Category Archives: vinyl road rage

RamaLama Records, Toledo OH

Record Shops, , , , ,

There are a few shops I haven’t seen in Toledo yet, but of the main choices, (Allied Record Exchange, Culture Clash and RamaLama) this is hands down Toledo, Ohio’s finest purveyor of vinyl, out there CDs and DVDs. Indie rockers take note, RamaLama Records has an upstairs stage for small, intimate in-store performances and a very customer-friendly layout. I ama huge fan of this place, having discovered the hyper-bizarre (read: excellent) comp, Prog Is Not A Four Letter Word, at random while browsing there. You can also find superfreak releases such as a vinyl pressing of Aleister Crowley reciting black mass, and my current favorite, From The Kitchen To The Garage, a compilation of Dutch girl group singles from the 1960s. Great stuff.

They buy, sell and trade and aren’t shy about putting on any freakish thing you want to hear on the overhead. I was treated to The Shaggs, and it was fantastic watching the entire store collectively CRINGE.

If you pass through Toledo, do NOT pass up the chance to shop RamaLama. This store is exactly what an indie shop ought to be. They have vinyl on display above the CD racks, but there’s a large and tasty collection of albums upstairs. Just make sure you get there before the bands start playing to browse…

Fugazi Seven Songs EP

EP, Record Shops, , , , ,

Don’t ask me how I discovered this…let’s simply say that I was surprised to learn that Hot Topic is not only still selling vinyl records–I thought they’d give this up ages ago– to kids with daddy’s credit card and a penchant for S&M imagery/mass-marketed faux rebellion, but here they are selling Fugazi records. I was certain this goth-for-trust-fund-kids chain would be knee-deep in the Cookie Monster Metal and Death Cab For Cutie stuff and nothing more. Imagine my shock to find the 7 Songs EP 12-inch vinyl listed on the website for just under eight bucks.

That discovery led to a much better one. I hit paydirt with this excellent blog, Hardcore For Nerds, which features this entry on the aforementioned Fugazi vinyl. I thought I was alone among people who liked Fugazi but felt the earliest stuff was the most interesting. I have not guzzled the kool-aid on all hardcore, but I do love much of the stuff from the first and second waves. Minor Threat, The Descendants, Fear, Black Flag, early NoFX, there’s too much to name. I could never be one of those people who always seemed to populate any zip code I happened to live in–the types who listened to hardcore and little else. How boring indeed. But I digress.

Hardcore For Nerds is a very worthy read and I’m pleased to have found it. Nice work, youze.

Waterloo Records, Austin Texas

Record Shops, , ,

Anyone who’s been reading this blog for a while knows I like to spread the love about great places to buy vinyl, so let me introduce you to one of my all time favorites. Waterloo Records in Austin, Texas is a pure joy. I’ve dropped a small fortune in this place, much of it on dub, Morricone, and obscure oddities like the Japanese rockabilly-at-pain-threshold-volumes madmen Guitar Wolf.

Waterloo has an online store, sure. But it’s nowhere as much fun as pawing through the stacks of wax. The CD selection is completely off the chart as well…you’ll find that barely-heard Isaac Hayes disco attack Groove-a-Thon alongside the original motion picture soundtrack for What Are Those Strange Drops of Blood Doing On Jennifer’s Body? (Really.) It’s a delight. And best of all–for you non-vinyl buyers–is the wall of employee picks.

Electronica and moody dance music fans won’t be disappointed in the vinyl selection any more than the classic punk lover or 90s indie heads. There’s so much variety here between new and used…King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown was one of my all time vinyl finds at Waterloo–I spotted it out of the corner of my eye while fondling The Faint’s Danse Macabre LP.

Make a special trip to Austin and spend all your money at Waterloo–hold just enough back to eat at Stubbs BBQ, but you could max out your plastic if you’re inclined. Get directions to Waterloo from where you’re at, or just Google 600 N. Lamar, Austin TX 78703.

RecordStoreFinder.com

Blogs, Record Shops, , ,

A quote from RecordStoreReview says it all:”There’s nothing better than finding a new store to search through.” Those are the words of RSR webmaster Gunnar Van Vliet, and I couldn’t have put it better. RecordStoreReview.com has listings for more than 1600 record stores in 53 countries including Iceland, Canada, and Greece. Since 2002, RecordStoreReview has user reviews to complement this listings–always a good thing. Funniest listing was from the dude who wrote “I would bang all three owners of Hyde Park Records.”

Just to see if RecordStoreReview was full of it or not, I looked up my all-time, hands-down favorite record shop in the USA (since 33 Degrees in Austin closed, that is…). Lo and behold, the reviews for Dusty Groove America say what I’ve known for a long time. Dusty Groove is the best! Check them out online, but I beg of you do not buy up all the Easy Tempo albums before I’ve had a chance to fill the gaps in my collection. Leave a FEW left over, eh?

Back to RSR, this is a GREAT idea and I am shocked that I’m just now discovering it. Great site. The best use for this site I can think of? Prepping for overseas travel. The next time you think about hopping a plane for Germany, France, Iceland, Japan, do yourself a favor and check this site out—many stores have maps or you can use Google Maps to find your way to the treasure trove.