Yep. My favorite local record shop is closing next Tuesday (Jan 31st). My weekly visits come to an end. I'm pretty bummed about it. I'm heading there for the last time today. Do you guys have similar stories?
Not yet. Not since Tower and the big Virgin shop in Manhattan shut down. All the little indie shops 'round here seem to be pretty healthy.
That sucks. Don't know the area you live in, but maybe there are alternatives, even if you have to go a little further out. The "up side" is that you may save money because of this, and you can upgrade your equipment, perhaps?
The Virgin megastore at Union Square was a dream come true for this Missouri boy who went to NYU, well over a decade ago. My freshman year was the last year of operation for both Virgin and the original Kim's Video on St. Marks. Glad I at least got the limited time I did. Back then, wireless internet was not yet the ubiquitous thing it is now and there was no Spotify. Coming out of these stores with a stack of CDs you couldn't get in southwest Missouri was a gold rush.
Its sad when record shops close, however as a CD buyer, I haven't bought anything in an actual record shop for a LONG time. Somewhere along the way, most record shops decided to stop stocking one niche product in favour for another, rather than keeping both. At one time I would spend as much, if not more on CD's per year as you guys spend on vinyl, and yet shops didn't/don't want my money. I was in a record store at Christmas time. Phenomenal selection of Jazz vinyl records, but their CD selection in the same genre was poor beyond belief, and that was a reflection of the store in general.
Around here, we've got a few nice record stores, and a few more are within an hour drive. My favorite one, though, sold to another local shop, and I haven't liked it as much. Fortunately, there are still a few choices.
I live in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Sure, there are still plenty of shops, but not like this one... I'm not looking forward to upgrading my equipment now.
saddeest when a store survived the last few years and then closes when things are getting busier again...
Sorry to hear that. It really is a special kind of void, emotionally, when your favorite record shop kicks the bucket. It makes you realize that the connection you had with it was more than you thought it was; like it was more than just a store etc.
Exactly. I know the owners for years and I've learned a lot from them. Also, it's on a bohemian neighborhood and I've met some musicians there as well and they recommended albums to me (Ed Motta, Caetano Veloso...)
My fav store was Music Box...in a beautiful mall Californian-architecture style (fountains,tejas, archs, colorful mexican tiles all over the place). Store was around 1991-1997. Automatic door. To the left new arrivals US CDs in longbox, and another shelf European CDs imports, full wall with posters and a cassette display. To right the counter had replacements for cartridges, cleaning equipment for LPs and CDs (I bought there a Philips automatic CD cleaner which I loved), I saw in the back wall behind the counter Fleetwood Mac's box set The Chain along Dylan, Elton John and many more. A full section for LPs only made in Mexico and also a LAserDisc and VHS shelves, I also remember have seen Mini CDs and DCC...hanging posters from the ceiling, colorful carpet on the floor...some stereo systems for sale (90s mini-combos kenwood style, you know)...a CD-station with headphones where you could check the top 10 sales...cool place... I wasn't around when they closed, but I remember asked to other stores near by and they said there was a full "50%-70% clearence". Damn...it was my fav place to go each saturday as it was payday while in college.
I live in LA, and while Amoeba has yet to close, its relocation signaled a downsize in my eyes. Gone is that glorious back room that had all the classical, jazz, avant garde, world music, cassette tapes. They're definitely playing to the rock // hip hop vinyl crowd that's buying now. I get it, but it's really sad for me.
The final closing of any small, privately owned and operated business is always sad, no matter where and no matter what it sold.
Had a local shop that closed pre-pandemic. Owner just decided to go back to doing live gig work instead. The next closest shop is about half an hour away but way overpriced on everything.
I've seen so many great record shops go under. First the Virgin Megastore went which was a bummer. Then a few years later a couple of great little independents vanished, followed by the best of them all - a place which was packed with CDs in several rooms and they even had a big vinyl section way before the whole revival of the format kicked in (not that I bought any). The building is a luxury hotel now. I still have one great haunt left for used CDs but it's shifting more and more towards DVDs and vinyl. On the good side, it still has a couple of CD players for customers to listen to whatever they want from the racks.
Nothing left in my area of NE Ohio that I know about although I'm willing to listen if anyone has any suggestions.
Happily, my Indie store is still a going concern. Although I have to pay a bit more when shopping there, I try to give them as much business as I can. Helpful, friendly and knowledgeable staff. Would hate to see them go under.
that sucks...I can remember when most of my fav NYC record shops closed. It was terrible. I loved the Village and all the shops I frequented every week for many years..
The ones in my area seem to be sustaining pretty well for which I’m very thankful. Walking into a record store is about more than just “buying a record”. For that half hour or so that I’m in there, it’s like an alternate world which isolates me from all the problems of the “real” world including my own.
