Despite the 21st century surge in digital media, The niche of Vinyl records is one of the largest in the music community, and has caught the attention of me and many of my peers. “I listen to vinyl because I think it’s cool to be able to display my music, and I think it sounds better than streaming,” says two people in my eighth grade class who listen to records.
One of the reasons many music enthusiasts continue to listen to vinyl is due to the experience of going to a record store and choosing out a record to buy. Therefore, I have decided to visit and review four record stores here in the North Bay, all of them within about 30 minutes of the valley.
Red Devil Records, 894 4th St, San Rafael
Established in 1998 in Petaluma and moved to its current location in San Rafael in 2004, this record store feels very old fashioned, with warm lighting, brown floor carpet, and jazz often playing in the background.
The owner of the store claims “We specialize in rare records”, one example being a copy of the Johnny Cash record “Folsom Prison Blues” that has never been played. The store additionally has a large selection of jazz and world records, two very different genres, however both very abundant here.
Overall, this is an excellent record store if you are a collector or a fan of uncommon albums.
Watts Music, 1211 Grant Ave, Novato
Established in 1979, Watts Music has a much more youthful ambiance inside, with stickers everywhere and many contemporary albums at the front of the store. That said, when you go a little further into the store, you will find a massive selection of 90s music, whether that be rap, alternative, or pop, as well as lots of interesting and uncommon soundtrack records.
The owner of Watts says “The most important aspect of the store is affordable prices for students and teachers”, allowing them to explore their hobbies without breaking the bank. If you love 90s music or modern music, Watts is a superb destination.
Paradise Found Records & Music, 316 B St, Petaluma
Established very recently in 2023, Paradise Found records has a very modern and simplistic design inside, which compliments much of the record selection. The store has one of the largest selections of abstract indie and emo I have ever seen, and according to the owner, that is what they specialise in. The store also cleans all of the used records they receive and sell, a nice attention to detail.
Rain Dog Records, 1010 Petaluma Blvd N, Petaluma
Established quite recently in 2021, Rain Dog Records has a very similar modern ambiance to Paradise Found Records & Music, however specializes in different music. This store has a fabulous selection of both Punk and metal as well as classic Rock.
One of the co-founders of the store claims The store focuses on the community aspect of music, as they often hold concerts there and have a wall for band adverts. He claims this is important to him as “Before me and the other two co-founders established Rain Dog Records about 4 years ago, the three of us were in a band together.”
