Vinyl Shops in Tokyo, Japan and Japan in General

Looks like a great haul!

Where did you go this time?

 

disk union shinjuku mainstore,used store,heavy metal,soul blue.
tower record shinjuku
disk union shibuya mainstore
disk union ochanomizu jazz,heavy metal,mainstore
recofan shibuya

it' s a happy time in freezing and raining tokyo.

 

Ah some of my favorite stores too! I've never been to the Shibuya main store, usually I visit the cramped basement jazz/soul store.

Not enough time for me to slowly browse thru' the stacks in Recofan though.

 

I live in Sapporo and one of the Book Offs does have an LP section.

In fact I nabbed this lot for 100 yen each:



I go down to Tokyo about once a year for a 3-day cheapo bin scab.

Shinjuku/Shibuya, Shimokita, Kichijoji (great)
Ochanomizu (not so great - although the 2F DU metal store is pretty nuts)

Last years damage was 323 lp's, cd's, 7"s, 8"s & 10"s.

103,630 YEN

some of em' (ABBA, BEATLES etc) I bought to flip on eBay)

9 SHOCKS TERROR mobile 7 200
324 soulwinter 7 300
1000 HOMO DJ'S supernaut 12 100
A FLOCK OF SEAGULLS listen LP 200
ABBA head over 7 200
ACROSTIX dear LP 300
AGAINST ME! crime 7 300
AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED pcp torpedo 6" 300
AGATHOCLES razor LP 300
ALL OUT WAR truth LP 300
ALLISTER guilty CD 100
ARMITAGE SHANKS takin LP 400
ART OF NOISE dragnet 7 200
ART OF NOISE in no sense LP 100
ARTIMUS PYLE ****ed LP 425
ARTIMUS PYLE/CROW 7 100
ARTIMUS PYLE/CROW 7 100
AUTECHRE peel LP 500
BAD COMPANY boblingen LP 300
BAND best LP 100
BAR-KAYS best lp 450
BATS/SONGS 7 450
BAUER BROS ragged 7 100
BAUHAUS telegram 12 560
BAUHAUS bela 12 765
BAUHAUS in a flat field LP 900
BEACH BOYS little honda 7 200
BEACH BOYS deluxe LP 480
BEATLES yellow submarine/taxman 7 300
BEATLES yellow submarine 7 200
BEATLES strawberry fields 7 200
BEATLES paperback writer 7 300
BEATLES a hard days night 7 200
BEATLES i should have known better 7 200
BEATLES yesterday 7 200
BEATLES rock and roll music 7 200
BETA BAND los amigos 12 500
BILLY CHILDISH AND SEXTON MING cheeky LP 500
BLOOD BROTHERS ambulance 7 170
BOB DYLAN times LP 800
BOOKER T and MG'S best LP 500
BORN BAD ***** music 7 100
BOTCH john birch 7 600
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN born in usa 7
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN do i have to LP 300
BUFF MEDWAYS into your 7 200
BUZZCOCKS are everythin 12 500
BUZZCOCKS different LP 350
CC SAGER fats LP 100
CABARET VOLTAIRE voice LP 300
CABARET VOLTAIRE red mecca LP 500
CAN tago mago CD 600
CAN future days CD 800
CARPETTES live LP 400
CAPITALIST CASUALTIES/ULCER 7 300
CAVE IN jupiter CD 100
CAVE IN/CHILDREN 7 400
CHEATER SLICKS bats LP 600
CHRIS KNOX seizure LP 1000
COALESCE on their behalf 7 300
COFFINS/WARHAMMER 10 630
COFFINS/OTESANEK LP 600
COIL tainted 12 810
CORRUPTED/GRIEF 7 1000
CORRUPTED/ENEMY SOIL 7 700
CRAMPS songs the lord LP 450
CRIME AND THE CITY SOLUTION paradise LP 700
CPC GANGBANGS pic disk 7 300
CURSIVE/SILVER SCOOTER 10 425
CZUKAY, WOBBLE etc CD 400
DANSE SOCIETY heaven LP 100
DAVID JACKMAN flag 7 100
DAVID THOMAS sound LP 780
DEAD NATION painless 7 100
DEATHREAT reason 7 100
DEATHREAT runs 7 100
DIGITAL LEATHER monologue LP 255
DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN w/MIKE PATTON CD 100
DIRE STRAITS lady writer 7 200
DIRE STRAITS so far away 7 200
DIRE STRAITS your latest trick 7 200
