Found: Thriving Record Store in the Wilds of NJ

Was in Princeton, NJ over the weekend and popped into the venerable Princeton Record Exchange. Holy 1990s! I haven’t seen a record store that hoppin’ since, well, since the last time I was in Amoeba. Conventional wisdom says Amoeba’s the exception that proves just how bad things have gotten for indie record shops (and I’ve read that even Amoeba’s sales are off by as much as a third), but it was heartening to see the vinyl aisles at the PRE packed two or three people deep on a Saturday afternoon.

So, what’s their secret? It doesn’t hurt that the PRE is across the street from Princeton Univ. (Yes, Virginia, some college kids still buy records), but there’s an even simpler explanation: the PRE is wicked cheap! Anecdotally, I’d say their prices are half or even a third that of your average NYC used vinyl shop. And they have a massive new arrivals section that doesn’t feel the least bit picked over, to boot.

Record shopping can be a pretty solitary experience these days. I left the PRE remembering what it is I love - and miss - about the sense of community a great record store can give you. Even if that community consists largely of underage stoners and middle-age dudes who live with their mom.

I scored some cool stuff too:

Kim Fowley - ‘Outrageous’ - $7
Mandala - ‘Soul Crusade’ - $5
The Nice - ‘Ars Longa Vita Brevis’ - $5
The Main Attraction - ‘And Now...’ - $8