Store recommendations in Tokyo or Osaka

[sakst42]

Hi All,
Looking for recommendations for Record stores in Tokyo and Osaka that will have SACDs, Blu-Rays Audios etc.

Also - Does Tower Records carry them in store or only online?

Thanks in advance!

 

[boxhead]

Hi All,
Looking for recommendations for Record stores in Tokyo and Osaka that will have SACDs, Blu-Rays Audios etc.

Also - Does Tower Records carry them in store or only online?

Thanks in advance!

I've just returned from those two cities. Definitely give the HMV store near Osaka station a miss - they had nothing of interest. And the Tower Records in Akiharbara seems to have gone missing as well. Sorry, nothing good to report but maybe I just missed something.

 

[jefe1]

What about the Disc Union store in Shinjuko area of Tokyo? They had several locations with different specialties.
I would hope one could find some of those Sony SACD 7 inchers in a Tower Records store.

 

[sakst42]

I've just returned from those two cities. Definitely give the HMV store near Osaka station a miss - they had nothing of interest. And the Tower Records in Akiharbara seems to have gone missing as well. Sorry, nothing good to report but maybe I just missed something.

Much appreciated Boxhead... ultimately, ordering online might be more fruitful.

But heck I still want to experience walking into that one well stocked store (any store) somewhere far from home, you know?

 

[Mr. Afternoon]

Sometimes Bookoff will have the older titles...

 

[ogrequad]

Much appreciated Boxhead... ultimately, ordering online might be more fruitful.

But heck I still want to experience walking into that one well stocked store (any store) somewhere far from home, you know?

Definitely check out the multi-story Disk Union store in the Shinjuku District of Tokyo - I can't speak to whether they carry SACDs and such, but when I was there back in 2008, it was stocked with plenty of fantastic stuff and the experience was unforgettable. When I was in the store, our local host pointed out that famed psych/noise guitarist Keiji Haino was shopping in the same aisle as us and I was able to meet him and get a photo. Super cool moment from our trip/tour.

We visited one other CD store that I believe was outside/near Osaka that was stocked with tons of obscure 60s and 70s psychedelic and hard rock discs. I picked up a bunch of great discs there, but I have no memory of exactly where it was, so I can't help you there.

Enjoy your trip - Japan is amazing!

 

[Lute]

Along with their Shinjuku stores, Disk Union also has several shops around Ochanomizu station (in central Tokyo) that are worth checking out. There is even another shop (albeit smaller) down the street from Ochanomizu, near Jimbocho station.

Tower Records has been expanding their vinyl section in recent years. However, if you have time, you might want to check out Tower Records in Shibuya. I believe it’s their biggest retail store in Tokyo.

HMV‘s retail shops have been downsized to small stores that seem to cater more to J-Pop and K-Pop fans.

Akihabara has morphed into an Anime/Game/Manga town.

 

[Sonik Wiz]

Hi All,
Looking for recommendations for Record stores in Tokyo and Osaka that will have SACDs, Blu-Rays Audios etc.

Also - Does Tower Records carry them in store or only online?

Thanks in advance!

Best of luck & best of fun in your visit to Japan! Please keep us informed how it goes & post a few pics!!

 

[sakst42]

Best of luck & best of fun in your visit to Japan! Please keep us informed how it goes & post a few pics!!

I posed this question on some FB groups too - I am getting the impression that in general, most stores selling high rez / multichannel content have gone online (over bricks and mortar)

I will go to 1-2 stores and definitely share my experience here for the 2023 update / reality check.

That said - I sure hope I can fine a fine local club or two for for live jazz performances...

Thank you all for your input. Keep the faith... Quadio October discs, Moondance and so much more happening over the next 2-3 months. And hoping for Who's Next on a standalone sooner than later... So much to look forward to!!

 

[Sonik Wiz]

Hey @sakst42 I thought I'd bump this thread & see if you've got an update on your travel adventures. Also I found another place in Tokyo to buy records at where you would never expect to:

https://soranews24.com/2022/10/31/t...store-with-a-secret-dj-booth-in-the-basement/

 

[sakst42]

Hey @sakst42 I thought I'd bump this thread & see if you've got an update on your travel adventures. Also I found another place in Tokyo to buy records at where you would never expect to:

https://soranews24.com/2022/10/31/t...store-with-a-secret-dj-booth-in-the-basement/

Thank you for this reminder! I had typed some notes while traveling and needed to clean up! Hope this helps!

Top Line: For Tokyo. As of Oct 2023.