DISCORDANCE AXIS ulterior LP 100
DISCORDANCE AXIS/CAPITALIST CASUALTIES 7 3OO
DISCORDANCE AXIS/DEF MASTER 7 100
DISCORDANCE AXIS/PLUTOCRACY 7 100
DISCORDANCE AXIS/PLUTOCRACY 7 100
DOOBIE BROTHERS long train 7 180
DOOBIE BROTHERS minute 7 200
DR FEELGOOD let it roll lP 100 200
DURITTI COLUMN amigos LP 300
E TOWN CONCRETE/SECOND TO NONE 7 300
EARTHMOVER/FACEDOWN 7 100
EASTERHOUSE contenders 12 100
EASTERN YOUTH LP 500
EASTERN YOUTH 7 180
EASTERN YOUTH 7 170
ECHO AND BUNNYMEN silver 7 200
ECHO AND BUNNYMEN back of love 7 100
EIGHTEEN VISIONS no time 7 300
ELVIS COSTELLO watching detectives 7 400
ENVY/THIS MACHINE KILLS 7 100
ENVY angels curse CD 300
ENVY angels curse CD 300
EUGENIUS womb 7 100
EURYTHMICS whos that girl 7 200
EXTREME NOISE TERROR/SLANG 7 500
FALL rough trade singles box CD 700
FAXED HEAD tire ep 300
FAXED HEAD show pride 7 300
FEAR now youre dead 7 100
FEAR the record LP 500
FLEETWOOD MAC rumours LP 400
FLEETWOOD MAC seven wonders 7 200
FLEETWOOD MAC tusk 7 200
FLEETWOOD MAC ittle lies 7 200
FLEETWOOD MAC you make loving fun 7 200
FIX vengeance 7 500
FORMER MEMBERS OF ALFONSIN/SAWPIT 7 100
FRANCOISE HARDY ma LP 400
FROM ASHES RISE s/t 7 160
FORWARD while you alive CD 100
****FACE dont hate 7 100
GARY NUMAN TUBEWAY ARMY peel LP 500
GAUNT sob LP 600
GENESIS mama 7 100
GENITAL HOSPITAL eyes LP 100
GENOA we got a bomb 7 100
GITS live LP 100
GOATLORD reflections LP 700
GOOD RIDDANCE gidget 7 100
GREEN DAY insomniac CD 100
GRIEVED 7 100
GUITAR WOLF missile me CD 100
GUNDELLA hour LP 100
HALLRAKER she 7 100
HAWKWIND motorway city 7 420
HELLNATION/SINK 7 100
HOT WATER MUSIC/RYDELL 7 500
HOT WATER MUSIC you can take 7 300
HOT WATER MUSIC you can take 7 300
HOVERCRAFT zero 7 100
IAN MITCHELL BAND suddenly 7 200
INEPSY see you 7 100
INEPSY see you 7 300
IN/HUMANITY/BONESCRATCH 7 300
IN/HUMANITY history CD 100
INTEGRITY/PSYWARFARE 7 300
JJ CALE special edition LP 500
JANE WIEDLIN rush 7 200
JAPAN gentlemen 7 200
JACUZZI BOYS ghost 7 100
JEFF HEALEY Angel 7 200
JOE COCKER whiter shade 7 100
JOE COCKER whiter shade 7 100
JOE WALSH space age 7 200
JOHN FOXX metamatic LP 100
JOHN LENNON imagine 7 270
JULIAN COPE charlotte 12 100
KISS alive LP 500
KISS dynasty LP 500
KNUCKLEHEAD 7 100
LAIBACH jesus christ superstars CD 200
LARM pandemonium LP 400
LED ZEPPELIN coda LP 800
LES SAVY FAV rodeo 7 100
LESS THEN JAKE making fun 10 300
LESS THEN JAKE/SPROCKET WHEEL 7 270
LESS THEN JAKE/SPROCKET WHEEL 7 300
LEVEL 42 pursuit LP 100
LIBERATE meaningful 7 100
LIVE FAST DIE/LOVER 7 100
LIGHTNING BOLT hypermagic CD 300
LIGHTNING BOLT/GUITAR WOLF CD 100
LLOYD COLE brand new friend 7 200
LOUDNESS let it go 7 200
MAD 3 space biker 7 300
MAD CAPSULE MARKETS midi flexi 300
MADONNA dress you up 7 300
MARKED MEN/THIS IS MY FIST 7 300
MASAMI TSUCHIYA tokyo ballet 7 200
MASTODON/ZZ TOP 7 420
MATERIAL memory LP 300
MERCURY REV yerself is steam CD 420
MEKONS rock LP 100
MICK HARVEY & ANITA LAND 7 100
MILHOUSE/52X 7 100
MOB 47 ep 300
MOGWAI/DWEEB 7 100
MORNING AGAIN/25 TA LIFE 7 100
MOUNTAIN GOATS letter 7 200
MUDHONEY this gift LP 300
MUDHONEY/DAVIE ALLAN 7 300
MURPHYS LAW/DROOP 7 100
MUSTANG groly 7 300
NEU! LP 900
NICK CAVE mercy seat 12 100
NIGHTMARE refugee 7 300
NIMROD/ROUGHAGE & MASONNA 7 100
NIMROD/ROUGHAGE & MASONNA 7 100
NOFX punk in druglic LP 300
NOMEANSNO would we be alive 12 500
NURSE WITH WOUND termie 7 600
OFFSPRING self esteem 7 300
