Tag Archives: record stores

Vinyl Road Rage: 21 Record Stores and Counting

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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.

 

Vinyl Road Rage: More Views From the Road

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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…

Vinyl Road Rage: Laurie’s Planet of Sound Chicago, Illinois

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by Joe Wallace

I thought I’d kick off Vinyl Road Rage 4 with a look at a record shop right in my own back yard. Before I get behind the wheel today to hit the road for Bloomington, Indiana, Nashville and points beyond, Laurie’s Planet of Sound definitely deserves a mention.

Laurie’s is literally two blocks away from my place, which makes it very handy to indulge in some early-afternoon record shopping, and I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been to Laurie’s in the past two months when I sorely needed some new, obscure or bizarro vinyl titles to write about for my book in progress WTF Records: The Turntabling Guide To Weird and Wonderful Vinyl.

And that is the real draw for me–Laurie’s carries the usual stuff with plenty of new vinyl across the expected genres plus soundtracks, imports and more. But Laurie’s absolutely excels at bringing in rarities new and used that impresses me no end. In another life, my exposure to neighborhood record stores was rather unimpressive. Since moving to Chicago proper a few years back that’s changed.

But I’ve never been so spoiled as I have been with Laurie’s so close and so well-stocked with awesomeness. I’ve scored Legendary Pink Dots vinyl, Nurse With Wound, the Blacula soundtrack, some very tasty minimal wave titles, and my all-time favorite holy grail find: Punishment of Luxury.

Laurie’s is a must-visit if you come to Chicago for a visit. They carry DVDs including a variety of off-the-beaten-track titles that are just as obsessive-worthy as the vinyl (plenty of Something Weird titles, horror movie trailer collections, drive-in exploitation and other wonderful things), and there’s even a great, eclectic book selection, too.

The shop is friendly, fun to shop, and beware what they are playing on the turntable when you walk in–chances are you’ll be walking out with it before your shopping spree is done or regret NOT buying it when you leave. I had non-buyer’s remorse for AGES after walking out without the album by Social Climbers they were playing. What was I thinking?

This jaded record store blogger HIGHLY recommends Laurie’s Planet of Sound at 4639 N Lincoln in Chicago. And be sure and tell them Turntabling.net sent you. That might make them giggle.

Al Jazeera on Vinyl Records

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by Joe Wallace

I was pleasantly startled to find this video clip posted by Al Jazeera on vinyl records. Having never seen anything of the network at all, I don’t know what I was expecting, but since the majority of the exposure to Al Jazeera in the USA has a lot to do with political, war, and terrorism coverage, I suppose I had an impression that Al Jazeera is more of a breaking news service along the lines of HLN.

But they do features, too. This one is pretty interesting but it’s a bummer that it’s all from an American perspective. I’d love to get a glimpse at the record industries of other countries and what its like to buy or sell vinyl in places Al Jazeera bureaus call home.

The central conceit of this 2011 clip is a bit misguided–it’s really late in the game to say vinyl is making a “comeback”–but overall this is pretty interesting and well-done.



My one question–who is the Jeanne Moos of Al Jazeera? I’d love to see some of those quirky culture style pieces in a completely different cultural context.