A new spin on Sunday brunch

If you have not been paying attention: The left lane is still for passing, and Sunday brunch has become a phenomenon — one in which the food and beverages (adult or otherwise) get served up while the atmosphere gets dialed down after a hard-fought weekend. Everyone wants to relax and have fun doing it; ergo, “Sunday Funday” has become part of the popular lexicon.

Chimera Coffee Shop (212 N. Main St.) has gone all in for laid back “Sunday Fundays” by hosting the Tulsa Vinyl Society for Sunday Vinyl Brunch, which features a different guest each weekend to spin a selection of their favorite records for the assembled egg-noshing, mimosa-sipping masses.

The driving force behind TVS and its Chimera showcase is Dillon Hargrave (aka DJ Dilation).

“I started DJing in Tulsa in 2008,” said Hargrave, “and college in Stillwater a year or two before that. I produced my own music for a long time, then started DJing at dance parties.”

In a stroke of serendipity, Hargrave was looking for something other than dance parties at the same time Rob Stuart (who co-owns Chimera along with Jack Wood) mentioned he was looking for something new to offer patrons on Sundays.

“Since it was on Sunday afternoons, I didn’t want to throw a big dance party in a coffee shop,” Hargrave said. “So I started thinking about going the all-vinyl route. Then I started thinking about a free-for-all where people could bring whatever record they want — but I thought that might get too sloppy, so I settled on a weekly guest.

“To up the ante,” Hargrave added, “I decided to record it and interview the guests for a podcast. That’s something I always wanted to do. It feels more adult than throwing dance parties. But I still like to do that on occasion, don’t get me wrong.”

Hargrave said the general reception to the series has been overwhelmingly positive.

“It’s all been a surprise to be honest,” Hargrave said. “I didn’t really know where I was going with this when I first started. I just ran with it. The biggest surprise has been the response from the community. All these people just want to come out and share their record collections.

“I rely on the community and that’s why I created the Tulsa Vinyl Society. I didn’t want to have my own personal identity attached to it. I wanted people to take ownership of it as a community.  

To listen to Hargrave’s podcast recaps of Chimera’s Sunday Vinyl Brunch, visit mixcloud.com/TulsaVinylSociety