ILX Lists The Best Record Shops In The USA

L.A.: I prefer Aron's to Amoeba in many respects. It's less of a headache to shop at, the people seem to know more, and it's often much cheaper. Also, Sea Level in Echo Park is great. Headline on Melrose is good for obscure punk rock. R.I.P.: No Life.

N.Y.: Mondo Kim's; Other Music; Canal Street; that psychotic place on Avenue A and St. Marks (Accidental Records, maybe?) that is open 24 hours and can't possibly be passing any sort of safety or zoning codes. I lifted a T. Rex album out of a box there and a whole bunch of spiders scrambled out of the box like they'd finally been set free. I screamed like a baby. R.I.P.: Sound & Fury, my favorite record store ever.

Also, Record Surplus on Pico Ave, which is great for cheap LPs (they only carry older stuff it seems) and reasonably priced CDs. Also, their 92 cent CD section can be a goldmine. Since the guys who run it seem to know popular music moreso than underground, you can find some steals in that section. Just picked up a copy of the Low and Dirty Three EP there for a buck.

atomic-generic indie record store with decent dance/hip hop vinyl

massive-amazing hardcore techno/idm/breakcore/dnb selection, pretty good hip hop/techno/house too

lotus land-really good funk/soul/dub/worldbeat selection, decent amount of modern hip hop, but amazing old school hip hop selection, some new wave/punk/electronic

Eugene, OR: House Of Records... which is what it is, exactly. Best record store in Oregon.

Costa Mesa, CA: Noise Noise Noise records. Small store, amazing selection.

Richmond, VA: Plan 9 records.. It's a small two-level warehouse, essentially. Bottom is all vinyl. Found amazing used finds there.

Cambridge, MA: Twisted Village.. most obscure music record store on the planet.

San Francisco, CA: Aquarius. Strength here is the passion and friendliness of the staff. They put more work into their little sticker record reviews than entire metro cities' worth of weekly paper journalists.

Boise, ID: Record Exchange.. the only store in the state, but it's a really good, big one.

also!

Philadelphia, PA: Spaceboy records
Chapel Hill, NC: CD Alley
Athens, GA: Low Yo Yo

(um, yeah, i've been around... )

Shangri-La -- hipster visitor's center, best browsing

Last Chance -- no frills, good selection (including lots of hip-hop vinyl), good prices

Legba Records -- SMALL but lovingly assembled selection; good, friendly hanging out, owned by Greg "Compulsive Gambler/Oblivians/Reigning Sound" Cartwright, who is usually behind the counter.

MPLS:

Electric Fetus -- where I make my annual Afropop splurge.

Grimey's -- Excellent selection of new releases on cd and vinyl (mostly of the indie or general hipster variety), smaller, but well curated, selection of used cds and vinyl.

The Great Escape -- Doubling as a comic book store, they actually have a huge selection of used cds and vinyl (mostly non-collectible shit, though). Great for recent release sellbacks and (sometimes) promo copies.

Phonoluxe -- Massive, but tourist-oriented. You'll find a lot of records you can't afford to buy.

the cd selection is very large and has an unusually thorough garage/psych collection, and a deep underground/electronic/jazz collection as well. extra point for carrying plenty of noise. and you always find a few great things in the big used area.

extra points for the mind-boggling poster collection that lines every square inch of the walls.

Possibly the only good record store in all of North Texas.

Athens GA - Is Low Yo Yo Sound that store that's right next to the 40 Watt? Whatever that store was, they had a nice selection back in '93. Again, small, but what they had was ace. Wuxtry back in the day was very, very, very good as well, but I don't know if that's changed in the past 10 years.

After I looked at Aquarius's stock, I almost moved to SF.

Atlanta GA - Wax N Facts. Criminal Records - about 100 feet away - was pretty good itself, but just a bit less well-stocked. Plus, the owner was a prick who really fucked over a friend of mine, and that's what counts in the end.

The majority of the time I buy 12"s for djing at:

Wax - On Melrose in LA, California. Any current house record you want is pretty much here. All the signatures from famous world traveling dj's on the back wall is really cool too. Surprisingly nice clerks

This is music - also on melrose. I buy more here than from wax because I'm not buying as much house these days. Less hip, a bit more down to earth, great techno selection (rare in a california record store)

Nothing beats Somewhere in Detroit (in detroit, duh) for cool underground vibe. I actually just randomly came across it, taking a walk down the street while waiting for my friends to wake up at this year's DEMF. So fucking cool.

i've said on a few occasions that Lou's Records is not only the best record store in california, but possibly the USA. their combination of price, selection, and friendliness have yet to be equalled.