OFF WITH THEIR HEADS live at atlantic VOL ii 7 300
OPERATION IVY hectic 7 300
OMD metroland LP 100
OMD telegraph 7 200
OMD secret 7 200
OMD souvenir 7 200
oval/titlwheel 170
PAINTBOX cry of the sheeps CD 100
PARLIAMENT trombipulation LP 600
PASTELS different drum 7 300
PERE UBU slow walking 7 100
PETE TOWNSEND magic bus 7 200
PINK FLOYD another brick 540
PINK FLOYD one of these days 7 700
POPUL VUH hosianna/in den CD 540
PRIMAL SCREAM miss 12 100
PROPAGANDHI/FYP 7 300
QUEEN i want to break free 7 200
RADIOHEAD lost trax vol 1 LP 720
RAINBOW down LP 300
RAMONES blitzkrieg bop 7 1800
RAPEMAN two nuns LP 800
RAWTERS 7 300
RAZORS EDGE ****ed up ep 300
RESIDENTS duck stab LP 800
RICHARD AND THE TAXMEN now 7 100
RICHENEL LP 100
RIP OFFS go away 7 300
ROCKET FROM THE CRYPT bad ninja 7 300
ROLLING STONES ultra rare trax vol 6 CD 200
ROLLING STONES we love you/dandelion 7 500
ROLLING STONES satisfaction 7 900
ROSE ROSE private 7 400
ROYAL HEADACHE CD 300
ROYAL TRUX accelerator LP 510
RUFUS at midnight 7 200
RYUICHI SAKAMOTO end of asia LP
SAINTS stranded LP 500
SANTANA welcome 7 200
SCHOOL OF SEVEN BELLS disconnect CD 300
SCREAMIN MEE MEES 7 300
SCREAMING FAT RAT/8 ROOF 7 100
SENSEFIELD on your own 7 200
SENSEFIELD building LP 800
SEX GANG CHILDREN beasts LP 280
SHAI HALUD/INDECISION 10 400
SHOCKWAVE warpath 7 300
SICK OF IT ALL scratch 7 100
SICK OF IT ALL potential 7 100
SHONEN KNIFE pretty LP 600
SHOWCASE SHOWDOWN permanent LP 600
SIMPLE MINDS sons LP 400
SLANT 6 what kind 7 300
SLOWMOTIONS 7 300
SMALLTOWN/PRACTICE 7 100
SMALLTOWN/THE CRUMP 7 240
SMOG held CDEP CD 180
SONIC YOUTH shaking hell 7 400
SONIC YOUTH warpower 7 300
SPACESHITS misbehavin LP 500
SPAZZ/FLOOR 7 500
STAINS john wayne 7 240
STAR CLUB saturday 8" 100
STATICS pinball 10 300
STEEL POLE BATHTUB venus 7 100
STORM AND STRESS LP 280
STRUNG OUT/JUGHEADS REVENGE 7 100
STUPIDS retard LP 600
SUNN/BORIS altar CD 600
SUPERCHARGER dont mess 7 300
SUPERCHARGER dont mess 7 400
SUPERCHARGER dont mess 7 500
SURFARIS point panic 7 200
SUZANNE VEGA solitude LP 300
SUZANNE VEGA toms diner 7 300
SUZANNE VEGA gypsy 7 200
SWAHILI BLONDE psycho LP 100
TANGERINE DREAM white LP 300
TEAR IT UP/FAST TIMES 7 160
TELEVISION adventure LP 900
TELEVISION PERSONALITIES how i learned LP 420
TELEVISION PERSONALITIES bike 7 300
THE THE gravitate box 100
THINKING FELLERS UNION where'S officer LP 100
THIS MORTAL COIL it'LL end LP 400
THROWDOWN taking control 7 100
THROWDOWN taking control 7 300
TINA TURNER proud mary 7 200
TRANS AM illegal 12 300
TRANS AM future LP 1620
TUMOR CIRCUS swine flu 12 100
TYVEK blessed 7 300
U2 war LP 500
U2 under a blood LP 400
UNHOLY GRAVE/BOLTSTEIN 7 100
UNHOLY GRAVE tortured 10 100
UNSANE attack on Japan CD 600
USUALS i'll keep 7 100
VAN HALEN pretty woman 7 420
WARHEAD lost self 7 350
WEDDING PRESENT nobodys 7 300
WHO summertime blues 7 800
WHO live at leeds LP 720
WHITE STRIPES dead leaves 7 400
WHITNEY HOUSTON love will 7 200
WIM MERTENS a man LP 100
WIRE legendary manchester 12 350
WITCHES WITH DICKS american 7 100
WORLD BURNS TO DEATH/SLANG 300
WORLD BURNS TO DEATH no dawn 7 100
WORMWOOD starvation LP 630
YAZOO nobody's 12 100
V/A DISCHARGED 7 270
V/A GOT DRUNK MORE 7 240
V/A NAPALM DEATH/UNSANE/NEUROSIS 7 100
V/A DOPE GUNS VOL 8 7" 500
V/A READ ARMY FACTION 7 180
V/A SPRINGTIME IN BELSEN LP 400
V/A KILLED BY DEATH 3 LP 400
V/A NEW BRITISH WAVE LP 100
V/A JAPAN IN DECLINE LP 100

