Thessaloniki is Greece's second most important city after Athens - Uh huh, now I've made enemies! I meant to say the second biggest and every bit as important as the capital, Athens. Which is why people refer to it as the co-capital, a neologism without any official basis or purpose other than to avoid irking those irritable Greek Macedonians. For those confused by the recent appearance of a sovereign country named Macedonia on the north of Greece, make no mistake: Thessaloniki is where the heart of Macedonia always beat through Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and modern times - although the geographical entity named Macedonia resists easy national categorization: Roughly similar to the ancient (and unquestionably Greek) kingdom of Macedon, it has been inhabited by a plethora of different peoples and has been a theater of bloody struggles between Greeks, Turks, Bulgarians and Serbs. In the end it was divided between Greece, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria. Many of the inhabitants spoke a local Slavonic language idiom but had no distinct national identity. These were declared by the Yugoslav/Croatian communist leader Tito to be ethnic Macedonians, in an effort to suppress Serbian nationalism and Bulgarian influence - which led to the appearance of an independent "Macedonia" after Yugoslavia's dissolution. Thessaloniki itself fell to the Greeks 100 years ago, although at that time it wasn't predominately Greek: It sported big Jewish and Turkish contingents - the "father of modern Turkey" Kemal Ataturk was famously born there, and it was he who drove the invading Greek army out of Anatolia and signed the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey. As a result the city's Muslim population was expelled to Turkey, while in return a huge influx of Greek refugees from Anatolia settled in Thessaloniki. Chances are that most of the people you'll meet there are descended from those refugees. The large and thriving Sephardic Jewish community was tragically annihilated by the Nazis during the German occupation, turning the city into a homogeneously Greek one. Which in no way means a generic Greek city: Thessaloniki has a strong distinctive character, born of the mix of local and Anatolian customs. Visitors should enjoy its famous cuisine, coffee and eating culture, night life, and above all the relaxed pace of life. I always do when I go there, enjoying mezedes and coffe (preferrably with a sea view), strolling around, and checking out the city's record shops. To be honest, they don't offer as much variety or as many bargains as Athens', so it wasn't until my last visit that I undertook the effort to map the record store situation for the sake of this blog.
The place to start is
Dimitriou Gounari, a wide pedestrian road joining the seafront with Camara (the Roman
Galerius' Arc monument). At number 17, you'll find
Zaharias - it's the smaller sibling of the
Athens Monastiraki shop, packed with used CD's (€ 3,5-10) and vinyl. LP's cost €
2,5-25, though most sell for €15, with some offers between €
3-9. Like with the Athens shop all genres are represented, though the variety is much smaller. Right next to it, another 2nd hand store called Alternative, though this also packs all sorts of music and at similar prices (CD's €
4,90-9,90 and LP's €
5-20 but typically around €1
5). On number 21 you'll find Deja Vu Records (damn! I seem to have erased my notes by mistake - as I remember, it is small but packed with average priced 2nd hand vinyl and some CD's). On the opposite side of the road (no.12) is Pare-Dose ("Give and Take"). Ostensibly a semi-underground exchange shop for old books, magazines, dvd's, records and cd's, I didn't expect much but I was pleasantly surprised. Very tidy and with a good size and well-ordered collection of records and CD's despite not being a (strictly speaking) record shop. Probably the best of the city's 2nd hand shops in which to browse, with a friendly and helpful owner.
Most CD's cost €
7-9, a few as low as €
2. LPs €
4-20 but most commonly around €
10. Studio 52 on number 46 is a basement shop focusing in Greek and classical music. Close to these (Filikis Eterias 33) you'll find Steel Gallery Records, which I believe is also an indie metal label. The shop has old-looking metal CD's (around €
15). I didn't recognize much, but it may be a good place to find something out of print. But the real metalhead paradise is Alone Metal Store in the same neighborhood (G.Theohari 2). Virtually everything about metal, including T-shirts, CD's (used €5-10,
new around €15) and LP's (
new €
20+ , a few used €
10-20). Noise Records (Dimitri Margariti 5) is
a medium sized modern indie shop that wouldn't seem out of place in London. It has a good collection of Indie, New Wave and Dance music. (New) LP's cost around €
20 and CD's €
8-15 (few offers for €
4-7).
Lotus Records (Skra 7) is probably the biggest and best organized independent record store in the city. Here you'll mostly find Alternative, electronica and everything about Greek indie bands. Used CD's and special offers cost €
3-7, the rest €
6-20. Most LP's €
20+, some used/offers for €
5. On the small Patriarhou Ioakim street (adjustant to the big Egnatias avenue) you'll find Nephilim, a shop with metal paraphernalia and very few CD's, and Inkon, a graphic studio with original T-shirts, posters etc. The owner is a big rock fan (we got into a discussion about rock gigs, starting from my Sonic Youth T-shirt) and also sells some CD's, mostly Greek Alternative and Rock bands. On Aristotelous str (the city's most central location) you can find Thessaloniki's most historic (since '68) record shop Stereodisc. Locals seem to love it, but I didn't think much of it. It has an almost sterile interior, the albums are not well catalogued and there are no prices on them. The Ianos bookshop on the same street has a small record/CD section, while very close on 24 Tsimiski str. you can find the local Public, a chain with books/electronics/music similar to the French fnac. On the basement you'll find a big variety of CD's (normally around €
15, but also many offers €
7-10) and some new vinyl (€
20+). Rounding up, I stumbled into another 2nd hand record store (Vinyl Mania, Mihail I. street) that looked interesting but was closed at the time. Inside I could see lots of Classic Rock and Greek records and some CD's. A couple of addresses I didn't have time to check were: Vinyl Salvation (Victoros Hugo 14, on a roof garden at the 9th floor) and Sky Walker (Karamanli Avenue 187). Maybe on another visit, if I'm not distracted by the good food and loose living rhythm... UPDATE 2019: Unfortunately I haven't been able to visit Thessaloniki again in the last 3 years, to update the record store situation. There has been a big change in the political department though. Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic Of Macedonia agreed on a name for the neighboring country: North Macedonia. Nationalists on both sides cried "treason", and populations were nonplussed rather than appeased. I guess that's the sign of a good compromise, it was never going to be possible to satisfy everyone on both sides. Kudos to the level-headed politicians on both countries who ignored the political cost and went through with it.
