Vienna record shops

If only one city could claim to be the city of music that would certainly be Vienna. After hosting so many great composers (from Mozart to Beethoven, Schubert and the Strauss dynasty), classical music lives in every Viennese's DNA - which may explain why pop/rock music hasn't found such a fertile ground here: the only internationally known Austrian pop artist I can honestly think of is Falco. I spent a few days discovering the city sometime ago - drink great coffee in its famous cafes, visit the world's oldest amusement park, taste the most famous schnitzels and, as always, browse at the record shops. Thankfully there are a lot of them still standing, and all in walking distance from the center. I'll start with the one you may have already seen even if you don't know it:

Teuchtler Records (Windmuhlgasse 10) is featured in the cult romantic film "Before Sunrise", a favourite of mine which I've been meaning to watch again hoping I'll now recognize some of the scenery. Teuchtler may be a bit messy and chaotic (qualities not usually associated with Vienna) but that just adds to the atmosphere. So it'll take some searching but you're bound to find something good and cheap, and the staff is really helpful and friendly so you won't regret the time you spent there. Here you'll find both classical and pop/rock CD's and vinyl records for €4-10. Just round the corner on Capistrangasse 3, you'll find Scout Records. Also a bit messy, and rather more expensive (CD's €4-15, LPs mostly €15-25, some offers €1-3). You'll find Classical music, German language music, mainstream pop/rock as well as some rare Psych and Prog and many singles. If you feel like something more well-ordered take the Maria Hilferstrasse shopping street and head for the Saturn electronic chain store. There's a big variety of new (did I mention the previous shops sold mostly 2nd hand stuff?) CD's for €5-18 and LP's €20+. I keep getting surprised with the constantly growing LP section in mainstream shops now. Just a few years earlier vinyl had almost disappeared and now it occupies almost 50% of the shop's surface.

Next up is Recordbag, near the Neubaugasse metro station (Kollergerngasse 4). Its motto is "music and fashion", and you'll indeed find many music-related T-shirts and other stuff. Good selection of new CD's (€13-20) and LP's (€17-30), mostly in alternative/indie rock. Still in the neighborhood (Richtergasse 6) there's Das LoKal, a non-profit cafe/2nd hand store with a good music selection. Many pop & rock CD's on offer for €4, lots of jazz (€5-10) and LP's (€5-15). 

Substance, a bit further north (Westbahnstrasse 16), is a large independent record store selling in equal measure LP's (new around €20, used €6-20) and CD's (€10-20). It has a big variety in indie rock, new wave and electronica, slightly less on classic rock, jazz and world music. If you return on the Neubaugasse and keep going north (left), you'll see on no. 51 a wooden facade. It is the entrance to Black Monk Records, a small but well-stocked shop for vinyl (and a few CD's, mostly around €10). You'll find many cult items, including rare reissues of everything from Kraut Rock to Turkish psych, jazz, Afrobeat etc. Most LP's cost over €20, but there also some offers for €3-4. From Black Monk, the second street to the right will lead you to Neustiftgasse and Sing-Sing - the 2nd hand music store, not the infamous American prison. It is packed but well-ordered with a nice and friendly ambience. You can take your CD's to the player and listen, the discs are still in the box. I've seen it in other shops in Vienna, too: it is as if shop-lifting is something that happens to other, less cultivated lands. Another thing that made a positive impression on me is that almost all shops are equipped with listening stations, making shopping a much more positive experience. Sing-Sing has a wide selection of genres (punk/alternative, classic rock, soul, reggae, metal etc) in great prices: CD's mostly cost €6 (offers  €2) and LP's usually  €5-9, up to about €20. One street above Sing Sing (on Lerchenfelder Str. 33) is Moses Records, possibly your best source of used records and CD's in the city. It's quite big and well-ordered and well-stocked in both CD's and LP's. All genres including Rock/Metal, World music, Country/americana and German language music. 

The prices are also on the cheap side: CD's mostly cost €4-7 and LP's €5-20. There are also a few offers for €1-2. Your walk has now brought you near to the museum quarter and historical center. In the historical center itself, you won't find many record shops other than EMI Austria. It obviously has some connection to the EMI record label and sells lots of classical music and mainstream rock. It is very tidy but the prices are rather high - I wouldn't recommend it unless you are already in the center and don't have time to browse around. 

A shop I definetely would recommend is Rave Up Records on Hofmühlgasse 1, next to the Pilgramgasse station. First of all, what can be cooler than their logo with the face of my favourite politician/singer Screaming Lord Sutch, founder of the Monster Raving Loony Party? Secondly, it sports a great selection of cult Alternative/Indie/Garage/Punk records on vinyl. I never knew they had reissued all that stuff! Great atmosphere, no real bargains price-wise but not expensive either (new LP's €15-25, CD's €13-20). I visited a couple of other shops that didn't have much interest for me, e.g. Dynamic Records (dance music and T-shirts) and Tongues (dance music, according to googlemaps it is now permanently closed). I also got some (60's reissues) records from a clothes boutique with crazy multicolored hippy stuff that reminded me of old Dalianidis' musical comedies - too bad I can't remember the name or location. Last but not least, I'll share the addresses of some Vienna record shops that I've found on the internet but didn't have time to visit. Can't guarantee this info is current or accurate, but you may want to check out these: Disc Point (Linke Wienzeile 64, vinyl/70s rock), Record Shack (Reinprechtsdorfer Strasse 60, 2nd hand & reissues 60s/70s/80s), Audio Center (Judenplatz 9), Schallplatten Brigitte (Laxenburger Strasse 4), Raritaten Kraus (Schonbrunner Strasse 22), Seven Star Records (Siebensterngasse 9), Deep Soul Records (Rotenmuhlgasse 3), Friendly House (Wiednerhaupstrasse 39,  techno/hiphop/dj equipment), Griller Records (Magdalenenstrasse 21, used vinyl, indie/punk/metal etc), Totem Records (Zollergasse 18-20, metal/darkwave), Transformer (Kettenbruckengasse 1, New Wave/Garage/Punk). Quite a bunch, aren't they? Well, good for the Viennese. A healthy number of record stores proves that Vienna really still is the city of music...