Top Best Music Stores in the World (Part 2)

Today we are going to talk about the best music shops in the world! These are real treasure troves of rare and very interesting records, LPs... Among other things, the places mentioned today have an incredible atmosphere that energises you! All these shops are unique and beautiful in their own way... Less words - closer to the point! These are the top best music shops in the world!

"Waterloo."

Texas has a fine history of producing psychedelic music of the highest calibre, pushing and expanding the boundaries of genres from the Great Plains to the Gulf of Mexico. Located equidistant between the state's two major metropolises, Dallas and Houston, Austin has musically speaking outgrown its bustling neighbours to create an enviable local and international scene. Since opening in 1982, Waterloo Records, - a music shop and vinyl record centre that has expanded from 1200 square feet to a sprawling 6400 square feet - has played a significant role in this development! Proud of its heritage, the shop still provides a prominent location for Texas musicians, though its scope is now broader: Waterloo offers new and used music in a variety of formats - DVDs, magazines, turntables, merchandise and tickets. It's a one-stop indie record shop in the most traditional sense of the word.

"Phonica."

Looking for the best new dance music, from house and techno to disco and edits? Then you need to visit (well, or at least visit the website) the Phonica shop! When Phonica Records opened in 2003, it was in decline. Soho music shops were closing, vinyl sales were at an all-time low and Dido's Life For Rent was the best-selling album of the year. How times have changed... Phonica is an independent music shop with many international DJs amongst its regulars: Four Tet, Floating Points, Caribou, Dixon! Phonica's appeal lies behind the counter, in its staff and the huge wall of vinyl hanging over them... By the way: the music shop is located in London (51 Poland St, Soho, London W1F 7LZ). Today it also boasts an overseas outpost at The Store in Berlin.

"Råkk & Rålls."

This shop in Oslo, Norway, is a mecca of second-hand vinyl and a mythical maelstrom in which time and space take on a new meaning... The modest façade of the shop opens up over three floors: with records and sundry items, it's a true paradise for music collectors and the last place you should go if you prefer elegant and minimalist Scandinavian design... But then again, that's not why we're here. Having built something of a folkloric reputation thanks to its huge vinyl cellar, Råkk & Rålls is not the kind of shop you can just pop into. It's designed for diggers making the most of it... The selection of used records is as wide-ranging as you'd expect, from Scandinavian metal to disco, as well as mountains of retro goods and vintage gear to keep you occupied. Not bad for a shop that looks like a budget CD shack from the outside.....

"Groove Merchant"

Groove Merchant, opened by Ubiquity Records boss Michael McFadyen back in 1990, was originally part of the legendary Rooky Ricardo's music shop on Haight Street (687 Haight St, San Francisco, CA 94117, USA). The shop went through ownership and locations before returning to Haight, directly across the street from Ricardo's... This establishment, now owned by Chris Veltri - named after the '70s jazz and R&B label - is undoubtedly Fog City's premier collector's shop! Fabulous jazz pieces, an abundance of Latin music, folk-funk, heavy hip-hop and boogie-woogie gems. There's something for every taste and colour! The shop may seem tiny compared to Haight-Ashbury's imposing Amoeba Records, but every inch of its cosy 700 square feet of space has been put to good use.

"Dub Store Record Mart."

"Dub Store Record Mart will be a godsend for reggae and dub connoisseurs! By 1997, it had already established itself as a world leader in Jamaican music! Dub Store, named after the legendary Studio One catalogue, has become so embedded in the Jamaican music industry that the slow collapse of the island's pressing plants reverberated through Tokyo, forcing the shop to set up its own label to reissue and repress records... Dub Store Record Mart is located in Tokyo (7 -13-5 Nishishinjuku, Shinjuku, Tokyo 160-0023, Japan)

"Red Light."

In recent years, the government has tried to reclaim Amsterdam's red light district, which is also the oldest part of the city, by encouraging local businesses to open in former brothels. After Orpheus De Jong set up a radio station in a red light window, diggers Taco Reyenga and Abel Nagengast turned a vacant space in the same building into Red Light Records. Masterfully paired with stunning originals, the shop's selection is smaller but much better than average. The focus is on second hand releases, but you'll also find a small selection of new releases. Genres such as European boogie-woogie, new age, Japanese synth-pop, Bollywood and other marvellous... are stocked here.

"Atom Heart."

This wonderful shop is located at 364 Rue Sherbrooke E, Montréal, QC H2X 1E6, Canada. There is just great music of all stripes here! Atom Heart was founded in 1999 by Raymond Trudel and Francis Gosselin, who met a few years earlier while working in a bookstore. The pair struggled to find certain records and CDs... But they soon decided to fill the gap with their own shop! At the time, Montreal had a dynamic music scene, fuelled by the rise of post-rock and the boom in electronic music. Despite all this, they say, local shops in Montreal varied greatly in genre. Their main goal for Atom Heart was, and still is, to supply a carefully selected collection of music from a wide variety of genres, as well as offer local labels an outlet. The shop also provides a customisation service for items that may not be in stock, so you can get just about anything here!

"Can Records."

Another very important destination on today's list: the Can shop located in Denmark (Tullinsgade 5, 1618 Copenhagen V) has earned a reputation among DJs! The shop is independently run by Martin Aalikke Christiansen and his wife. Located just off Frederiksberg's main street, among cafes and big music shops, Can Records tends to be often underrated... And yes: anyone who wants to spend the day up to their elbows in dusty crates will be disappointed: Martin professionally curates Can Records based on his customers' personal preferences, keeping stock to a minimum...

"Amoeba Music"

The Amoeba Music shop, opened in 2001, is a hangar-sized mall with a suggestive catalogue of music that makes Tower Records truly quirky! It is quite possibly the largest entertainment shop in the US: it takes up an entire block on Sunset Blvd (6400 Sunset Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90028)! There's rear parking, an underground garage and street parking, but even so, parking can be tricky. The shop carries millions of titles on vinyl, CDs, cassettes, 8-tracks and DVDs, new and used, obscure and popular. Stock is constantly being replenished as customers trade in old collections. Spread over two large floors, must-see areas of the shop include the Jazz Room, Out of Print section, Punk aisle and sections dedicated to pop culture ephemera. An unforgettable shopping experience (and just a visit) is assured!

"Mabu Vinyl."

Mabu Vinyl was founded in 2001 by Jacques Vosloo, who now co-owns the company with Steven Segerman. Aside from an amazing stock of vinyl, CDs, DVDs, cassettes and comics, the main thing you need to know about Mabu is that it's basically an artefact from a film. Visiting here is a bit like visiting Harry Potter's studio or taking a location tour (except with gimmicks and lots of annoying tourists for company). By the way: located at 2 Rheede St, Gardens, Cape Town, 8001, South Africa!

The shop is proudly associated with the famous documentary Searching for Sugar Man, which tells the story of Sixto Rodrigues, once hailed as the new Dylan: after a series of failures, he seemed to fade into obscurity, leaving only urban legends... Ironically, without knowing it, he became the voice of a generation in South Africa: more famous than Elvis and more influential than the Rolling Stones... When Mabu co-owner Steven "Sugar" Segerman heard that Rodriguez might be dead, he went on a staggering hunt for the "lost" musician to find out what had happened to him and, if he was alive, to bring him back to South Africa. And what happened next? Well... To avoid spoilers, we suggest you watch the film yourself (especially as it is really interesting!).