washington dc record stores?

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scratch #48 it would drop u too far from joe's. #59 is the one u want (intersection of southlawn and gude)

am0n, Tuesday, 2 June 2009 15:17 (fourteen years ago) link

right on, amon! and thanks pretzel walrus for details of the other shops. my apartment is on 15th Street NW, which doesn't look too far away, so I'll probably call in.

I'm also thinking I might polish off 1 x Bill Cosby’s Original Chili Half-Smoke ($5.20) for all my hard work.

gnarly sceptre, Tuesday, 2 June 2009 17:16 (fourteen years ago) link

two years pass...

So with Melody RIP as of last week, the District's got SOM, Smash, Red Onion, Crooked Beat and Joint Custody (which I want to check out, but never seems to be open when I do my rounds). I need to visit the new Metro-accessible Joe's Record Paradise, too.

Is there anything else out there? Any must-see flea's or thrift shops?

a-lo, Monday, 19 March 2012 02:59 (twelve years ago) link

I think Roadhouse Oldies is still open, it's not far from Joe's Record Paradise. I think dc go-go outlet P.A. Palace still has 2 stores in Maryland in Forestville Mall and Iverson Mall.

curmudgeon, Monday, 19 March 2012 13:46 (twelve years ago) link

roadhouse oldies moved like a block at some point in the last few years, still great tho. when i was 15 or 16 i was buying a copy of superfly on lp there and the dude behind me in line looks me right in the eye and asks, "white boy, what the fuck you know about 'freddie's dead'?"

adam, Monday, 19 March 2012 14:04 (twelve years ago) link

SOM is good! A few people have mentioned that it was on the pricier side, which I could see, but the selection is good, which is more important to me. I grabbed the Ramones' End of the Century in great condition for $8, which I thought was fair.

1986 Olive Garden (Z S), Monday, 19 March 2012 14:07 (twelve years ago) link

I've got to second SOM, really a great store -- maybe pricey on some things, but plenty of deals, too.

Beyond that, sounds like I need to hit Silver Spring one of these weekends for Joe's and Roadhouse Oldies.

a-lo, Monday, 19 March 2012 14:36 (twelve years ago) link

I think SOM is way too expensive

curmudgeon, Monday, 19 March 2012 14:38 (twelve years ago) link

But maybe I need to look closer for these deals others have found

curmudgeon, Monday, 19 March 2012 14:39 (twelve years ago) link

dont sleep on cdepot in college park guys

69, Monday, 19 March 2012 16:36 (twelve years ago) link

rtx. The record and tape xchange in Fairfax still lives, as does the Cd Cellar in VA

curmudgeon, Monday, 19 March 2012 16:57 (twelve years ago) link

rtx in fairfax is the worst imo -- my friend (red onion dude) finds some stuff at cd cellar occasionally. SOM is expensive for some things, but ive found some really awesome jazz/afro/post-punk/indie records there for mad cheap. also, if you like 7"s, neal has a MILLION that arent very picked over.

69, Monday, 19 March 2012 17:12 (twelve years ago) link

nb: "jazz/afro/post-punk/indie" is intended to signify four separate genres here

69, Monday, 19 March 2012 17:13 (twelve years ago) link

rtx in Fairfax is pretty picked over with not much new arrivals of stuff, but some vinyl is way cheaper than SOM. SOM afropop stuff the last time I looked was not cheap. You must have grabbed all the deals the last time you were in town.

curmudgeon, Monday, 19 March 2012 17:46 (twelve years ago) link

got a $8 copy of this guy: http://www.discogs.com/Francis-Bebey-Sanza-Nocturne/release/1713180 and a
$15 copy of this guy: http://www.discogs.com/Various-Siya-Hamba-1950s-South-African-Country-And-Small-Town-Sounds/release/2118238 there over the years...

69, Monday, 19 March 2012 17:56 (twelve years ago) link

nb: "jazz/afro/post-punk/indie" is intended to signify four separate genres here

:(

I DIED, Monday, 19 March 2012 20:15 (twelve years ago) link

Seconding 69 on College Park CDepot - I've gotten some great early 90's house/dance stuff there for super cheap, and a good copy of Bohannon's Insides Out for 25 cents!

I DIED, Monday, 19 March 2012 20:19 (twelve years ago) link

two months pass...

Ah, hell, I liked that place. Always made a point of stopping by when I was visiting home in MD.

She Got the Shakes, Tuesday, 5 June 2012 22:40 (eleven years ago) link

real downer, though i can't blame josh for not keeping on if his heart's not in it anymore. i used to work there and still love checking in when i'm back in dc/md - gonna have to make it up again before he closes.

pretzel walrus, Wednesday, 6 June 2012 01:38 (eleven years ago) link

how's it going z

mookieproof, Wednesday, 6 June 2012 01:57 (eleven years ago) link

hey man! it's going pretty well, nc rules (recent political atmosphere aside) and i have a pool in my backyard. how're you?

pretzel walrus, Wednesday, 6 June 2012 02:03 (eleven years ago) link

keep that vinyl away from the pool

curmudgeon, Wednesday, 6 June 2012 16:11 (eleven years ago) link

hahaha

69, Wednesday, 6 June 2012 16:50 (eleven years ago) link

two months pass...
eleven months pass...

