Published
Mon, Mar 14, 2022, 18:55
- The shop's last day will be March 31st, though owners Ed Vertov and Katya Tretya have started legal proceedings.
The Russian owners of Los Angeles record shop Stellar Remnant have been served with a 30-day eviction notice by their landlord.
The store, which specialises in electronic music, shared the news via social media last Friday, March 11th, alongside a photo of the notice, which is dated March 2nd. The posts were likely written by the owner, Ed Vertov.
"As the violence escalates in Ukraine so is hatred towards Russian-speaking immigrants around the globe, we believe we became a targeted individuals and business," read the post. "With our cry out for love we still receive threats and hate and people asking us to take down and not to sell any Russian artists regardless of their political views, just by simply being or associated with Russia."
The post continued: "We are absolutely devastated and demoralized. Our last day will be March 31st."
The shop's two previous social media posts decried the war in Ukraine and announced a vinyl auction to raise funds for humanitarian causes.
"Growing up in Soviet Union I would never have imagined the war between our Ukrainian brothers and sisters," read a post on March 4th.
"We do not support the bloodshed in Ukraine and do not support Putin or any totalitarian warmongering policies of any government," read another on March 8th. "I think we all agree that this war and all wars on this beautiful planet must STOP."
As mentioned in the March 11th post and to Resident Advisor, the owners are currently in the middle of a legal battle with their landlord. We'll report more on this story as it unfolds.
Read the shop's March 4th and 8th posts in full.
Earlier this month, Ukraine's electronic music community published an open letter calling for a boycott of the Russian music scene and for all Russians to protest publicly against the war, among other demands. New laws in Russia mean anti-war protesters could face up to 15 years in prison.
Correction, March 15th: A previous version of this article reference Stellar Remnant's two owners. In fact, the shop has only one: Ed Vertov.