Recommendations for good record/thrift stores in London

April 4, 2019 2:31 PM

Posting this here as to not threadjack the other London thread, but might anyone know of any good indie record/thrift/book/zine stores (i.e. not pricey and offering items not usually sold at Mainstream Online Outlets e.g. punk, experimental, noise) in the London area? We'll be heading there in October and, while we won't have much free time, if we happen to have an hour or so.... (Not dissing on vinyl, but stores with at least some CDs (less likely to break during travel) would be preferable).
posted by gtrwolf to Travel & Transportation around London, England (7 answers total)

Lots of possibilities listed at Discogs' VinylHub!

I would quibble that CDs are more fragile than LPs. 45s are a bit brittle, probably a bit more than CDs, but they're also easier to fit in a carryon. LPs are quite flexible, though!
posted by rhizome at 3:14 PM on April 4, 2019

Cigarette Records Is an indie label with a vintage record shop in a decaying mansion house in a South London manor park. Somewhat out of the way but a real treat if you’re up for the adventure of finding it.
posted by freya_lamb at 4:59 PM on April 4, 2019 [2 favorites]

Oops - missed that you won’t have much time, in which case recommendations would be easier if you could share which part/s of London you’re headed to.
posted by freya_lamb at 5:05 PM on April 4, 2019

Response by poster: recommendations would be easier if you could share which part/s of London you’re headed to.

Actually that's still TBD (we're looking for a not-too-pricey-but-still-bedbug-free hotel/motel/whatever near a tube station) so I'm open to any and all suggestions at this point.
posted by gtrwolf at 10:07 PM on April 4, 2019

Casbah records on Creek Road in Greenwich. (The Travelodge down the road in Deptford is affordable and near the DLR.)
posted by BAKERSFIELD! at 11:28 PM on April 4, 2019 [1 favorite]

Slight derail but if it is not too expensive for your budget, check out the Travelodge hotel in Middlesex Street (E1 7EZ). I manage to get a room there for just over £100 a night which by London standards isn't that bad at all. I checked all the standard hotels and Airbnb of course and this was by far the best value. Especially in terms of location. It is very near the Aldgate tube stop. I am older traveller and my days of staying in youth hostels, on my own, are long gone so I don't mind the cost so much.
posted by vac2003 at 12:17 AM on April 5, 2019 [1 favorite]

If you stay at (or near) that Travelodge, then you'll be a hop skip & a jump away from Rough Trade East.
posted by rd45 at 1:49 AM on April 5, 2019 [1 favorite]