Record stores and vintage shops of all types have made Greenpoint a vinyl collector’s destination for years, and some of the local shops reopen this weekend — which also happens to be the first of three Record Store Days this year — for the first time since the pandemic started.
Academy Records (85 Oak St.) closed their brick-and-mortar shops in Greenpoint and the East Village in the winter and began selling LPs via Instagram and their online Discogs store. Both locations reopened Friday for limited in-person shopping for the first time in months.
Academy will be open Friday – Sunday going forward, with cartons of dollar records on the sidewalk, and with a limit of three people inside the store at a time; masks and sanitized hands are required.
“We’ve sectioned off the shops into smaller versions of themselves, putting the best stuff out,” a note on Instagram states along with instructions for RSD. “Oak street is like a very well curated used new arrivals bin with a few rows of choice new releases/ reissues/ best sellers.”
Record Grouch (988 Manhattan Ave.) reopened on June 26th after 15 weeks of closure and is participating in RSD on Saturday as in years past, according to a note on their website regarding safety procedures:
From 9 a.m.-12 p.m. we will allow three people in the store at a time for fifteen minutes of shopping. On a first come first served basis, you must reserve an appointment by emailing us: [email protected] with the subject line “Record Store Day.” Our hope is to avoid people lining up, standing and congregating on the sidewalk. Public health, the well-being of our neighbors and other shops here in Greenpoint remains our primary concern. Once the 9-12 spots are completed, we will revert to normal operational hours and policies for the remainder of the day.
Captured Tracks (195 Calyer St.) also reopened for in-person shopping at the end of June and is open on Saturday from 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. for RSD “with a ton of fresh used stock” and complimentary beverages from Matchabar.
Rough Trade (64 N 9th St.) moved sales online at the start of the pandemic and the Williamsburg record shop is back for in-person browsing again, including this Saturday from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. for RSD. See the full list of titles the store will be carrying here. Rough Trade will also assist shoppers with social distancing with a wishlist form available to fill out ahead of time.