Amoeba LA to close?

Discussion in 'Music, Movie and Hardware Store Guide' started by zakyfarms, Sep 12, 2016.

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  1. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    All spot on. I've never sold any used vinyl there because I've assumed it's the last place in town that would price fairly. Amoeba doesn't seem to have anyone like the owners of Freakbeat or Atomic, who know what they're doing.
     
    mikeyt and Matt Starr like this.
  2. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    Totally agree with you. Too many crap reissues mixed in with the old vinyl. There were many a times when I would go to the Toto section to see if they had a used copy of their first or fourth album only to be greeted with 180-gram reissues of those albums.

    I was able to find some stuff for good prices (like the Somewhere in England George Harrison bootleg for $25 when it's much more valuable and it was the version with the "promo" labels, so even more rarer) and then there are things that are way too overpriced ($20 for a used copy of George Harrison's eponymous album and some Beatles Capitol picture sleeves for $25+ with the record. They have the Tollie Love Me Do with PS for $75 right now on their wall). I also dislike how they tape the long ends of their plastic sleeves on some of the more expensive items when I'm trying to check the condition of the record or inner sleeve.

    And I sympathize with you on the return desk. I've picked up some horrible sounding 7" singles once and I was extremely worried when I went to go return them because they shouldn't be selling distorted, trash records since they were 1.99 and their return limit is $2. I was able to return them though and I also was able to return this record with a big warp and they also accepted it.
     
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  3. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    Atomic Records in Burbank? How is it over there? It's a town over from me but every time I feel like going record shopping I go to my usuals in Glendale, Pasadena and Echo Park.
     
  4. audiomixer

    audiomixer As Bald As The Beatles

    I beg to differ. That building is not iconic in the least. It's a big stucco eyesore. It never did look good or fit the neighborhood.
    Trust me, with rents in Hollywood going up in price by the minute, if they plan to stay anywhere in the area, it will have to be a massive downsize.
     
  5. StevenC

    StevenC SUEDE > Both Oasis AND Blur.

    it feels like that to you because you must stay in the A-Z section. All the used vinyl is in the recent releases section. And, there's so much foot traffic that used stuff doesn't stick around... And last i checked, Urban Outfitters didn't carry every indie artist, albums from England, etc. Sounds like people need better jobs and more income because cheap record stores will NOT persist. Basic business. Can't pay a business lease by selling $2 records.

    Also, there was a golden age of cheap vinyl buying when the industry was into downloads and CDs. This was because vinyl was a mere novelty. It's no longer a novelty. It's a real medium for listening to music. The days of cheap vinyl IN GOOD condition are over. Ratty old covers and poorly kept vinyl? Sure. A nice copy of Wish You Were Here for $15? No way.
     
    Last edited: Aug 10, 2017
    jhm likes this.
  6. Matt Starr

    Matt Starr Forum Troglodyte

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    That's very cool that they accepted your returns. There are a couple of nice guys leftover that work that desk who are reasonable and don't lecture guys for bringing things back.
     
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  7. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    No, I go straight to the two recent arrivals sections in front and back, and I do find good things from time to time, but the used stock does go very quickly as you say. I rarely buy new releases or reissues on vinyl. If I mainly shopped at Amoeba I might agree with you on the golden age of buying used vinyl being over, but there are about a dozen stores much more to my taste from Highland Park down to Torrance. My nice copy of Wish You Were Here (US Harry Moss pressing) was $22 about a year ago (at Atomic in Burbank).
     
  8. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Atomic is well worth the trip - always well stocked, and while NM copies of the usual desirable suspects can be a little pricey, VG+ copies can sometimes be a bargain there. It's like Rockaway Records in Silver Lake but better priced. Great jazz section in addition to rock.

    Is Mono Records your usual in Glendale, and Permanent Records the one in Echo Park? Permanent has two stores in Highland Park as well which, along with the ramen place a block away, are well worth the trip.
     
    SixOClockBoos likes this.
  9. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    Well, it is an old building, but it looks unique. It reminds of of something out of The Jetsons.

    I can see them downsizing, especially in light of the CDs decline in sales. And, do they really need that upstairs for video?
     
    Last edited: Aug 10, 2017
  10. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    I would imagine the cost of operating in that space may have tripled or quadrupled since their last lease was signed.
     
    Grant likes this.
  11. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    Yeah the guy I got at the counter was very polite. He even let me return a copy of No More Lonely Nights I bought there the same day I bought everything else I returned. That was the first time I bought something without remembering that I already owned it.
     
  12. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    I'll have to go check out Atomic very soon then. I really like what Rockaway has, so I'll be keen to see what they got over there.

    As for my usuals, I just found out about Mono Records in Glendale a week ago, so that will quickly become one of my most frequent ones I'll be visiting since it's currently the closest store to me. And Rockaway isn't in Echo Park? I guess I should have paid attention to where the border between Echo Park and Silverlake is since I thought getting off the 2 in any direction is considered Echo Park. My usual in Pasadena, in case you were wondering, is Poo-Bah (right next to the Guitar Center). They have some really nice priced 7" records, which is what i'm mainly purchasing now. Some have little to no background noise and their asking price is 99 cents on them. They have a test player by the 7" so you can test out how they sound before you buy them, which is something all record stores should have. Not sure if a giant store like Amoeba have some, though I never bothered to ask anyone there.

