Jon Kruse from Nebraska, USA at the time of the interview was 45 years old working as the Membership Coordinator for SAMs club. Jon has a very impressive collection of more than 15,000 items most of them CDs. His collection is housed at the basement of his house which looks like the dream place of any collector! When did you realize that you are becoming a collector?
It just kind of happened...I have always loved music, it's my passion, so even at an early age, I bought music, mainly vinyl because that was all that was available. Probably around 1990 I bought my first CD and by 1993, I guess that's when I started doing this more as a collector than a hobby.
Right now how many items you own and in what formats?
If I had to try to put a number on my collection, I would say 14,000+ CDs, 700+ vinyl, 150+ cassettes...
Do you also focus your collecting on a specific genre or artist? How did you evolved as a collector?
I'm a completist so if I have one CD from the band, I try to get all their full lengths, sometimes the EPs and singles if I come across them and they aren't too pricy...I started out as a KISS fan in 1977, moved on to Hair Metal in the early 80's, to Thrash/Speed in '85, to Death Metal in '89, then it just grew from there... I still keep up on the bands I liked in each era and now with Facebook and YouTube, I continue to find new great bands as well....
Where do you house your collection?In Sept of 2013, my wife and I bought a house that had an unfinished basement that used to be an old root cellar, so my wife suggested I have shelves built around the entire basement to house my collection... I also had a vinyl rack built back in 2003 by a guy that built racks for a local record store, Backtrack Records. When my contractor finished the shelves, I had him build a second vinyl rack as well.
Do you keep a file or an index of your items?
I have a list on my computer, alphabetized and in chronological order with the CD title and catalog numbers. I also keep a copy in my phone, so when I go on a trip, I know what I have so I don't double up!!!!
So, what was your very first item?
My very first Hard Rock/Metal record was KISS Alive 2, my first CD was Slayer "Seasons In The Abyss", I don't remember my first cassette...
Which are your top five places to buy music both online & offline?EBay, Amazon, Discogs, Music Stack, The End Records for online shopping, there are some local outlets I use: Homers (Omaha, NE), CD Warehouse (Lincoln, NE), Backtrack Records (Lincoln, NE), Recycled Sounds (Lincoln, NE), FYE (Independence, MO), Vintage Stock (Lees Summit, MO), The Exclusive Company (In Wisconsin)
Do you also collect items from artists that you might not like? If so, why?
Typically I only collect from bands I like, but as a completist I do end up buying some I don't prefer...but not that often...
Do you also download music? Or you keep it only physical?
In rare occasions where music is not available on CD or has long gone out of print, I will download so that I can hear the music, but those titles go on a want list that I keep an eye out for reissued CDs or the originals at a reasonable price...
What would you say is the "driving force†behind your collecting hobby? Do you have to have it? Is it –somehow- a part of yourself and you must own it? How do you analyze it in psychological terms? Initially I started out just loving music and at the time, there was no internet, no YouTube, no iTunes, so I had to rely on what I read in Zines, off liner notes and just taking risks on new bands, but I had to buy the material, that was the only way to hear it, there wasn't a radio station playing it, MTV (even Headbanger’s Ball) didn't even scratch the surface... as my collection grew, I thrived on reactions that people had when they saw my collection, plus I get an adrenaline rush that you can't match when I'm CD hunting!!! My old roommate had a larger collection than I did, so it was also motivation to grow the collection...
Any regrets of an item you sold/lost/gave away in the past that you shouldn’t?
I have never sold any of my collection...so no regrets...I did have to discard my long box of Carcass "Symphonies Of Sickness" due to water damage, plus I had numerous CDs damaged in a basement flood, but I've replaced many of those as well...
Did you ever bought an item you already had because you couldn’t remember if you got it or not?
That used to happen to me, but now that I have my list on my phone, I don't run that risk... I do PURPOSELY double up on titles if I find them on eBay and no one is bidding on them, but only if they are rare...
What are the 3-4 most valuable items in your collection?KISS "The Originals" vinyl (cover shows wear, but inside is MINT), Merciless "The Awakening" on DSP, Mercyful Fate "Black Masses" 7" Pic Disc, Savatage "Sirens" on PAR Records, Marduk "Panzer Division" Digi w/Metal logo, Dream Theatre "Live Scenes a From New York" (Pulled from shelves on 9/11/01) Autographed...to name a few off the top of my head...
How many items on your want list right now?
I have a want list in my phone with probably a good 200 titles...
Do you have family and kids? How do you talk to them about your hobby? Are they allowed to approach your collection? I know for me is a no-go for my wife and kid (lol)
I have been married since 2011 and have a 3 year old Daughter & a 2 year old son... they only go down to the basement when we have a bad storm... I also have a DVD/BluRay/VHS collection (over 3500 items), so my wife goes down to get movies now and again, as I said before, she was the inspiration around the shelves, so she's always welcome down there and she shows it off to friends and family when they come to visit...
Remember the days before the internet? I am sure you must have been kind of more thrilled when discovering new music… and what a chase was to find more information about records no one else ever heard of….
Today, people are spoiled... they have access to pretty much ANYTHING they are looking for by way of online shopping, mp3 downloads and social media... back when I started really searching for titles, it was the thrill of the hunt... record stores did not know the rarity of titles so you could get some absolute steals back in the day, now with the internet, used CD stores sell online as well or price accordingly... but I still get that thrill when I find a title I'm looking for used!!! That'll never change!!!
What would you like to happen to your collection when you will leave this world? Although I don't like to think about that, I would like to know it went to someone that collected and would keep it, not sell it for monetary gain... probably to my kids and/or friends...
Any last words?
Thanks for the opportunity to share my collection!!! I love discussing music and could spend hours doing so... Metal fans are far more passionate about the music and it's almost like an extended family, people from all walks of life and from all over the world can find friends with the same tastes now thanks to social media, plus lately, I've been friending band members from bands that had a HUGE impact on me and they take the time to shoot the bull with you (I always share pics of the collection to use as an Icebreaker!!!) I've always been about exposing people to music they may not be familiar with and seeing that spark go off when they hear something new that they love and sharing concert stories and stories about bands with one another... there's no point in having knowledge of music or having a collection if you can't share it with people...