Thessaloniki is Greece's second most important city after Athens - Uh huh, now I've made enemies! I meant to say the second biggest and every bit as important as the capital, Athens. Which is why people refer to it as the co-capital, a neologism without any official basis or purpose other than to avoid irking those irritable Greek Macedonians. For those confused by the recent appearance of a sovereign country named Macedonia on the north of Greece, make no mistake: Thessaloniki is where the heart of Macedonia always beat through Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman and modern times - although the geographical entity named Macedonia resists easy national categorization: Roughly similar to the ancient (and unquestionably Greek) kingdom of Macedon, it has been inhabited by a plethora of different peoples and has been a theater of bloody struggles between Greeks, Turks, Bulgarians and Serbs. In the end it was divided between Greece, Yugoslavia and Bulgaria. Many of the inhabitants spoke a local Slavonic language idiom but had no distinct national identity. These were declared by the Yugoslav/Croatian communist leader Tito to be ethnic Macedonians, in an effort to suppress Serbian nationalism and Bulgarian influence - which led to the appearance of an independent "Macedonia" after Yugoslavia's dissolution. Thessaloniki itself fell to the Greeks 100 years ago, although at that time it wasn't predominately Greek: It sported big Jewish and Turkish contingents - the "father of modern Turkey" Kemal Ataturk was famously born there, and it was he who drove the invading Greek army out of Anatolia and signed the 1923 population exchange between Greece and Turkey. As a result the city's Muslim population was expelled to Turkey, while in return a huge influx of Greek refugees from Anatolia settled in Thessaloniki. Chances are that most of the people you'll meet there are descended from those refugees. The large and thriving Sephardic Jewish community was tragically annihilated by the Nazis during the German occupation, turning the city into a homogeneously Greek one. Which in no way means a generic Greek city: Thessaloniki has a strong distinctive character, born of the mix of local and Anatolian customs. Visitors should enjoy its famous cuisine, coffee and eating culture, night life, and above all the relaxed pace of life. I always do when I go there, enjoying mezedes and coffe (preferrably with a sea view), strolling around, and checking out the city's record shops. To be honest, they don't offer as much variety or as many bargains as Athens', so it wasn't until my last visit that I undertook the effort to map the record store situation for the sake of this blog. 
The place to start is Dimitriou Gounari, a wide pedestrian road joining the seafront with Camara (the Roman Galerius' Arc monument). At number 17, you'll find Zaharias - it's the smaller sibling of the Athens Monastiraki shop, packed with used CD's (€ 3,5-10) and vinyl. LP's cost €2,5-25, though most sell for €15, with some offers between €3-9. Like with the Athens shop all genres are represented, though the variety is much smaller. Right next to it, another 2nd hand store called Alternative, though this also packs all sorts of music and at similar prices (CD's €4,90-9,90 and LP's €5-20 but typically around €15). On number 21 you'll find Deja Vu Records (damn! I seem to have erased my notes by mistake - as I remember, it is small but packed with average priced 2nd hand vinyl and some CD's). On the opposite side of the road (no.12) is Pare-Dose ("Give and Take"). Ostensibly a semi-underground exchange shop for old books, magazines, dvd's, records and cd's, I didn't expect much but I was pleasantly surprised. Very tidy and with a good size and well-ordered collection of records and CD's despite not being a (strictly speaking) record shop. Probably the best of the city's 2nd hand shops in which to browse, with a friendly and helpful owner. 
Most CD's cost €7-9, a few as low as €2. LPs €4-20 but most commonly around €10. Studio 52 on number 46 is a basement shop focusing in Greek and classical music. Close to these (Filikis Eterias 33) you'll find Steel Gallery Records, which I believe is also an indie metal label. The shop has old-looking metal CD's (around €15). I didn't recognize much, but it may be a good place to find something out of print. But the real metalhead paradise is Alone Metal Store in the same neighborhood (G.Theohari 2). Virtually everything about metal, including T-shirts, CD's (used €5-10, new around €15) and LP's (new €20+ , a few used €10-20). Noise Records (Dimitri Margariti 5) is a medium sized modern indie shop that wouldn't seem out of place in London. It has a good collection of Indie, New Wave and Dance music. (New) LP's cost around €20 and CD's €8-15 (few offers for €4-7).
No comments:
Post a Comment