From Los Angeles CityBeat:

ALTERNATIVE GROOVES
Indie record stores are still thriving in L.A. Here’s a guide to some of the best

~ By MIKE SONKSEN ~



~ Backside Records ~



Even in the age of the Virgin Megastore and other similar corporate-giant music shops, Los Angeles County has an archipelago comprising dozens of mom-and-pop or “indie” record stores – and not just the ones everybody’s heard about, like Hollywood’s mighty Amoeba Music. Beyond those catering strictly to fans of Chinese, Armenian, or Spanish sounds, there are spots that serve as art galleries, workshop sites, performance spaces, and all-around community centers for people to come together around music. The colorful personalities behind these shops personify their unique flavor.

At the core of these places are two things: vinyl records and indie labels. “I love the distinctive sound of vinyl recordings, which to me produce a warmer sound than CDs,” says Erving Johnson, owner of P.M. Sounds in Torrance. “I love the whole culture of vinyl – the album artwork, the liner notes, and the people like me who are still spinning the LP. Vinyl is my life.”

These outlets are also often the best places to find independent music. Indie labels are as old as the record business itself, but technology has leveled the playing field, and now there are more than ever before: underground punk, rock, gothic, hip-hop, electronica, etc., etc. So read on for a guide to sure shots for finding vinyl and hard-to-locate indie titles around L.A.





Arons Records
(1150 N. Highland Ave., Hollywood, 323-469-4700) has been open for 40 years in different locations. Even in the era of Amoeba, it remains popular with DJs because, unlike Amoeba, it has listening stations. With its consistently well-stocked shelves, Arons in many ways sets the prototype of a successful indie record store. “We’re still alive and kicking,” says longtime employee DJ Sacred. Aronsrecords.com.




Backside Records
(139 N. San Fernando Rd., Burbank, 818-559-7573) is a hub of creativity, one of the best places in the 818 to cop rare titles. “We have many regular customers who know us personally, so they aren’t afraid to ask us our true opinion of a record,” says Backside manager Eric Flores. The store’s special collection of records is known as the “Vinyl Dungeon.” Backside serves the punk and garage-rock scene with the same comprehensive detail as it does underground hip-hop and electronica. It isn’t uncommon to run into underground rappers like 2Mex, Busdriver, and Awol One here. Backsideair.com.




Basement Records
(14506 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, 818-817-3114) has one of the best hip-hop vinyl collections in the Southland. “When you come to the Basement, bring your slippers and your robe, because it feels like home,” says owner Roc. The shop has also started a record label that features artists like Pigeon John, Abstract Rude, and the Crown City Rockers. Basementhiphop.com.




Blue Chips
(5505 Figueroa St., Highland Park, 323-550-1400) is the newest store on the block. However, the cats who run it are from the old school. Cofounder Eric Coleman is a well-known photographer, DJ, and producer; his partners are Miguel Guiterrez, Herbie Gonzalez, and Karla Lopez. Specializing in vinyl, CDs, books, magazines, clothing, and artful trinkets, it also features an art gallery in the space next door. “We want to serve all of Highland Park’s artistic community,” Lopez notes.




Fingerprints
(4612 E. Second St., Long Beach, 562-433-4996) remains one of the best places to get ahold of hard-to-find sounds from all genres. The buyers, DJ Nobody and Jacob Pena, know their titles and have a great ear for emerging music. These guys are musical architects, and they love satisfying their customers. “These people love the shopping experience,” says Pena. “This isn’t about keeping up with the trends; this is about following music in general. Whether that means following the roots or trolling the underground for some newer folk, psych-rock, Brazilian, hip-hop, or avant-noise, you can only go so far at Tower or Virgin.” Fingerprintsmusic.com.




Freakbeat Records
(13616 Ventura Blvd., Sherman Oaks, 818-995-7603) is a collector’s paradise. “Freakbeat is my attempt to get back to what a real record store is,” says owner Bob Say. “The kind of store I used to go to when I was young, with lots of nooks and crannies. We carry a little bit of everything.” He’s got classic rock, punk, jazz, world music, you name it. And it’s packed with music and memorabilia, including new and used vinyl, rare posters, DVDs, and loads of CDs. Freakbeatrecords.com.




P.M. Sounds
(1115 Sartori Ave., Torrance, 310-787-8200) specializes in rare funk, soul, and jazz records; owner Erving Johnson has great musical knowledge and a warm personality. Producer Thes One from People Under the Stairs recalls that several of the records he’s sampled came from P.M. Sounds. And such renowned DJs as Cut Chemist, DJ Shadow, and Musicman Miles have all spent some time digging in these crates.




Rhino Records Claremont
(235 Yale Ave., Claremont, 909-626-7774) is spic-and-span. Buyer Rachel Jalbert pays great attention to detail: Many of the titles are promoted with hand-drawn posters describing why you should buy them. “Working with a bunch of music freaks is awesome,” she says. “Everyone has their own niche and brings some cool knowledge to the table, which helps make our store filled to the brim with, not only the radio hits, but also quality music that sometimes slips through the cracks.” (Rhino also has a great, better known store in Westwood.)




