8D - The Michigan Daily - New Student Edition - September 3, 1996
Stores near
campus offer
everything
By Grog Parker
Weekend, etc. Editor
nn Arbor's record stores are kind of like the city
itself - quirky, unique and diversified. Each
store has an entirely different atmosphere, rang-
ing from skater to hip hop to classical to commercial. But if
one thing can be said about the Ann Arbor record stores -
if they don't have what you want, then what you want does-
n't exist.
Starting things off is Tower Records on South University
Avenue. A prototypical commercial record store, Tower is
certainly the largest record store in Ann Arbor. The selection
at Tower can't be beat in almost any genre, and the prices are
usually good if the item you want is on sale. Regular prices
of more than $14 per disc can be annoying, however, and may
drive you elsewhere. Aside from discs and tapes, Tower has a
huge magazine selection and a culture-oriented book depart-
ment.
Down the street from Tower is Where House Records, on
the corner of South University Avenue and Church Street,
cll..
A -
BRIAN GNATT/Daity
Nine Inch Nails played at the Palaceo
Auburn Hills last year. (top)
Ozzy Ozborne plays at a sold out sho
in the State Theatre in Detroit last
Mastrsitar player Ravi Shankar plays
the sitar to a sold-out crowd at
Rackham Auditorium on April 13.
(below)
Sonic Youth performed In the area In
October 1995. (top, opposite)
Cesar Rojas, a member of the band.os,
Lobos, plays their mixture of Tex-Me
blues and rock at the Frog Island
Festival In Ypsilanti. The concert, hr
was sponsored by The Ark, was held
June 24. (bottom, opposite)
above Good Time Charley's.
Where House has a large
selection, though not quite as
large as Tower's, but the
prices are more competitive.
Where House also has a
decent selection of imports
and the ever-present sale
bins, with most CDs under
$10. Prices for new releases
at Where House are often the
lowest in the city.
Across town is
Schoolkids Records, on
East Liberty Street, which is
somewhat of an Ann Arbor
institution. . While
Schoolkids doesn't have the
if they don't
have what
you want,
then what
you Want
doesn't
exist.
sheer quantities of discs that Tower has, it has a much more
diversified selection, with hard to find imports and domes-
tic issues. The prices in Schoolkids are along the lines of
Tower, but there are often sales that make the CDs more
affordable and more competitively priced. Unlike most
other record stores, however, Schoolkids has it's own
record label.
Rounding out the "Big Four" of record stores in Ann
Arbor is Discount Records, on the corner of State and
Liberty streets. Discount Records has a selection compara-
ble to Where House, but the
prices are higher and there are
less significant sales. A great
thing about Discount Records,
though, is that it stays open past
midnight on Monday nights in
order to offer Tuesday's releases
as soon as possible. Where
House and Tower have been
known to do the same for special
occasions, but Discount Records
does so on a more consistent
basis.
Of the more unique and less
commercial music stores is
Schoolkids Alternative, locatedt
next door to Schoolkids Records
on East Liberty Street. This store,
like its targeted customers, is
rather lacking as far as atmos-
phere goes. But Schoolkids
Alternative has a unique selection
of alternative music (and I mean
real alternative, not Pearl Jam),
and a great selection of alternative
imports.
Just down the block, also on.
East Liberty Street, is SKR
Classical, featuring classical
records. What's good about SKR
Classical is, unlike stores that
handle multiple genres of music,
SKR Classical handles only clas-
sical music, and hence they tend
to know what they are talking
about.
Around the corner on South
State Street is the Grooveyard,
with a hip-hop atmosphere. The
Grooveyard handles turntable
accessories for all you spinnin'
DJs out there, and they also
have a selection of vinyl LPs. The Grooveyard also has
t-shirts and other hip-hop paraphernalia, and their sales
(half-price t-shirts come to mind) often offer great
deals.
A few doors down on South State Street is another Ann
Arbor institution, the Wazoo. Along with Schoolkids and
PJs (more on that later), the Wazoo is
one of the stores that defines Ann
Arbor with its indescribable
atmosphere. The Wazoo
specializes in used discs,
and it has what many
consider to be the
largest selection of
used discs in town,
at competitive
prices. Like all used
record stores, the
Wazoo buys used
discs at a reasonable
!d and price, though it offers a
:ENTER better deal for trade than for
cash. Interestingly enough, the
Wazoo also has news discs, which
are often available at some of the
most underrated bargain prices in
its town.
The aforementioned PJ's Used
Records and CDs, across town near
Arbor
and
y, etc.
g shows
hers
6-3518
1853
-special * It\ A >
the intersection of South State and Packard streets, is
another store specializing in used discs. PJ's still has a
large selection of vinyl, and their selection of CDs is
always growing. PJ's has an atmosphere similar to the
Wazoo, and being in the store is simply "Ann Arbor." And
if you've always wanted that Kiss album on vinyl, this is
the place to find it.
Last and certainly not least, is Liberty Street Records,
on East Liberty Street near the Schoolkids'
shops. Liberty Street Records has a
large selection of used vinyl in all
genres, but its used CD prices
rival, and may surpass, that of the
Wazoo's.
What makes Liberty Street
Records special is its large selec-
tion of used rap/R&B and jazz
discs, which are often hard to find
used. Prices are about the same as
at PJ's and the Wazoo for used discs,
and Liberty Street Records is quickly
becoming a favorite for Ann Arbor's audio-
philes.
With so many record stores in so few square miles, it's
easy to see to see why Ann Arbor is known as a music
lover's paradise. Of course, with so many great stores
offering everything under the sun - from rap to classi-
cal to rock to alternative to jazz - Ann Arbor can be a
catalyst toward bankruptcy for all audiophiles.
See Michigan's innovative establishe
emerging artists. ANN ARBOR ART C
Exhibition Gallery call 994-8004
r
GALERIE JACQUES 616 Wesley Ann
665-9889 Showing art from Europe
US - Guyton, Mackey, Goux, SendreN
INSTITUTE FOR.HUMANITIES - ongoir
and talks by UM art faculty and ot
915 E. Washington/1512 Rackham 93
KEMPF HOUSE 312 S Division - tour
Greek revival home; Victorian interior
JONATHAN LURIE/i ldy
bz
li
V i
F'1
0 DA
F
VID BROWNELL
Repair and Restoration
events. 994-4898 for hours.
KERRYTOWN CONCERT HOUSE 415 N. 4th Ave.
concert series and art exhibits
available for bookings. 769-2999.
MADE BY HAND GALLERY - 8 miles south
. 9. . .- -%^l A '
of Bows & Instruments
*on't make your violin work when it's sick!
With formal training and over 30 years
experience, I repair bows and instruments,
and help you keep your violin or bow healthy and in
the best plaving adjustment. I focus on careful
i
7