Whether you're gearing up for a weekend trip or headed to the green, the Chevy Blazer offers the perfect blend of style, space, and performance to meet your needs.
Despite the popularity of iPods and digital music in the present day and age, a seemingly ancient form of music is still thriving—vinyl.
Personally, I have always had a soft spot for records. I would rather listen to the crackle of a vinyl player than hear a crisp, auto-tuned song on my iPod. Don’t get me wrong, MP3 players are much more convenient for on the go listening—lugging a turntable on your morning jog just isn’t a viable option. But when I’m relaxing at home, I find the distorted sounds of vinyl much more soothing.
There are numerous record stores around the Metro Detroit area to aid you in starting or expanding a record collection. The choice is yours: you can either sit at home and purchase a single song on iTunes, or you can head to any of the following local shops and pick up an album, old or new. You won’t get to experience that musty record store smell by staying on your couch, now will you?
Dust off your turntable and head to one (or all!) of my favorite local record stores:
Whether you're gearing up for a weekend trip or headed to the green, the Chevy Blazer offers the perfect blend of style, space, and performance to meet your needs.
Dearborn Music, located at 22000 Michigan Ave., Dearborn, has been selling vinyl for over 50 years. The store has a vast collection of old and new releases, ranging from rock to reggae to blues to electronica. It’s my favorite record store in the Metro Detroit area, and I have spent countless hours of my life there. The racks are impeccably organized by both genre and artist, so you can quickly find what you’re looking for. That doesn’t stop me from shuffling through every single album though. You never know what you might come across!
Through the end of September, head into Dearborn Music on Mondays to receive 15 percent off all used products, including CDs, DVDs, Blu-ray and vinyl.
The store also buys used CDs, vinyl and DVDs, so you can sell the items you never watch or listen to and trade up for some new material.
Just down the street you will find Stormy Records, located at 13210 Michigan Ave., Dearborn, a slightly newer record store. The shop opened its doors in 1999 and has been selling collectible vinyl ever since. The majority of Stormy Record’s albums are used, so you won’t necessarily find new releases from today’s top artists. However, you will certainly find more than a few gems from back in the day, as well as a wide variety of genres. If you’re interested in avant jazz, ambient music, Japanese acid freak-out or psychedelic pop, Stormy Records has got you covered.
The store also hosts live performances occasionally, so you might just get to see a local band when you drop in. You can also bring your used vinyl into the store to trade and sell.
Encore Records, located at 417 E. Liberty St., Ann Arbor, sells music in a variety of formats, including CD, LP, 7″, 78 rpm, 16 rpm and tape. You can also buy sheet music, books on music and musicians, music memorabilia, t-shirts and totes. Basically, anything you could possibly be looking for that is music-related will likely be found under this roof.
As previously stated, the best part about a vinyl store is the experience of mulling around the shop. However, if you’re sick in bed with the flu and the only thing that will cure what ails you is a new record, you can shop at Encore Record’s online store. In addition to selling in-store, the shop also has items for sale on Amazon and eBay.
While the aforementioned are my personal favorites, there are several other record shops located around the Metro Detroit area, including:
· Solo Records, 30118 Woodward Ave., Royal Oak
· Detroit Threads, 10238 Joseph Campau St., Hamtramck
· The Record Collector, 327 West 9 Mile Rd., Ferndale
· Street Corner Music, 26020 Greenfield Rd., Oak Park
· Peoples Records, 4100 Woodward Ave., Detroit
· Hello Records, 1459 Bagley, Detroit
· Submerge Records, 3000 E. Grand Blvd., Detroit
· UHF, 512 S. Washington Ave., Royal Oak