i've said on a few occasions that Lou's Records is not only the best record store in california. their combination of price, selection, and friendliness have yet to be equalled.

i wrote this on another thread about amoeba:

"i have to interject to counterpoint all the amoeba love going on...
when amoeba was one store in berkeley, yes it was a fantastic store. however, i have found in the past 4 years, their ability to remain in stock on deeper titles other than new releases has been very poor. their used section is tremendously picked over, i find way more treasures at open mind in the past 4 years than at amoeba. the berkeley and sf stores are to some extent now a step-child of the dvd-centric la store. new releases sometimes take 3 days to get out on the floor in the sf store (which i lived 1 block away from up until about 6 mos. ago). imports? forget about it. so if you're looking for 450 used copies of destiny's child promos or well-stocked used little river band LPs or thousands of electronica CDs from 1998, you're in luck. all else is a crap-shoot.

it is my opinion that lou's records in encinitas (no. county san diego) is the best record store in california, and has been for the past 10 years."

Fingerprints in Long Beach is the best record store in California.

I've often gone to Amoeba, Lou's, Arons, and even Aquarius and have left disappointed and unable to really find anything that really motivated me.

I have never been able to leave Fingerprints without dropping at least $20 a visit.

NY: Sound Library. i've only been once but it seemed pretty badass. beatdiggers paradise. the east coast Groove Merchant.

chicago: dusty groove, reckless

My favorite Chicago shops are Reckless Records (in Wicker Park, I've never been to the broadway location) and Hi Fi Records on Clark. Gramaphone on Clark is nice too.

I do most of my CD shopping online now though. I've betrayed mom and pop.

yup yup yup

I feel really bad, because I always forget to mention Wall Of Sound, who are certainly a worthwhile store. I think it's because I go there mainly for Confounded Books, haha.

Athens GA - Is Low Yo Yo Sound that store that's right next to the 40 Watt? Whatever that store was, they had a nice selection back in '93. Again, small, but what they had was ace. Wuxtry back in the day was very, very, very good as well, but I don't know if that's changed in the past 10 years.

I think Low Yo Yo is on the opposite corner of town where 40 Watt is. It's very small, but vertical.

also big ups to record surplus on pico in LA. you can find great stuff there for a dollar.

Integrity N Music in Wethersfield, CT for jazz and other vinyl, the
best ie cheapest! (Can anyone confirm it's still there???)

Discorama basement on W.4th in NYC for dance promos & assorted 12"'s

Gimme Gimme Records

Jammyland for reggae

SandboxAutomatic.com for hip hop

and yeah Aquarius (great audio on their page, I listen to nearly everything on their weekly lists)

and yeah Other Music

I used to really enjoy Tunes in Hoboken and Etherea but haven't been to either in a couple years

last night i stopped in at BB and greg norton, billy dankert, and charlie parr were giving a performance for nobody ... i guess just using it as a rehearsal space of an upcoming show? magical things can happen at barely brothers. spend your money at barely brothers!!!

also there is an ilxor who works at Aghartha i'm pretty sure (or used to)

p.s. i've known a lot of dudes like bill. scott at vintage music company here in mpls is a lot like bill. but man, where else can you find sides of pre-war jazz at such unbeatable prices -- or for any price at all? a real wonderland of 78s is that place

also there is an ilxor who works at Aghartha i'm pretty sure (or used to)

― budo jeru,

Hi!

Happy to report that at least half of these are still alive and kicking. I'm also thankful we still have Electric Fetus. I know they catch some shite for making you wade through a whole bunch of toys to get to the actual albums, but if the profit margins on glass pipes, John Lennon lunch boxes, and Siouxsie sioux bobbleheads allow them to continue carrying early-'80s classic vinyl like Split Enz or The Alarm for $5, I'm not going to complain.

― Steely Danzig: Turn Up 'Where Eagles Dare', Neighbors Are Listening (Prefecture)

Yeah, I've been having some really good luck with them recently. Their clearance bins are always worth a look and as someone who loves 80s 12" singles, I always find some there very reasonably priced. Best place in the Twin Cities for CDs too.

I avoided Bill's because of the no pricing policy, the last time I went circa 2010 he quoted me $60 for one record and one used CD collecting early '80s mod bands (https://www.discogs.com/release/3184531-Various-This-Is-Mod-Volume-6-The-United-States-Of-Mod) and I can't put stuff back in those situations.

If I stop into Agharta and ask for Kitchen Person are your workmates going to look at me like I’m crazy? I’ve never met an ilxor irl.

They probably would. Just look for the British guy who isn't called Dylan or Dillon. That's me!

Do you or any of the other Minnesotans ever make it to Mill City in Hopkins?

hi kp!

