Located at 201 North Court Avenue in Tucson, Arizona, Old Paint Records is in a shopping center full of art stores, cafés, and interesting shops. It’s a small space, but they have a lot to like, especially if you’re looking for vinyl.
I love how they have a bunch of retro glow-in-the-dark posters for sale, too.
There are cassettes and CDs as well, but the selection is limited. Still, it’s worth a look, as is the whole store and many other shops in the area.
This is the second of the three Reckless Records locations I’ve visited in Chicago. This one is in the Loop at 26 East Madison and is a great way to kill some time if you’re downtown with extra time before your train leaves (as it was in my case).
The place has plenty of LPs, CDs, DVDs, and other stuff to tempt you, and I love how they mix up stuff in the same sections of the store.
The variety of stuff there in the relatively small space is impressive. There are bins of LPs, stacks of 45s, shelves of DVDs, and boxes of CDs.
There’s also plenty of collector stuff, too, for all you vinyl lovers.
I feasted on their boxes of 99-cent CDs and came away with a bunch of gems.
Two Esquivel albums,a collection of Orbital singles and rarities, a greatest hits compilation from Sade, a Sugar album, The The‘s classic Infected, and that collection of rare tracks and live tracks from The Last Four Digits alone was worth the trip.
Again, if you’re looking for a great way to spend some time in the Loop, check out this store.
Located at the corner of 7th and Hoff, Wooden Tooth Records is a cool place for vinyl, CDs, cassettes, books, and other groovy stuff in Tucson, Arizona.
I love that they have a small section of books that includes local zines and underground comics. They have a bunch of wild stuff on vinyl, too, such as these gems I spotted there.
That’s a great, and yet small example of their eclectic wares. Krautrock, electronic, ambient, folk, and children’s records in the same area!
The Salt Shed, the newest venue from 16” on Center, the team behind the Empty Bottle, Thalia Hall, Evanston SPACE, Beauty Bar, and The Promontory, today announces The Shed, the indoor performance space at the historic Morton Salt Building, and unveils its first wave of shows, the first of which is Friday,February 17. The Shed’s initial announcement features The Flaming Lips celebrating the 20th anniversary of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Bikini Kill’s first Chicago show since reuniting in 2019, a three night King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard residency, Guatemalan-American house producer/DJ Gordo, and the “Godfather of Punk,” Iggy Pop. A full schedule, also including The Roots, The Hold Steady, The Mountain Goats, Tove Lo,Third Eye Blind, Fever Ray, Viagra Boys, Boy Pablo, and more, is below.
Tickets will go on sale on Friday, November 18 at 10am CST on The Salt Shed website.More shows are to be announced.
“One of the things that really excites me about this project is continuing to work with the artists we’ve grown up with,” says Bruce Finkelman, Managing Partner of 16” on Center.“These are musicians that started at the Empty Bottle, grew to Thalia Hall, and we now look forward to hosting at the Salt Shed. I remember the Flaming Lips at the Empty Bottle way back in 1994, stopping their show mid-set to walk across a sea of fans and play a solo set on a rinky dink piano that I think came with the bar. I have never experienced a crowd so captivated, and it’s a moment that reminds me why I have the best job in the world. It’s just one of the many stories of live music magic that make our places so special.”
Following this past summer’s launch of the outdoor Fairgrounds space, the newly renovated indoor Shed will feature multi-level grandstand seating, premium experiences with access to balcony opera boxes, custom bars, and expedited entry. Quality of sound at the Salt Shed, for both audience and artist, is prioritized. The venue will feature an L-Acoustics sound system designed specifically for the space to give fans throughout the venue the same great sound experience as the world’s leading tours and festivals. Alongside concerts, the Shed will eventually host a comprehensive food, beverage, and retail experience, with plans to incorporate indoor markets and other creative events that celebrate Chicago’s artistic community into the programming.
“I have spent most of my professional life doing two things,” says Craig Golden, President of Blue Star Properties and partner at 16” on Center. “One, renovating and repurposing some of Chicago’s obsolete and historic buildings; and two, collaborating and creating a number of music venues and restaurants throughout the city. Having the opportunity to combine both passions in the presentation of this iconic Salt Shed, turned music and events venue, is truly a dream.”