Chiba DU was well worth the trek.

would like to try Jimbocho next time.

Recofan in Shibuya did nothing for me. Default pricing of 980 yen = no real cheapos.

would like to get out to the Nakano DU branch next time although its a bit far? Anyone ever been to this?

 

the Nakano DU is medium sized, right behind the Sun Plaza, 2 blocks ekimai,
I don't ever seem to find anything good there......so this record fare is held in that little alleyway
in the covered shopping area? Will have to check it out, my daughter will be going to Juku right by
there every Sunday, so I'll be going every week...

 

In case you are interested in record shopping in Tokyo, here is a partial list;

Shinjuku

Virgin Megastore -- imports -- 10:00-23:00
3353-0056 -- Shinjuku 3-1-13

Good soul and funk sections. This new (2001) branch has better prices than the former location in Marui. The basement and first floors can be very noisy, with lots of competing music sources playing simultaneously.

Disk Union -- used and imports -- 11:00-20:00 (Sundays till 19:00) no holidays
3352-2691 -- Shinjuku 3-31-4

7 stories of new and used CDs, divided up by genre. Not the cheapest used store, but the selection is good.

Tower -- imports -- 11:00-23:00
5360-7811 -- Flags 7-10FL (next to Shinjuku station south exit)

An uneven selection and a confusing layout make this newest branch rather disappointing. On the plus side, they're open to 11pm, and they carry lots of English-language magazines.

Cisco -- imports and vinyl -- 11:00-20:00 closed randomly
3341-7495 -- Studio Alta 6FL

So serious it's almost scary. Vinyl for DJs is the focus here, but they also have lots of CD singles, and plenty of stuff you won't see anywhere else in town. There's an indie rock department, but most of the action is over in the dance area.

