Turnup Records will celebrate their third anniversary this Saturday with its Three-Year Anniversary and Back-to-School Party. It will feature live music and local artwork.

The party, located at the record shop at 257 N. Water St. downtown, is free and starts at 9 p.m.

Bands performing include The Examples, from Kent, and Chief Bromide, from Tremont. Also on the bill is Jeff Host, a solo performer. The party will feature artwork by local artist Jessica Brunger.

Charlie Loudin, one of the owners of Turnup Records, added that the event will have a “celebratory atmosphere,” and emphasized the word “party.”

Along with the performers, the North Water Street Gallery, which shares a building with Turnup Records, will feature an exhibit called “Through the Glass Greenly,” which features fused glass made by Marianne Hite and Colleene Daugharty. The exhibit opened Sept. 6 and runs until Oct. 18.

Turnup Records is owned by Loudin and Doug Gent. Loudin opened the store three years ago, when the space that formerly served as the Mantis and later a stained-glass studio, became empty. He thought Kent needed a record shop that catered to underground tastes and was not limited to a few genres.

“There was the desire for Kent to have a place for more contemporary underground music,” Loudin said. “Most of the music is nationally known, but not necessarily mainstream. Kent needed a place for that kind of music.”

Turnup Records also carries recordings by a number of local artists.

“Any local artists can run something by, and we’ll sell it,” Loudin said.

Contact off-campus entertainment reporter Nicke Baker at [email protected].