Status: Closed — this petition is no longer accepting signatures.
Final supporters
Hello,
We are asking for your help and a few minutes of your time.
WAX
TRAX! RECORDS is trying to designate the original Chicago storefront
located at 2449 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago, IL as an official historic
Chicago Landmark.
In addition to having an historic plaque outside
the building with information about the influential store and
independent label, the status will ensure that the building will not be
demolished nor the exterior altered in the future.
This original Lincoln Park building served as the WAX TRAX! headquarters from 1978-1993.
WHY ARE WE ASKING:
For those not familiar with
the WAX TRAX! history, the independent record store was the center of
underground music and culture throughout the 1980s & 90s here in the
Mid-West. Artists such as Robert Plant, Lou Reed, Nick Cave, Black
Flag, Buzzcocks, the B-52s and others would shop the Lincoln Ave.
location when passing through Chicago.
Before launching the independent label, WAX TRAX! founders Jim Nash and Dannie Flesher would use the N. Lincoln Ave. storefront to promote and produce concerts for then unknown artists such as Joy Division, Bauhaus, The Birthday Party, New Order, Einsturzende Neubauten, Sisters Of Mercy, Divine and more. WAX TRAX! was responsible for bringing many seminal artists to Chicago for the first time and most tickets sold ran through this iconic building.
In 1980, WAX TRAX! founders Nash and Flesher extended their reach by
starting a record label of the same name from 2449 N. Lincoln Ave. WAX
TRAX! RECORDS is credited for creating a new genre called “Industrial
Dance”, later to be shortened to “Industrial” music. Artists such as
Ministry, Front 242, My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult, Revolting Cocks,
KMFDM, Front Line Assembly, The KLF, Underworld, Coil, Psychic TV,
Laibach, and more all got their footing here in the US on WAX TRAX! RECORDS.
The
global commercial success of the genre as a whole with artists such as
Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, Rammstein, etc. is a direct lineage to
WAX TRAX! RECORDS and this humble storefront.
WHO IS INVOLVED:
The Nash Family is directly
involved in this preservation project. Julia Nash, daughter of WAX
TRAX!! founder Jim Nash, leads this cause personally as a way to keep
the legacy of her father and his life partner alive.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
By signing our online petition,
it will help support our cause as we explain to the city of Chicago the
cultural and historic significance of this building. Not only did this
location have a profound impact on Chicago, but also influenced
countless people from around the world. If you have ever appreciated
Ministry, Front 242, TKK, etc. or ancillary artist’s like Nine Inch
Nails, this unassuming building on Chicago's north side is where it all
began.
WHEN IS THIS NEEDED:
Chicago’s Department of
Planning Development will hold their next meeting to discuss possible
landmark status on approximately March 15. We need to submit all of the
paperwork and petition by March 1.
If this store or label has meant anything to you at any point in your
life, we hope you will join us at preserving this important physical
piece of music history.
Thank you
Julia Nash
More like this
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Updates
Reached 5,000 supporters
February 16, 2022
February 13, 2022
Reaching five thousand signatures will provide the tangible proof required to demonstrate the cultural importance of this building to the city officials. I invite you to send the petition link to a few people in your life who recognize the value of preserving our shared independent music history.
Reached 1,000 supporters
February 9, 2022
Reached 100 supporters
February 9, 2022
2,417 Comments
Wax Trax! was, and in some ways still is, an important nodal point in Chicago culture, every bit as much as the CSO or long-gone stage theater. We lose these places and their memories at our peril as we forget what shaped us and how we got where we are.
WAX TRAX is an incredibly special entity that shaped and help create an entire genre of music. No other place except for maybe Sun Records has done as much for moving music forward. We need to make sure that it is around for generations to come.
This is history, this is more than a building. There's not a country where this shop had a huge impact. In a way, it might be the only building we know from Chicago. It must stay as is. You dont improve on perfection.. SR Denmark a fan since 1988/89.
The music that came out of WAX TRAX! RECORDS had a major impact on my when I was growing up. It caused me to fall in love with Chicago. I moved to this city from the NYC area in the year 2000. WAX TRAX! RECORDS was a major part of that decision.
Wax Trax was the epicenter of the underground music scene in Chicago. It was a mecca and a magnet. It brought suburban kids like me into the city to meet and hang with others in the scene. It's a HUGELY significant place and cultural landmark.
Long live Wax Trax!
My friends and I would take a parent’s car and sneak into the city to go to Wax Trax and buy giant posters and later, become huge 242 fans. Hell yeah it’s a landmark.
Share Petition
Don't stop at signing, share the petition link with friends to multiply our impact
Copy link or share directly
Status: Closed — this petition is no longer accepting signatures.
Final supporters
Hello,
We are asking for your help and a few minutes of your time.