    Also, thanks for the recommendation about Permanent Records and their stores. I'll also have to check them out. I'll also have to add Freakbeat to my list too.
     
  13. StevenC

    StevenC SUEDE > Both Oasis AND Blur.

    Rockaway is a mixed bag. New CDs as low as $2.99. Used LPs from $10.00 to the Beatles Butcher Cover original for a ton. Rockaway seems to get the labels' promo copies too. Nice store but if you're going looking for your fave indie band on vinyl, they probably won't have it. Def worth a trip once a month though...
     
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  14. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Rockaway is close to Echo Park but a few blocks on the Silver Lake side, easy to confuse if you're heading south on the 2 :). Mono used to be a few blocks further south on Glendale Blvd. until moving to Glendale (very close to Eagle Rock) several months ago. The Permanent on Sunset in Echo Park isn't nearly as good as their Highland Park stores.
     
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  15. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    Yeah I plan on going there every month to month and a half to see what they got in their record bins, though I surprised myself each time I was there for my last three visits (all within a week) and found new items I didn't see before in the 7" section.
     
  16. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    Highland Park over Echo Park. Gotcha. Also, the vibe of Mono records seems like it was a very new store and looked empty when I went inside. I thought they moved in really recently since it looked like the space they're working with on the inside could accommodate a lot more records, but it turns out they've been there since February.
     
  17. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    If you like Mono Records, take a drive down to Record Recycler in Torrance, corner of Crenshaw & Artesia. It's got about 10x the stock in a similarly sized space. The owner of Mono was apparently something of a protege of the owner of RR, it's the same mix of great titles, blah titles, low prices and condition all over the place. Plenty of 45s.
     
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  18. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    Definitely will have to go check that place out. Sounds very promising. Thank you.
     
    Marc Perman likes this.
  19. I liked Atomic, but I found more stuff to my liking (both CD and vinyl) at CD Trader just up the street. They even had a bunch of Audio-Fidelity stuff.
     
  20. alexpop

    alexpop Power pop + other bad habits....

    Close:
    Why did CEX close in the US, apparently US.Webuy.com was going for ten years ?
     
  21. mikeyt

    mikeyt Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    Interesting. I walked into the Highland Park store, in it's original location, once and never went back. The store was filled with LPs listed at $25 and up and would've been $5 or less at most other places b/c of condition. At one point of browsing I thought I'd found a Van Morrison album I'd been wanting but when I pulled it out, half of the front cover art was missing. It was just the raw cardboard. Price? $18. At my usual stops (Freakbeat, Atomic, Rockaway) this would've been in the dollar bin if they had taken it all.

    Has it gotten better? I was peeved when Wombleton went under b/c it's right across the street.
     
  22. Marc Perman

    Marc Perman Forum Resident

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    I'm a regular at Freakbeat, Atomic, and Rockaway too and I like Permanent as well. I've only been going for a little over a year, the main issue is sometimes condition more than price, but I've founds lots of things there in nice shape that don't often turn up elsewhere (random examples: NM first two NY Dolls albums for $20 each, NM Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me for $30, etc.). They now have a second store across the street on York Ave. Most importantly, Silver Lake Ramen is a block away.
     
    StevenC likes this.
  23. thesisinbold

    thesisinbold Forum Resident

    Location:
    Camarillo, Ca, USA
    I went there on Sunday and there was a 25 cent "heath care" charge put on my order designed to help pay for their workers benefits. Weird.
     
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  24. SixOClockBoos

    SixOClockBoos The Man On The Flaming Pie

    My friend met the owner of Permanent Records while he was helping him with DMV related work at the AAA he works in. The owner told him to come visit the store on the following Friday so he can browse the selection and get a discount. I went along for the ride and when we rolled up to the Echo Park location, it was closed at 2pm, while they say they're open from 12pm. Classy...we went to Amoeba instead that day...
     
  25. StevenC

    StevenC SUEDE > Both Oasis AND Blur.

    That's awful.

    Someone in a previous post mentioned Mono. Is that the record store at the end of a small strip mall in Glendale with cramped parking? If so, that place sucks.

    I like when there is used stuff - - but this place (If I am thinking of the right place) looked like the guy just accumulated records from Goodwills, giveaways, and estate sales and stuck them in the store, pricing as though the condition didn't matter. A record worth $20 in VG+ or better shape shouldn't be $20 if in Fair shape with the name "Jimmy" written on the back in Sharpie. Hate places like this but I suppose they're good for someone who doesn't consider the sleeve to be art and just cares about the music. Where, on the other hand, at Rockaway, I found a few, great original Japanese imports for reasonable prices. I got that non-UK Madness compilation that featured "Our House" in Near Mint Shape for $12 and Pink Floyd "The Final Cut", original Japan issue, Excellent+ both with NM Obis for $25.00. Not saying everyone has to get near mint Japanese imports but I like having the option. That's what I love about Rockaway; that's what I love about Amoeba's "recent arrivals" section and the records on the wall. Those who bitch that they only have new and re-issues seem to stick to the A-Z section
     
    SixOClockBoos likes this.
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