Stacks the Vinyl Authority
(18300 Gridley Rd., Suite B, Cerritos, 562-809-8560) is a bustling center of activity. There’s always at least 15 or 20 people in the store, listening to records and flipping through vinyl. Managed by C-Los and DJ Gabereal, this is hip-hop central. DJ Icy Ice from the world-famous Beat Junkies is one of the cofounders. Most of the Beat Junkies grew up in Cerritos, so there’s quite a subculture of DJ kids in the area. “We learn from the students and teachers alike,” says another cofounder, Mike Jew. Stacks also repairs turntables, as employee DJ Abel is a turntable technician. Along with its extensive hip-hop catalog, it also offers a great selection of rare 45s, reggae, dub, and dancehall. Stacksvinyl.com.




Upon Shop
(3910 Sunset Blvd., Silver Lake, 323-667-2011) sells mostly used jazz, rock, and hip-hop records, along with some CDs and one of the city’s more artful T-shirt collections. “With our fresh couch near the front window and loud music, we’ve become a staple to the Sunset Junction strip,” says store partner DJ Azul. They keep the reputation going by hosting a hip-hop karaoke night once a month. Hosted by up-and-coming emcee Khalil, Karaoke @ Upon Shop is no joke, with upward of 70 people cramming themselves into the small space. Uponshop.com.




Vinyl Fetish
(1614 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood, 323-957-2290), with its extensive catalog of punk, goth, and new wave, is a monument to the glory days of ’80s KROQ. Originally located on Melrose, it’s now under new ownership and in a different place. “People come to this store to see me, because they know I’m the new wave/punk guru,” notes Andy Franzle, who’s managed the place for 15 years. The original location hosted in-stores for the likes of U2, Iggy Pop, the Smiths, Siouxsie & the Banshees, and the Ramones. Only Middle Earth Records in Downey has as many punk and new wave T-shirts, posters, DVDs, and records. Vinylfetishrecords.com.





All this is still just the tip of the iceberg. Others worth mentioning include Rockaway Records in Silver Lake, Fat Beats in Hollywood, 33 1/3 Books and Sea Level Records in Echo Park, Eastside Records in Los Feliz, Radio Futura in Pomona, Penny Lane in both Alhambra and Whittier, and Bagatelle Records in downtown Long Beach. All are treasure troves of music, culture, and personalities, offering more for your money than just music.

02-24-05


One great store they failed to mention -- Poobah Records in Pasadena.

This brings up a good point about Los Angeles in general. People from all over love to make fun of others who choose to live here. Than you have articles like this, which remind you that the rest of the states should be so lucky but aren’t even close. I have been to all sorts of places, including Manhattan, and none of them have record stores that can even come close to comparing to what Los Angeles or San Francisco/Berkeley (with Mod Lang, Aquarius, 2 very different Amoeba’s, all those Rasputin’s, Steetlights, ect.) has, though Portland for as small as it is was pretty cool. When people ask which places on-line has the best selection I always shake my head and smile. It’s practically impossible for me not to find a CD at a local store, no matter how rare, and would rather support my local community anyways. Than you add to the fact that you can see a band you would want to see almost any day of the week. So continue to make fun, and yes it has its flaws, but anything you are into you can find it here. I’ll causally mention the quality of women that happen to live here as well...



The person who wrote that article really should do some more research before making fun of Amoeba. It’s true that no other store can really compare to them and is huge so maybe he got lost. If he did walk around a bit more and went upstairs than he would have found several listening stations. That being said I love Aron’s and is my second favorite record store.

I’m sick of being broke and stuck indoors on a Saturday night. I would love to be dancing tonight…

np: Embrace – Drawn From Memory

This will come in handy if I ever make it out there. Thanks aural!

Matt Max, you better lemme know when you do come down!

too bad LA sucks.

Suck in what capacity? Music store wise?

No, just as a city.

Well, that convinced me. I'm packing my bags straight away!!

I also thought this at first, but I think he's talking about vinyl listening stations, which Amoeba does not have.

Aron's is a great store, and it's a nice little treat on the way to Amoeba. Unfortunately, there aren't enough good indie record stores near me. Benway Records is close, but the selection of new CDs there is miniscule. That being said, I still really enjoy browsing their used section. I'm gonna have to make a few road trips and check these other stores out, though.

Where d'ya live, Mikey?

Marina Del Rey. Do you know of any good stores in Venice or Santa Monica? Amoeba and Aron's aren't too far away, but with traffic, it's a day-long trip.

By the way, how'd you like the Secret Machines show? People were really going crazy for Moving Units. I was definitely more into the Autolux and Secret Machines sets. Good show.

That area USED to have a great Rhino store -- there's still the one in Westwood. And Santa Monica had Moby Disc on the Promenade. It's been ages since I've hung out in that area (I used to live nearby)...wish I could help.

You can usually run into good indie stuff cheap(ish) @ Soundsations off Sepulveda/Manchester, and they're really nice (special orders not a problem, if you ask beforehand), but there isn't really a great record store in the MDR/Venice area... If there's something I need, I usually go to Best Buy or Tower on Maxella (they actually have decent buyer(s) there)...

And, if it's a day-long trip for Aarons or Amoeba for you, I might try Fingerprints in Long Beach - a bit more specialized/chummy.

WESTSIDE REPRESENT!

I've been to Soundstations. Not a bad store.

I usually end up at the Tower in MDR because it's right down the street from my apartment. I may check out Fingerprints, though. I've heard good things.