WAX
TRAX! RECORDS is trying to designate the original Chicago storefront
located at 2449 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago, IL as an official historic
Chicago Landmark.
In addition to having an historic plaque outside
the building with information about the influential store and
independent label, the status will ensure that the building will not be
demolished nor the exterior altered in the future.
This original Lincoln Park building served as the WAX TRAX! headquarters from 1978-1993.
WHY ARE WE ASKING:
For those not familiar with
the WAX TRAX! history, the independent record store was the center of
underground music and culture throughout the 1980s & 90s here in the
Mid-West. Artists such as Robert Plant, Lou Reed, Nick Cave, Black
Flag, Buzzcocks, the B-52s and others would shop the Lincoln Ave.
location when passing through Chicago.
Before launching the independent label, WAX TRAX! founders Jim Nash and Dannie Flesher would use the N. Lincoln Ave. storefront to promote and produce concerts for then unknown artists such as Joy Division, Bauhaus, The Birthday Party, New Order, Einsturzende Neubauten, Sisters Of Mercy, Divine and more. WAX TRAX! was responsible for bringing many seminal artists to Chicago for the first time and most tickets sold ran through this iconic building.
In 1980, WAX TRAX! founders Nash and Flesher extended their reach by
starting a record label of the same name from 2449 N. Lincoln Ave. WAX
TRAX! RECORDS is credited for creating a new genre called “Industrial
Dance”, later to be shortened to “Industrial” music. Artists such as
Ministry, Front 242, My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult, Revolting Cocks,
KMFDM, Front Line Assembly, The KLF, Underworld, Coil, Psychic TV,
Laibach, and more all got their footing here in the US on WAX TRAX! RECORDS.
The
global commercial success of the genre as a whole with artists such as
Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, Rammstein, etc. is a direct lineage to
WAX TRAX! RECORDS and this humble storefront.
WHO IS INVOLVED:
The Nash Family is directly
involved in this preservation project. Julia Nash, daughter of WAX
TRAX!! founder Jim Nash, leads this cause personally as a way to keep
the legacy of her father and his life partner alive.
HOW YOU CAN HELP:
By signing our online petition,
it will help support our cause as we explain to the city of Chicago the
cultural and historic significance of this building. Not only did this
location have a profound impact on Chicago, but also influenced
countless people from around the world. If you have ever appreciated
Ministry, Front 242, TKK, etc. or ancillary artist’s like Nine Inch
Nails, this unassuming building on Chicago's north side is where it all
began.
WHEN IS THIS NEEDED:
Chicago’s Department of
Planning Development will hold their next meeting to discuss possible
landmark status on approximately March 15. We need to submit all of the
paperwork and petition by March 1.
If this store or label has meant anything to you at any point in your
life, we hope you will join us at preserving this important physical
piece of music history.
Thank you
Julia Nash
Updates
Reached 5,000 supporters
February 16, 2022
February 13, 2022
Reaching five thousand signatures will provide the tangible proof required to demonstrate the cultural importance of this building to the city officials. I invite you to send the petition link to a few people in your life who recognize the value of preserving our shared independent music history.
Reached 1,000 supporters
February 9, 2022
Reached 100 supporters
February 9, 2022
2,417 Comments
This space was pivotal in the Chicago music, art, fashion, and cultural scene of its time. I went there almost every week! It's deserves to be recognized and preserved so the history of punk, new wave, and experimental music in Chicago can be celebrated.
Wax Trax! was, and in some ways still is, an important nodal point in Chicago culture, every bit as much as the CSO or long-gone stage theater. We lose these places and their memories at our peril as we forget what shaped us and how we got where we are.
WAX TRAX is an incredibly special entity that shaped and help create an entire genre of music. No other place except for maybe Sun Records has done as much for moving music forward. We need to make sure that it is around for generations to come.
This is history, this is more than a building. There's not a country where this shop had a huge impact. In a way, it might be the only building we know from Chicago. It must stay as is. You dont improve on perfection.. SR Denmark a fan since 1988/89.
The music that came out of WAX TRAX! RECORDS had a major impact on my when I was growing up. It caused me to fall in love with Chicago. I moved to this city from the NYC area in the year 2000. WAX TRAX! RECORDS was a major part of that decision.
Wax Trax was the epicenter of the underground music scene in Chicago. It was a mecca and a magnet. It brought suburban kids like me into the city to meet and hang with others in the scene. It's a HUGELY significant place and cultural landmark.
Long live Wax Trax!
My friends and I would take a parent’s car and sneak into the city to go to Wax Trax and buy giant posters and later, become huge 242 fans. Hell yeah it’s a landmark.
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This space was pivotal in the Chicago music, art, fashion, and cultural scene of its time. I went there almost every week! It's deserves to be recognized and preserved so the history of punk, new wave, and experimental music in Chicago can be celebrated.