so where should a record-store addict and vinyl lover be sure to check out in DC these days? bonus points for a good selection of psych/metal/noise/experiment/etc. many thanks in advance.

is this still basically the deal:

So with Melody RIP as of last week, the District's got SOM, Smash, Red Onion, Crooked Beat and Joint Custody (which I want to check out, but never seems to be open when I do my rounds). I need to visit the new Metro-accessible Joe's Record Paradise, too.

alpine static, Monday, 26 August 2013 22:14 (ten years ago) link

pretty much - http://dcrecordmap.tumblr.com/ is a good visual reference. i'd be sure to stop by red onion.

joe's and record exchange in silver spring are both excellent too, though their best sections (imo) are mostly dance/go-go

scream blahula scream (govern yourself accordingly), Tuesday, 27 August 2013 05:10 (ten years ago) link

and actually, for psych/noise stuff, the baltimore recommendations upthread are still pretty much valid. true vine, old guru, celebrated summer...

scream blahula scream (govern yourself accordingly), Tuesday, 27 August 2013 05:12 (ten years ago) link

http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/articles/44717/disc-men-kemp-mill-records/

Once a big D.C. area chain, now there is only one Kemp Mills left--in Temple Hills, MD with lots of go-go and rap according to this article

curmudgeon, Monday, 2 September 2013 03:49 (ten years ago) link

Mostly all on cd

curmudgeon, Monday, 2 September 2013 03:53 (ten years ago) link

five months pass...

Is CD Depot at College Park walkable from the CP/UofM Metro stop?

andrew m., Monday, 24 February 2014 21:10 (ten years ago) link

Well, it's looking like a No. Quite the trek. Guess I could bus it from the metro.

andrew m., Monday, 24 February 2014 21:12 (ten years ago) link

yep.

curmudgeon, Monday, 24 February 2014 22:17 (ten years ago) link

eleven months pass...

A few I don't know, but i don't buy that many records these days...

curmudgeon, Friday, 30 January 2015 20:15 (nine years ago) link

one month passes...

I'm in the middle of a 5 week work trip to DC and I have to say, the record stores have been incredible. Som, Joint Custody and Red Onion are excellent stores. I'll definitely go back to these three stores but where else should I go?

brotherlovesdub, Sunday, 29 March 2015 15:38 (nine years ago) link

Crooked Beat maybe, and out to Md for Joes and to Va for CD Cellar and others. Check out that metroweekly link I posted in January.

curmudgeon, Sunday, 29 March 2015 16:53 (nine years ago) link

Joe's Record Paradise in a Silver Spring just for the experience. It's unlike any of the others and massive.

Walter Galt, Sunday, 29 March 2015 20:07 (nine years ago) link

Whoops - er, like curmudgeon said.

Walter Galt, Sunday, 29 March 2015 20:08 (nine years ago) link

Sweet. Thanks for the tips. Think I'll try to hit joes next weekend. Metro accessible?

brotherlovesdub, Sunday, 29 March 2015 20:24 (nine years ago) link

Don't sleep on the Music & Game Exchange 1/2 block north of Joe's -- pulled some good stuff out of the new arrivals and $1 bins there. My boy found a Fairport test pressing in the $1 bin but it got yanked at the register.

Joint Custody has been killing it lately.

Arlington Flea Market starts up again this weekend, might go see what that's all about. I think it is Saturday morning.

a-lo, Tuesday, 31 March 2015 02:18 (nine years ago) link

Nice tips! I was thinking of making Saturday my big record hunt day so that would be convenient.

brotherlovesdub, Tuesday, 31 March 2015 23:53 (nine years ago) link

but it got yanked at the register.

What do you mean? The clerk just went "whoops - that's mislabeled" or something?

I've never found anything in the Music Exchange vinyl-wise but they have tons of CDs for like .50 cents - I got some great Go-Go discs there.

Your Ribs are My Ladder, Wednesday, 1 April 2015 13:31 (nine years ago) link

Record Exchange in Silver Spring is closed until mid-April. They're moving up to the street next to the Fillmore (condos are going up in the current space).

Chris L, Wednesday, 1 April 2015 14:11 (nine years ago) link

What do you mean? The clerk just went "whoops - that's mislabeled" or something?

yeah, clerk said he'd already seen it and had pulled it to be looked up/marked up, though it was still sitting over by the cheap bins.

a-lo, Wednesday, 1 April 2015 16:01 (nine years ago) link

Joe's Record Paradise was awesome. Spent 2hrs there but could have easily spent another 2. All the shops in DC have been great. Even Hill & Dale, which I wouldn't go to again, necessarily, but for what it is, where it is, it's good.

brotherlovesdub, Sunday, 5 April 2015 00:54 (nine years ago) link

In Arlington, most of us are aware of CD Cellar but brief shout out to Blue Groove in Westover.

http://www.bluegroovesoundz.blogspot.com/

Ye Mad Puffin, Monday, 6 April 2015 12:46 (nine years ago) link

two months pass...

http://bandwidth.wamu.org/joes-record-paradise-is-moving-again/

Lee says he found out today that the store’s landlord won’t be renewing its lease come March 2016.

curmudgeon, Thursday, 18 June 2015 17:39 (eight years ago) link

was going to joke that they shd move back to their og space in plaza del mercado and it looks like they are

😭 (am0n), Thursday, 18 June 2015 17:56 (eight years ago) link


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