Wouldn’t you know it; I didn’t find out until late in the day that yesterday (April 18) was Record Store Day, supporting and highlighting independent music stores around the world.
A bit of scrambling to write a blog post anyway seems justified, since I’ve spent glorious travel moments poking through vinyl, tapes and CDs in small record stores from Guatemala to Hong Kong to France.
Before anyone had heard of them, I bought my first Gipsy Kings cassette tape in a tiny shop in Villefranche-sur-Mer (yep, it still works; it’s my tape player that keeps dying.)
Here are indie record store recommendations from two of the three Perceptive Travel blog authors – Antonia is waiting for Book Store Day!
Austin, Texas (from Sheila)
Stop in to Waterloo Records (you can also shop there online) for a huge selection of music in all genres, plus an extensive section for Austin- and Texas-based musicians. The Employee Picks are always intriguing.
You can also buy tickets to local music concerts, which in Austin means a pretty amazing selection of shows.
Waterloo is famous for its In-Stores; mini-concerts in the store by artists who are supporting their CD releases.
Sometimes fans get lucky with surprise appearances, like when Willie Nelson showed up to jam with Ray Benson and Asleep at the Wheel.
Wellington, New Zealand (from Liz)
In a time when the local record shop is almost a dying breed, here in Wellington vinyl fans can still buy up big at Cuba Street’s Slow Boat Records.
Sandwiched between other unique, quirky and obscure shops featuring artists, tattooists, cafes, fashion designers and sex shops, Slow Boat Records has been supplying Wellingtonians with an eclectic selection of new and second hand CDs and vinyl records since 1985.
The Wellington-based Texture blog has more about Slow Boat, the old school record store.
There’s also a detailed PDF case study about Cuba Street’s redevelopment in Wellington.
Funky shops like Slow Boat are leading the way to more than just music.
Your Town Here (from You)
Do you have a favorite independent record store? Please tell us about it in the comments below….
Kiss the Sky, my local independent record store, is in Geneva, IL, a far west suburb of Chicago. Geneva is just a few miles north of Aurora, the town made famous by the movie Wayne’s World.
Kiss the Sky’s 60s ambience is a great escape from homogenized suburbia: great tunes on the sound system, crates of vinyl records ready for the picking, thousands of new and used CDs, and Steve, one of the owners, almost always behind the counter chatting with customers about rock ‘n roll history, or history in the making.
Like Waterloo Records, Kiss the Sky sponsors in-store concerts and features work of local bands. They also offer custom orders and searches for rare out-of-print releases. Visit them online at http://www.kissthesky.net.
Hi Lanora,
What a great suggestion – I’ll be in Chicago for SOBCon and wish I had time to make a run out in that direction. Of course, then I’d have to get it all back into my carry-on suitcase (or go find a Pack ‘n Wrap to mail it home!)
As a former music biz exec and, by default, music collector, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention one of the best record stores in the country: Grimey’s in Nashville. Being in Music City, they seem to have a performance going on every day or two and there’s a club owned by the same guy downstairs. How cool is that? Long live music on physical discs–and cover art! My wife bought me a record player for my birthday last month, so I’m feeling especially retro…
QUIMPER SOUND at 230 Taylor Street in Port Townsend, Washington is a delightful record store. A repository of both popular and eclectic CDs and vinyls with a very knowledgeable staff. They also have posters, a coffee bar and free wireless. Established in 1974, they are one of Washington’s oldest independent record stores. A geat place! Also at: http://www.quimpersound.com
Kiss the Sky’s 60s ambience is a great escape from homogenized suburbia: great tunes on the sound system, crates of vinyl records ready for the picking, thousands of new and used CDs, and Steve, one of the owners, almost always behind the counter chatting with customers about rock ‘n roll history, or history in the making.