Another video report filed from Austin Texas as part of Vinyl Road Rage. This one focuses on the amazing vinyl find scored at End Of An Ear Records which has become a Vinyl Road Rage favorite in just one visit!
What do sandpaper, album covers, and subversive entertainment have in common? Find out:
More views from the Vinyl Road Rage Austin Texas stop. There were seven fabulous record shops hit in a single day: Waterloo Records, Breakaway Records, Trailer Space Records, Backspin Records (which is sadly closing down soon) the super awesome End Of An Ear, the equally great Friends of Sound, and Antone’s.
I’m sure there are other equally cool shops here in Austin, just haven’t found them yet!
Breakaway Records is firmly into soul, R&B, classic rock, and they have a gigantic selection of 45s, which makes the shop pretty impressive. Add to that their collection of turntables for sale and you have a recipe for greatness. I’m personally no fan of classic rock, but collectors–take note.
One of my new favorite record stores is Friends of Sound. Were they named after a Mission Giant CD? Unknown. But the shop is indeed awesome.
Note the prominently displayed album by The Feederz, “Ever Felt Like Killing Your Boss?” There will be a test later…
There’s nothing like a good scream contest. Just ask Harry Nilsson and John Lennon. Vocal chords are SOOO last century.
Hands down, my all time favorite category for recorded music. EVERY record store should have a group of records in a “Drug Sections” file.
Check those sensitive, singer-songwriter titles…it makes your heart weep with compassion.
by Joe Wallace
If you can’t make out what that sign says, it reads “Welcome to SLACKERVILLE”. Which is only fitting since I am currently reporting from Austin, Texas (home of Richard Linklater and the setting for his breakout pic, Slacker”) and have basically been the anti-slacker ever since hitting the road.
With 21 record stores now visited, Vinyl Road Rage is going like gangbusters. I’ve been reminding people that the individual record store reviews are coming, most likely once I get off the road and settled into a normal routine…but the updates from the journey will keep coming because there are plenty of wonderful discoveries along the way.
Two of my favorite discoveries so far on the trip are located in Austin. End of an Ear Records is a complete treasure, crammed full of rare, obscure, and wonderful vinyl.
I’ve been hearing about The Feederz LP, “Ever Feel Like Killing Your Boss?” for years, but have never seen or heard it until today when I found a copy sitting in the End of An Ear bin waiting for me, complete with its sandpaper cover and all.
Also discovered at End of An Ear, vinyl copies of the From Beyond and Big Trouble In Little China soundtracks, and soooo much more. This shop is a dream for collectors and there’s plenty in the way of both new and used LPs.
Also fairly impressive–the DVD section for both music and genre films. Austin has a rep as being a cinemaphile town, so the really good record shops seem to try to keep pace with that and the standard set by Waterloo Records, which has an exhaustive DVD section along with the vinyl. End of An Ear will please vinyl junkies who also love genre filmmaking.
And then there’s Friends Of Sound Records, which is difficult for a newcomer to find because while it is located on 1704 South Congress in Austin, the entryway is located in the alley—there’s no sign on the main sidewalk to let you know a great, eclectic and friendly indie record store is lurking there. But rest assured, friends, it DOES exist and IS worth a stop.
Friends of Sound Records had some wonderful, bizarre and obscure titles including a Polish New Wave record, a copy of the ultra-collector-riffic Cross and the Switchblade soundtrack in the budget bin, and plenty of other highly collectible weirdness.
My assumption is that because of their location they probably need a bit more support than other, more visible indie shops. Maybe I’m wrong about that, I have no idea, but I can tell you this–I will ALWAYS stop in this place when I’m in Austin. I did very well there and would NEVER pass it up if I had the opportunity to go. VISIT THIS SHOP, folks.
After these two discoveries, I totally geeked out and ate at the infamous Guero’s, which was featured in Tarantino’s Death Proof. Naturally the place looks completely different in many ways than in the film, but you can see where many of the scenes took place and it was a cine-nerd cheap thrill to eat there. So many of my friends hated this movie, but not me….
There are loads more updates coming, I just need to find time to get it all down. Video coming again soon, too.
More views from Vinyl Road Rage Four. I have more from-the-road reports to file, including a look at Denton, Texas record shops, Dallas, Austin and much more. I’m still out on the road–currently reporting from Austin, Texas where there are a TON of shops to hit. It’s bee a very good vinyl buying trip so far and there’s more to come.
The mighty Waterloo Records in Austin, Texas–rated by several publications as one of the top ten record shops in the country, and with GOOD REASON. They are basically massive and awesome.
Waterloo has a staggering amount of vinyl in every category—and plenty of rarities hiding in these stacks–you gotta dig to find the good stuff.
At Mad World Records in Denton–very new and hip. Not a hell of a lot of vinyl, but I’m sure that will change soon. I HOPE it will change soon! Loads and LOADS of CDs for sale. The vinyl for sale there was a mix of old and new and the selection was pretty decent in spite of the small size of the collection.
At Good Records in Dallas–APTLY NAMED, I must say–wall to wall with thousands of titles–mostly new records, too. There is a small used section which was kind of underwhelming, but those new titles? WOW. Impressive. And this shop has a huge (for a record store) stage for live shows.
An amazing uber-limited edition soundtrack LP for Maniac by William Lustig starting Joe Spinell. WOW. I scored with this one. Only 500 made…