I love Mill City, haven’t been there in far too long though.

I always do some damage at Mill City. I was sad to hear the owner Rob passed away not so long ago. Always seemed like a really nice guy. I heard the new owner is taking over this month so it'll be interesting to see if much changes.

My friend runs the newly opened Records Forever on Philly. I’ll work a day or two there this summer.

Agharta and Barely Brothers are my two favorites in the Twin Cities lately. Love that they're right near each other and (just barely) both on the St. Paul side of the border.

But my all-time favorite is Sorry State is Raleigh, NC. I lived in Durham NC for several years, probably made it to Sorry State at least a dozen times overall, and I don't think I ever spent less than $100. This was on used records only. Amazing consistency

House Of Records in Eugene OR is still great (as noted 21 years ago in this thread), now we also have Moon Rock in Eugene and Little Axe in across-the-river Springfield.

Hey, bodu, Dan P, and KP!

Despite my self-proclaimed 'biggest St Paul fan in Minneapolis' status, I rarely get to the São Paulo side of our metroplex anymore (I blame the reduced bus schedule post-pando), so it's great to know those stores are still bringing it. My last trip to Agharta resulted in a re-release (but still awesome) Zen Arcade, and Good Friday by the Easybeats, but it was too long ago.

Mill City has a rep, even in Kentucky, where a friend of mine flew into town in hopes that I'd take him there, as well as my obligatory stops. The volume of vinyl was pure madness. And I really miss SolSta on 46th St, shame it decamped to the 'burbs, as that was lit'rally on my bus route.

It's easy to under-appreciate the selection of local Twin Cities artists these shops have, in multiple genres. When I was in London a few months ago, I struck out repeatedly in search of local jungle/dnb stuff like the Nine-8 Collective (biig piig, Lava La Rue, P-rallel, Nia Archives, etc), or indie guitar-bandy rock, as most of the shelves were primarily bigger names that tourists would know. Maybe I was going to the wrong places, but when you ask "where's the 'local' section?", and they send you to a row of Bowie and Oasis re-releases, it leaves you going "What?"

Mill City has a rep, even in Kentucky, where a friend of mine flew into town in hopes that I'd take him there, as well as my obligatory stops. The volume of vinyl was pure madness. And I really miss SolSta on 46th St, shame it decamped to the 'burbs, as that was lit'rally on my bus route.

― Steely Danzig: Turn Up 'Where Eagles Dare', Neighbors Are Listening (Prefecture),

Yeah, the Mill City stock is just insane. They seem to have an unlimited supply of great records there. I seem to always find exactly the album I want when I go in and a few I didn't know I needed. I buy 45s too and they probably have the best selection around. I think I only went to SolSta once. I've heard good things about them.

My other favourites are Hymies. The new(ish) owner Adam is super nice and they have great prices. There's always something really cool on the wall there and again, it's very good for 45s. I've been to Fly Vintage a couple of times too. Feels like it's in the middle of nowhere, but they get some great stuff in there and the owners are just the nicest people. I like how a lot of the people who own and work in these stores are very cool people. Mike at Barely Brothers too. Just a kind and fun guy to chat with.

I still visit both the Cheapo locations now and again. The Minneapolis one doesn't seem to get the stock of used vinyl it once did.

In San Diego, a guy bought a store called Folk Arts Rare Records that had been around since the '60s and he has built it into something truly amazing, like possibly Amoeba level.

Sorry to derail the good Minneapolis/St. Paul talk, but heading to NYC for a trip soon. Will more than likely be limited to Manhattan for the duration, but are there any good recommendations for shops left, particularly ones with decent CD selections?

last time I was there I hit up Academy on 18th (which was pretty good) and the Rough Trade at Rockefeller Center (fine, but kinda disappointing tbh)

Also derailing, I was in Rochester NY a few months ago, and went to Bop Shop Records, which was pretty fantastic. I would say the prices were fair and they definitely take care to have a wide selection, not just a very big one, and everything I saw it was in great shape. Since it was a journey where I was intentionally traveling light, I only left with one record, a Bill Evans double live lp. In terms of mirror aesthetics, it was kind of my ideal shop. The usual vinyl you can easily flip through, but also floor to ceiling walls of vinyl filed away on shelves you can dig into.

