Antwerp Record Shops

Antwerp Train Station

I recently visited Antwerp for the purpose of meeting a cousin whose ship was docked on the harbor there. I've been constantly travelling between Belgium and Holland during the last years, so I must have passed through Antwerp close to a hundred times but this was just the 3rd time I stepped out of the train and into the city. The first sights that greet the visitor are the impressive art-nouveau train station and the diamond district around it, still hosting a considerable Orthodox Jewish community. The nearby zoo attracts many visitors and was the focus of my first visit as we were with a family of friends with children. The second one was short and purely professional, but this time I had enough time to visit the city center. Like with all the Flemish cities I've visited so far, the old town is a real beauty - but contrary to e.g. Brugges, it feels less like walking through a museum and more like a bustling metropolis (for BENELUX standards, that is - the city is home to almost 1 million people). With a couple of hours to kill, I decided to do what I always do in a new city and seek out the record shops. I did make a google search on my mobile, but  I found the first one by accident above an international press shop in Melkmarkt, where I went looking for the latest English music magazines.

The Vinyl Outlet

It's called Tune Up Records and has a really nice atmosphere and a couple of coffee tables on the corner. It only sells vinyl and has a rather good collection. Music lovers are bound to find something to their taste, though price-wise there don't seem to be any real bargains. Just a few hundred meters further, on Lange Koepoortstraat, one can find the similarly vinyl-only Vinyl Touch and, on the opposite side, The Vinyl Outlet. Being a real bargain hunter, I spent some time on the latter which offered 4 LP's or CD's for €10. At the time all CD's were reduced to €1 per piece, although it took a lot of searching to unearth some worthwhile items. Right next to the Outlet, there's another big record store, The Rocking Bull. (Sint-Jacobsmarkt 77). This shop sells everything music-related, including lots of T-shirts, posters and badges - with a (serious) emphasis on Metal. There's a bargains section, too, and I got a few CD's here, too. 

The Vinyl Touch

The Rocking Bull

Which brings us to the reason I went to Lange Koepoortstraat at the first place, Fat Kat Records. It seemed very promising from what I've read, but it was closed on the day of my visit (Sunday). In any case, it won't be staying in that address for long, as it's soon moving to new premises in Vleminckstraat. The last record shop I visited in Antwerp was the local FNAC store. Although technically not record stores, shops of the French FNAC chain offer (new) music CD's alongside books, DVD's, games and electronics. Antwerp's FNAC is rather large and sports a big variety in CD's and lots of special offers, as well as listening stations (always a big plus).  It's situated inside the grand bazar shopping center. Time limitations meant I didn't get the chance to visit some other shops I found on the internet, but here are some addresses for your information: There's Chelsea Records on Kloosterstraat 10 (lots of second hand CD's and LP's - sounds like my kind of shop), Wally's Groove World on Lange Nieuwstraat 126 (mostly dance-related stuff, yucks!) and Coffee and Vinyl on Volkstraat 45, selling new and 2nd hand records as well as, presumably, coffee. Hope to check them out on a later visit and update the post with useful info for fellow record collectors...   

UPDATE 2022: I was in Antwerp yesterday for another reason, and thought to take a moment and check the record store situation again. Which is when I realized that my blogpost is woefully outdated: Fat Kat and Vinyl Touch closed their doors permanently sometime during the corona pandemic. Tune Up Records moved to a new address (Melkmarkt 20), this time on the ground floor, on a small square. Still a very good collection in classic rock, jazz, soul, alternative etc. Used LP's mostly €10-25, new ones €25+. I also visited one of the city's oldest record stores (25 years): Backtrack Record Shop (Sint-Katelijnevest 40) is small but likeable. Sells new LP's for the usual prices plus other music related items like mugs, slipmats etc. Next to it there's a shop called War Records. Seems to be all about dance music; yesterday there was a DJ playing and a small crowd gathering outside, I could not get in and check the merchandise. Grey's Vinyl Treasures (Korte Nieuwstraat 6) is one for the collectors: you'll find collectible music from around the world (psych, prog etc) at somewhat steeper prices, as well as other nice LP's for €15-30. Another shop in the historic center (Kaasrui 4) is Record Collector. Good for jazz, soul, and classic rock, all 2nd hand. About half the records in the shop cost €15-10, while the other half are on sale for €3- €5- €7. Some good stuff in here, too. It was almost closing time, so once again I didn't get to go to Chelsea, Wally's or Coffee and Vinyl, but they're all thankfully still going strong. I hope to visit them next time, as well as those other record stores I found on the internet: Sound Architecture (mostly electronic music, Simonsstraat 21), Inside Records (Sint-Jacobsmarkt 76), Morbus Gravis "Music Space" (Lange Kievitstraat 30), Panoply Books & Records (books/comics/CD's/DVDs/vinyl, Wolstraat 1), Djingel Djangel (Bordeauxstraat 7a), Bananarama (Pelikaanstraat 3, near the zoo), and Sugar Pie Records (Gierstraat 3). I think most of them weren't around 6 years ago, so it's not all bad news: shops close, others open. It's the way of life - or, in any case, of commerce.