I Have Seen The Future ...

... of record shops.

More than once, Chris has opined that you ought to be able to go into a record shop and just download music onto your music player rather than having to buy a CD or other format. Well, now you can.

When I went to pay for my new Buffy Sainte-Marie CD in the big HMV on Oxford Street I noticed a couple of wall-mounted machines just to the left of the main bank of tills. Ever curious, I went to look at them and play with them. Slots for different digital storage devices (although I didn't see an iPod slot) and credit cards, a touch screen for finding music, and you can either order the hard copy or an immediate download. I tested it with Buffy's new record and, amazingly, 'Running For The Drum' is already there and ready to be downloaded. Then I checked the Maximo Park records...

I was ever so slightly gob-smacked...