And it was nice to see a place which is heavy on the really well curated used vinyl, considering that so many stores I go into right now are heavy on fresh product and their used stock is janky dollar bin fodder reframed as vintage collectibles.

yep, heavily well curated used vinyl is all I care about these days

Sorry to derail the good Minneapolis/St. Paul talk, but heading to NYC for a trip soon. Will more than likely be limited to Manhattan for the duration, but are there any good recommendations for shops left, particularly ones with decent CD selections?

last time I was there I hit up Academy on 18th (which was pretty good) and the Rough Trade at Rockefeller Center (fine, but kinda disappointing tbh)

― better than ezra collective soul asylum (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Friday, March 14, 2025 10:47 AM (thirty minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I think Academy is as good as it gets, but you could check out bookoff: https://www.bookoffusa.com/bookoff-49-w-45th-ny-store/

Thanks! I'm sure I'll hit up Academy again, just wondered if there were any other gems I might not know about.

Memory Lane records in PG county outside of DC is a real gem. PG is a majority black county and the store reflects that. Go go, soul, rnb, Latin, reggae, and an amazing jazz section

If you are interested in jazz, there's the Jazz Record Center, too: https://www.jazzrecordcenter.com/
xp

Ah, yeah, thanks for the reminder! That was on my list last time, but didn't get a chance to stop there.

Ergot at 2nd and 2nd is one of my favorites. Small, but interesting stock. Record Grouch is my #1, but that’s Greenpoint (where there are several good shops).

Thanks. Ergot's looks cool, judging from the photos online it looks like a pretty well curated shop.

speaking of NYC, tropicalia in furs is doing a pop up over the weekend (wish i could go)

i always like to hit A-1 and the EV academy when i'm in town. also fond of record grouch in greenpoint.

A-1 is kind of a digger's paradise, Record Grouch is more like the place that will have the new Bill Orcutt record

jon, you might like Human Head

can confirm that RG has the new Orcutt.

Ergot had the Four Louies in stock when I was there last.

record grouch is great, an excuse to go to greenpoint which is a neighborhood you should visit if you can

Captured Record Shop nearby Record Grouch, also has CDs which was part of the criteria

So, I'm heading to Portland Oregon on Wednesday for a few days. I was wondering if anyone here had any good recommendations for used record stores there. The only one I'm going to check out for sure so far is Too Many Records. I just have to see that place.

I'm not as interested in places with new stuff, more just ones with a good used selection.

Thanks.

Check out Everyday Music (on Burnside). good sized store, lots of used

Music Millennium was a big hit for me when I visited. Absolutely giant store with a killer selection of both vinyl and CDs.

In fact, I enjoyed the shop so much that I still frequently mail order from them when I can't find a local source for some stuff.

also:

Crossroads
Little Axe
Mississippi

I haven't been to the big places (MM, Everyday) in forever, Crossroads is real good for used stuff

Crossroads, for sure

I'd also maybe add Tomorrow Records and Speck's ... smaller stores, but good stuff

between those, Too Many Records, EM/MM and Little Axe, you've got most of it covered

Brilliant. Thanks so much for the recommendations all. Crossroads and Speck's were two I had read about that were highly recommended. They're at the top of my list.

I did see good things about Music Millennium, but a few people said it was mainly a good spot for new stuff so I wasn't sure I'd seek it out.

I wouldn't disagree that MM is a great spot for new stuff, but they had a lot of used stuff too. To be fair, everything I picked up was mainly "new" (still sealed, but not necessarily new releases) stuff that I never find in brick and mortar shops in Chicago.

i'm visiting chicago soon, most of the 15+ year old recs in this thread still seem to be operating, but are there any updates?

Depends on what area you'll be in, but definitely some new ones:

606 Records in Pilsen
Shuga in Wicker Park (convenient so you can also hit up Reckless and Dusty Groove)
Animal Records if you are willing to head all the way up to Evanston
Rattleback in Andersonville

sure I'm forgetting some other newish ones

sweet, Shuga will be convenient so I'll definitely add it to the list, thanks!

i wouldn't normally say this but my advice is to avoid shuga. that guy is a con artist

i like bric-a-brac records in avondale, it's also connected to the very fun horror-themed coffee shop the brood
laurie's planet of sound in lincoln square is probably the record store i go to the most, mostly bc i'm in that area frequently but it's also got a solid selection for a smaller store and fun dvds as well
i'll second rattleback, they had a decent selection of discounted records the one time i was in there

xp I was gonna say, isn't that the store with the crazy overpriced Discogs stuff?

Laurie's seconded

oh shit, good to know! I actually haven't been to Shuga myself yet, just knew it was a newish place. sounds like Vintage Vinyl in Evanston, which is probably good if you are specifically looking for like some rare psych 45, but everything else is just massively, massively overpriced.

can confirm Rattleback is good though.

i almost chimed in and said what jon ended up saying: Music Millennium has a lot of both new and used. i find it to be kind of an overwhelming store, tbh ... even moreso than places that are bigger. not sure why, exactly.

last time i was there they had a big new Michael Hurley painting on one of the windows in tribute.