HMV -- imports -- 10:00-21:00 no holidays
5361-3060 -- Takashimaya Times Square 12F

A huge mega-store with plenty of everything in stock.

Nishi-Shinjuku specialty shops -- assorted specialties -- Nishi-Shinjuku 7-chome

There are over 50 tiny specialty shops scattered through 7-chome, on side streets and in apartment and office buildings. Some of them carry bootlegs, and a lot of them specialize in one genre, like R&B or reggae. Here are a few to start with:

Rough Trade -- imports -- 12:00-21:00, no holidays
5330-3171 -- Nishi-Shinjuku 7-2-4, Shinjuku MS Building 2F

Recommended by a reader: "it stocks the hippest stuff around England, because its mother shop is England based".

Harajuku

HMV -- imports -- 11:00-20:00 no holidays
3423-4891 -- Laforet B1FL

This branch is cramped and understocked, which defeats the purpose of a megastore. They should have made this a specialty shop instead.

Bongo P -- club music -- 11:00-22:00 no holidays
5413-4526 -- Jingumae 3-31-18, Gaien Coop #103

A former mail-order shop specializing in club music: rare groove, spiritual jazz, soul jazz, soul, afro, Latin, Brazilian, club rock, etc.

Shibuya

NYC Records -- soul, disco, jazz, funk -- 13:00-21:00, closed Tuesdays
3476-5775 -- Udagawacho 33-13, Kusuhara Bldg. 2FL

Old soul and funk records, and a big assortment of "disco classic" 12-inchers, all at refreshingly cheap prices.

DeMode Records -- breakbeats, techno -- 12:00-21:00 no holidays
3463-1153 -- Udagawacho 33-13, Kusuhara Bldg. 4FL

Mostly vinyl, but with some CDs - you can try out up to 5 records or CDs at the listening booth.

Ultra 3 -- 60s and 70s soul, rock; CDs and vinyl -- 11:00-21:00, no holidays
3461-5845 -- Udagawacho 36-4

A small specialty shop with an interesting selection. Also in Shibuya: Ultra (3461-6805; Udagawacho 10-1) and Ultra 4 (3461-3365; Jinnan 1-9-4). I don't know what happened to Ultra 2. All shops open 11am to 9pm, every day.

Recofan -- used and imports -- 11:30-21:00, no holidays
5454-0161 (all branches) -- Udagawacho 31-2, Beam 4FL

Possibly the best of the Recofan chain -- very spacious, with lots of bargains. Definitely worth a visit if you have time to browse. (There are two other Recofan branches in the neighborhood, but this is the one to check out first.)

Disk Union #1 -- techno -- 11:00-20:00, no holidays
3476-2627 -- Udagawacho 30-7, Antenna 21 4F

Mostly vinyl, some used, with a good selection of CDs as well.

Disk Union #2 and #3 -- used and imports -- 11:00-20:00, no holidays
3461-1121, 3461-1161 -- Udagawacho 30-7, Antenna 21 B1, 2, 3F

World music, indies rock, etc., with a good selection of jazz in the basement.

HMV Shibuya -- imports -- 10:00-22:00 no holidays
3477-6880 -- Udagawacho 24-1, 1-5F

A huge improvement over their old Shibuya quarters, this is a major music-buying destination, with five well-organized floors of merchandise. The dance music area is especially good, covering all genres and carrying quite a bit of vinyl. There's also a real stage for in-store events (and a second, smaller stage with piano in the classical department). And when you're done with music-shopping for the day you can go upstairs to the new branch of T-Zone Computers, up on the sixth and seventh floors.

Shibuya Wave (Loft) -- imports, vinyl -- 11:00-20:00, closed second and 3rd Wednesdays
3462-3118 -- Loft 6F

A lackluster selection -- most shoppers seem to prefer HMV across the street.

Tower -- imports and imported books -- 10:00-22:00, random holidays
3496-3661 -- Jinnan 1-22-14 (along the Yamanote tracks past Marui, towards Harajuku)

The world's largest CD store, although the selection seems to have some gaps. It's definitely worth a trip for the book floor, though -- lots of interesting titles you won't find at Tokyo's English-language bookstores. They also deserve a few points for their new-media departments (CD-ROMs, etc.).