As both indoor-Shed and outdoor-Fairgrounds performances continue in 2023, the Salt Shed is excited to welcome key partners into the fold: Grassroots, the official cannabis partner of the Salt Shed, will help bring an educational and forward-thinking cannabis experience to both artists and guests in 2023. Wintrust, the Salt Shed’s exclusive Banking Partner, is bringing a spotlight to local charities and nonprofits by way of customized, uniquely illustrated murals. Living on the exterior wall of the Salt Shed, this fixture aims to positively impact and bring awareness to many in the Chicago community.
Located in the Tlaquepaque Shopping Center in Sedona, Arizona, Alt Books and Records is a neat little find amongst all the art galleries, high-end gift stores, and eateries. It’s on the second floor and has a neat collection of books and rare vinyl.
The place has plenty of stuff to intrigue you. The store’s owner was playing The Jam‘s Setting Sons album at a good, loud volume while I was there. He has plenty of collectible records for you hardcore collectors, too.
Not into vinyl? How about high-quality prints of Dr. Seuss art? Yes, they have those as well.
And don’t forget about the books. They range on all different topics, from books on the Sedona vortices to ones on shamanism, world history, and, yes, fiction.
Located at 621 Franklin Street in Asheville, North Carolina, Static Age Records is a funky little place along a strip of nightclubs and specialty shops. My girlfriend and I stumbled upon it during a street fair on Franklin Street. The first thing we spotted were a bunch of cool records and artwork.
You can see a stage behind that crate of dark-wave / goth / post-punk / industrial records. This place holds live music shows almost every night. They had a live DJ spinning some obscure Afrobeat stuff when we were there.
The artwork on the walls was all for sale. A lot of it was paintings and sketches of various rock and roll and country music icons. Then again, there were also portraits of a bloodied Dusty Rhodes on display.
This place is also ready for a zombie apocalypse if such a thing should break out in Asheville.
Check it out if you’re in town. Stay for the live music if you don’t find anything you want to buy (which is unlikely).
Located in a strip mall at 2930 East Broadway Boulevard in Tucson, Arizona, Desert Island Records boasts a lot of cool stuff in a somewhat out-of-the-way location. They love not only music, but also cult films – as evidenced by their decorations you notice as soon as you walk into the place.
They have plenty of records, of course. No worries there if you’re a lover of vinyl
They also sell a lot of gear for listening to music, both new and vintage.
Located at 5 Place Mondain Chanlouineau in Angers, France, CD-BD is a combination record store and comic book shop. What’s not to like?
The store is in a nice shopping area in Angers, across from a diner and near plenty of other nice little shops and eateries. They sell vinyl and CDs of all sorts, and a wide collection of graphic novels and comic book trade paperbacks.
The music genres sold there run from classic rock to electronic music. The graphic novels range from standard superhero fare to historical adventure tales and adults only material.
I knew we were in a cool store when I heard them playing this.
I mean, how do you not like a store if they’re playing a Teardrop Explodes record?
Be sure to grab some music (and comics) here while you’re in Angers.
Located at 70 Rue Baudrière in Angers, France, Home Wax is a cool, little shop decked wall to wall with vintage concert posters and flyers, vinyl LPs, skateboard decks, and all sorts of other cool stuff.
That’s just one section of one wall in this place. They had, of course, pulled out stuff relating to the Levitation France festival happening there at the time of my visit, thus the Sonic Youth (with Kim Gordon playing there) and Snapped Ankles albums (although Snapped Ankles had to cancel their set at this year’s festival).
The place is a small heaven for collectors of groovy vinyl, including an impressive jazz section and a section just for local artists.
I mentioned skateboard decks. They had some Ramones-themed ones behind the front counter. Angers, with its many hills and parks, if probably a skateboarder’s paradise, and Home Wax is happy to cater to such folks.
Be sure to swing in there if you’re ever in town. It’s a cool shop. I’m sure I’ll return there next year for Levitation France 2023.
If you’re looking for classic music on CD, Canterbury Records in Pasadena, California (805 East Colorado Boulevard) is the place for you. The place has a massive collection of classical works on CD, and plenty of other stuff if you’re not looking for that.
That third image is a wall of video tapes, and I couldn’t fit all of it in my camera viewer. They have another section like this that’s all concert footage and music video compilations. They even have a wall of DVD compilations of public domain films.
They have a good selection of new and used music on CD, and it was refreshing to go into a wrecka stow and find they primarily sold CDs. Don’t worry, vinyl lovers, they have plenty of that, too.
I walked out with a five-disc set of Astrud Gilberto albums on CD (review coming soon!) for a mere twenty bucks. There are also some good Asian food restaurants and boba tea places nearby, so don’t pass up this groovy place if you’re in Pasadena.