doesn’t make any difference. You have to listen to what works for you.”

Brown’s own CD collection outweighs his vinyl collection, but that’s mostly due to his living situation when he first started working in the music industry. At that time, the best way for him to listen in his apartment was by CD. His love for records is more about the hunt than listening. 

“To me, the sound part of records is secondary to collecting and discovering music you haven’t heard before. I’m really into jazz, and there are thousands of obscure jazz records that aren’t on any streaming service. I don’t want to track down a bootleg version of that, I’d rather have one of those magic moments where I’m at a record store in Nebraska, and suddenly there’s a record by Dewey Redman that I’ve never seen before and it’s amazing. That kind of discovery can happen anywhere.

The Denver music scene holds a special place in Brown’s heart, and it’s part of the reason he came back to Colorado after feeling overwhelmed in New York. Denver used to be a stop that big artists would pass through while on their way to somewhere else. Now, we’re destination artists of all shapes and sizes. Supporting local music is a big part of Brown’s personal and professional life. He goes to smaller venues to support Denver bands regularly, and he’s hosted in-store events for local artists since he became the owner.

Additionally, any Colorado-based band is welcome to bring their music to Twist & Shout to sell on consignment. And Twist & Shout does something a little different for Colorado musicians. Normally, you would find a small band in the local section. That band would only be moved into the section for the appropriate genre once they reach a reasonable level of fame. “We do the opposite,” Brown said.

“Anyone who has any connection to Colorado — whether it’s Earth, Wind & Fire, John Denver, the String Cheese Incident or anybody else — we make sure they’re in more than just the Colorado section. The tiny Indie bands that have just pressed something and have 100 copies of their album total are sitting right next to multi-platinum artists.”

Uniting Denver music lovers will always be a goal for Brown. Twist & Shout recently hosted a listening party for the new Paramore album This Is Why and an in-store performance for local band Barbara. Brown loves hosting in-store events but is still navigating how to keep everyone safe as the world continues to reopen after COVID-19. Keep an eye on their event page to stay in the know.

The music industry ebbs and flows, but we can rest assured that even under new ownership, the welcoming and creative environment of Twist & Shout will remain. Brown plans to keep the values that the Epstiens implemented in the 80s alive today.