Sumiya -- soundtracks -- 11:00-19:30, closed 3rd Wednesday
3409-6091 -- Shibuya 2-15-1, Toho Seimei Bldg. 2FL (east side of station)




Hope this helps!

 

Virgin in Shinjuku closed about 7 years ago...I found another cool CD shop, in Nakano....Sun Road, Nakano Broadway 3rd floor this whole complex is totally cool, a buncha Anime stores, bookstores, weird collector stuff...

 

Is this in the covered shopping street just outside the station?

 

how about disk union and yellow pop in shimokitazawa?

i will be back to tokyo in a few month.

 

Yellow Pop is still there in Shimokitazawa, plus there's a Disk Union a few blocks north of there,
south of Yellow Pop is another cool store, I think on the same block, all vinyl: Flash Disc Ranch Records, the entrance is hard to miss:

 

yes, at the end of the covered shopping street, where there's an upstairs

 

thank, i will be there.

 

yeah and on the weekends (Saturday) DU has a massive LP sale in a wharehouse that's about 2 blocks south and across the street from DU, across from the Sunplaza,
never been there 'cause I didn't want to wait in the massive live for an hour..this is on one of those small alleys going to the Sun Road...like the second small one past the crosswalk...and then if you keep going across that street you just crossed towards the station, there's a "Rare Records" store that is mostly vinyl...email me at yahoo if you want some more info (same username) ...

 

yeah and on the weekends (Saturday) DU has a massive LP sale in a wharehouse that's about 2 blocks south and across the street from DU, across from the Sunplaza,
never been there 'cause I didn't want to wait in the massive live for an hour..this is on one of those small alleys going to the Sun Road...like the second small one past the crosswalk...and then if you keep going across that street you just crossed towards the station, there's a "Rare Records" store that is mostly vinyl...email me at yahoo if you want some more info...

 

Time Machine in Choufu.

 

Thanks, I found it. Good prices on used SHM discs.

 

If you wanna come out to western Tokyo on the jr Chuo line I you up could hook you up...like kokubunji ekimai (next to train station) two stores that have massive vinyl, and tachikawa (2 stores, same chain) there's a du as well..next week is the end of my vacay, as I'm starting a full time job after golden week

 

Finishing my hunting tomorrow - CD only. Will be in Machida and Shimo.

 

I'll be coming in early October (9-23) for two weeks of vinyl shopping, and would love a guide! Will happily buy lunch or dinner for a guided tour of the better vinyl shops. I'm staying in Shibuya at the Southern Century Tower or something like that. Looking for inexpensive Japanese pressings of collectible artists and prog stuff Mostly.

My plan was to box up my purchases and ship them home via SAL or whatever they call it - via ocean/ship transport - as Japan is one of the only countries that still offers this and it's far less expensive than air.

Anyone have any experience with this? I will have 2 suitcases (I was able to cash in freq flier miles to get First Class so I can have an extra bag at no cost) but anticipate that I'll hopefully exceed that capacity and will still need to ship stuff home.

Mikel

 

Sir, what sort of music do these stores carry? I'm always looking out for new stores to browse although usually the DUs take up almost all my time during a visit. They may not be the cheapest or the best but they certainly carry a lot of stuff that I like so it makes sense to focus on them when time is limited.

 

　I'm pretty sure I know that Hotel. It's very close to central Shibuya where are the record shops are. Recofan and Disk Union in Shibuya should be your first stop.

 

Oops, it's actually in Shinjuku one block from the train station.

Anyone have Intel about freighting records home to USA?

Rcdupre, would you be up for a tour of any sort?

 

yeah man, when are you coming? I'm off the entire month of August for school vacation..unless I get any jobs...the only thing is it costs money for me to get there, like about $4 to Shinjuku on the Chuo Line...and if you get off at all the spots it costs more..the only thing that sucks about Japan is the fees you pay for the train, I spend about $50 a week going to and from work..

 

I'll post an entire list of all the killer spots with the train lines soon, when I get the time...it's pretty simple really...
unless you want to hit the way out of the way Bookoffs where you can make some major CD scores, or not..some of the biggest scores have been in the most of of the way, small places...

 

that will be great.