Los Angeles, CA | A guide to the best record stores around LA: Here is a comprehensive list to dive into the city’s local crate-digging scene. Amoeba Music is undoubtedly one of the best places to shop for anything music along with their wide selection of movies, books and other merchandise and memorabilia. Many USC students are also likely familiar with shopping at The Last Bookstore in downtown Los Angeles for their books and vinyl. However, there are plenty more smaller brick-and-mortar record stores in the L.A. area that can give students a taste of the local music scene.
London, ON | Downtown record store Grooves expands into Wortley Village: The spirit of a beloved Old South record store will rock on as another longtime London music retailer moves into its space. The spirit of a beloved Old South record store will rock on as another longtime London music retailer moves into its space. Grooves Records is taking over the location of the Village Idiot in Wortley Village, a second store the music retailer is hoping to have up and running in the coming months. “It’s a tried and true, excellent spot,” said Troy Hutchison, owner of Grooves. “The Village Idiot’s lease was up so we’re going to slip into the location. . . . The timing of it all just worked out so perfectly. It just seemed like this was meant to be, that it was the thing to do.” …Filled to the brim with vinyl and bolstered by a loyal customer base, the business had been looking to expand to a new spot, Hutchison said.
Flintshire, UK | VOD record store to host events at Mold Daniel Owen Centre: A popular Flintshire music shop celebrates a milestone this week. VOD record shop, in Mold, marks 15 years, with the VOD record fairs now entering their 19th. 2024 will see a concentration of all their record fairs in Mold. Organiser Colin Trueman said: “We have enjoyed taking the fairs on tour over the years but 2024 offers the opportunity to focus on our home town and bring three events to the Daniel Owen Community Centre in spring, summer and winter. “As always all our events will be free entry and the slightly smaller set up of 18 tables allows us to rotate dealers for each event, and also bring in a new guest dealer for all of the three record fairs. “Such has been the interest, all stalls are fully booked for the year, which just shows the interest from the record dealer community.” All genres and formats will be covered for the events, including vinyl, CDs, cassettes, and memorabilia.
Everett, WA | New Edmonds record shop intends to be a ‘destination for every musician.’ Rachel Gardner opened Musicology Co. this month, filling a record store gap in Edmonds. Rachel Gardner was born in the back of a music shop. Now she’s opening one of her own in Edmonds. Musicology Co. opened Feb. 1 at 420 Fifth Ave. S., Suite 107, the former home of jewelry store Elegant Gems. Her record shop/music boutique houses close to 4,000 records in stock on top of CDs, band merchandise, consignment instruments and anything local artists are selling to support their work, Gardner said. She also plans to open an online store. The 45-year-old Edmonds resident said her shop is about much more than making a profit. She wants it to be “something that honors music in general.” It’s intended to be a place where musicians can connect directly with fans. A wooden platform in one corner serves as a stage for open mics, solo performances and workshops.
Kutztown, PA | Berks County record shop saw boost in sales thanks to Taylor Swift: Before she may make an appearance at the Super Bowl, Taylor Swift is kicking off an exciting next few weeks. The pop star has sold millions of CDs, vinyl records and the like throughout her career. And for Young Ones Records, she’s boosting sales. “We sell pretty much everything to a wide range of age groups,” Young Ones Records owner Chris Holt said. Holt owns the small business nestled in Kutztown. “You never know who’s going to come in here,” he said. From jazz records to indie and pop rock, Young Ones has just about it all — Swift included. “We have had some people cry they were so happy they got the limited edition thing they wanted,” Holt said. The Berks County native is their bestselling artist. “She’s done a lot for indie retail with indie exclusives, and we had ‘Folklore’ CDs signed. We sold over 1,000 of those, which is a crazy, crazy number I mean these days to sell like 10 or 20 CDs,” Holt said.
Phoenix, AZ | Phoenix record stores see uptick in physical music sales: It takes great care and delicacy to play a vinyl record. A person first removes the disc from its plastic film, plugging the record player cord into an outlet before placing the vinyl disc onto the turntable platter. As the disc begins to spin, the tonearm comes out and the needle-like stylus is placed along one of the many grooves. The stylus sends the mechanical vibrations picked up from the disc to the component attached to the tonearm, the cartridge, which then converts the mechanical notes into electrical signals, eliciting the audio from each individual groove wall, as the sweet music captured within is amplified by the speakers. Listening to music on vinyl is almost an art in and of itself—the physicality, a stark contrast to simply pressing play on a streaming service and stepping away from the screen. This “hi-fi” sensation is what some say has fueled the recent uptick in physical album sales.
Milwaukee, WI | A familiar face will take Bullseye Records into its next phase: Milwaukee music fans—and more particularly fans of physical media—know Bullseye Records. The store has its roots in the former Earwaves next to Landmark Lanes, which Luke Lavin bought and turned into Farwell Music in the mid-’90s. In 2006, Lavin moved it a half-mile down the road and renamed it Bullseye. This April, customers will reacquaint themselves once again as the store changes ownership and assumes the name of the street on which it’s located. Yesterday, Lavin announced he was getting out of the business and that Bullseye will close its doors March 31 — but not for long and not before putting it into some capable, experienced hands. East Side record-store staple Terry Hackbarth will partner with friend and musician Don Kurth to operate the store, which will get its grand (re)opening as Irving Place Records on Record Store Day, April 20.
Kansas City, MO | Planet Queen Vintage & Records opens its doors to vinyl, vintage, and vibes: Planet Queen Vintage & Records has an interesting spot to fill. Opening up on 209 W Maple Ave in Independence, it is the only record store. Kimmie Queen, the owner, says it’s the only one in that area filling the market. For those noticing a similarity between the store and that name, that wasn’t entirely intentional. It was actually named after the song “Planet Queen” by T. Rex. The store itself is more than just records though, Queen says, “we really want this to feel like a blast from the past, not just records.” On top of records, the store stocks’ merch, clothes, VHS tapes, and CD’s as well as a few other random things all with a strong vintage feel. …Queen says, “So I work at Seventh Heaven on Troost, and I’m a vinyl DJ. So I’m one of these people that are just constantly hunting.” The selection in the store is the spoils of the hunt, so to speak.
South Bend, IN | Hundreds flip through vinyls at first South Bend Record Show of the year: Hundreds of music lovers came out to the first South Bend Record Show of the year. It was the first of the bi-monthly event, bringing in dozens of vendors from near and far so visitors can take home the best tunes. “We’re seeing younger people come out and getting excited about having physical media for the first time,” says Jeremy Bonfiglio, the Organizer of the South Bend Record Show. Bonfiglio has been organizing the city’s record show for five years, and he says Sunday’s turnout for the first show of the year are numbers he hasn’t seen since pre-pandemic. “We survived, now we’re thriving,” said Bonfiglio. Five hundred people walked through the aisles of bins, flipping through the music of artists past and present. Lots of young faces made up the 500, something that excites longtime collectors.