1. Tower Records: focuses on new condition media of all types
2. Disk Union: has significantly more used media + new condition content. Probably over a dozen locations. Each of which has different inventory, not searchable across stores even by their own staff

I decided not to go to the smaller shops as more than likely they would focus only on LPs and tend to have odd hours / days of operation. I had a flexible agenda and truly enjoyed the "chase" at Disk Union locations. In all honesty it was a gamble from store to store.

Unless it’s an in print / newer release, you are going to have to dig through and HOPE Which was fun for me as I had all the time in the world.

Other thoughts:

• The stores were generally busy with enthusiastic customers of all age ranges (Tower Shibuya was an absolute mad house though)
• Disk Union focuses a lot more on used. And had a much wider selection of box sets than TR. Depending on the location DU might have a specialized store or section - e.g. classical only or Punk only etc.
• Osaka had a Classical only shop, nothing else. Luckily I asked if they had any Jazz and he pointed me to the store on the other side of the hall with other genres (yeah, I missed it. But in fairness, it was kinda dark in the building )
• High resolution content is not distinguishable easily. Some stores had tiny High Res (“Audiophile”) sections. Most places SACDs etc. were simply mixed in with the rest of the media. Sometimes you can spot the SHM or SACD or Blue Spec logos. But hit and miss. I did manage to find multiple SACDs. It took more effort than I would have liked. Still the thrill of “the chase”… you know
• The spines are often in Kanji / Kana (?) But sometimes a thumb nail of the album cover maybe visible on the spine
• Even though DU stores have the same brand name, it’s almost as if they operate individually. One store cannot look up the used inventory of another or may only focus on a handful of genres.
• If you are looking for Japanese artists (Jazz / City Pop) - you will have to ask the staff for help as names on the artist divider thingies will be localized. No English names
• Language does tend to be gap. But services like Google Translate help both parties
• In general artists will be organized by the first letter (Bill Evans is under B, not E)
• Carry your passport if you want them to adjust the taxes for travelers. You cannot come back the next day (same day is ok I believe) And ,yes - I did not have my passport on me. BTW - in general this will only work at retail stores that specifically say they offer the tax refund + as of now there’s was a 5000 yen minimum spend. For instance Disk Union does not offer the tax refund
• The exchange rate as of Oct 2023, made FOMO a little affordable (I spent WAY more than I intended to)
• Lastly, I also ordered several disks from Amazon Japan and had them delivered to my hotel. Shipping was relatively inexpensive needless to say.

For Reference: for those with limited time, would recommend focusing on these.

• Tower Records:
  1. タワーレコード渋谷店- TOWER RECORDS ONLINE - 7 floors!
  2. タワーレコード新宿店- TOWER RECORDS ONLINE - did not visit, but appears to also be multiple floors
• Disk Union:
  1. https://diskunion.net/pdf/shop/e_shop_routemap_l.pdf
  2. OCHANOMIZU Station – 6 different stores!
  3. SHINJUKU Station – 8 different stores!

PS: this was a write up of my Record Store experiences only. The trip has given me a lifetime of memories in terms of culture, food and friendships. For which I will remain eternally grateful and return again & again

 

[Clement]

Great write up! What music did you score?

 

[Mr. Afternoon]

Great write up! What music did you score?

Interested to hear this too...any of the new batch of SACDs from Tower?

 

[sakst42]

Interested to hear this too...any of the new batch of SACDs from Tower?

@Mr. Afternoon, @Clement - just to have a little fun, given the point about the spines in Japanese. How many do you recognize? We shall name this exercise the Alan Parsons Project …

 

[Mr. Afternoon]

@Mr. Afternoon, @Clement - just to have a little fun, given the point about the spines in Japanese. How many do you recognize? We shall name this exercise the Alan Parsons Project …

View attachment 97339

Masayoshi Takanaka - Rainbow Goblins Box, 3 SACD + 2 BD (BDs are upscaled I believe), nice nice nice. unfortunately not flat transfers though, i think the only Takanaka SACDs with flat transfers is the Golden Best one and the Liveteria one
That's the Tatsuro Yamashita Best of Collections...not to be a downer but I have NOT heard good things bout the dynamic range on that box
Hiromi Uehara's Spectrum! And Another Mind!
I see, some kazumi watanabe, nice
TBM SACDs are nice because they're all flat transfers...

Surprised no new Tower SACDs? Were they not there or simply not your taste? Or maybe they're online only and I'm stupid.

 

[Sonik Wiz]

Thank you for this reminder! I had typed some notes while traveling and needed to clean up! Hope this helps!

Top Line: For Tokyo. As of Oct 2023.

1. Tower Records: focuses on new condition media of all types
2. Disk Union: has significantly more used media + new condition content. Probably over a dozen locations. Each of which has different inventory, not searchable across stores even by their own staff

I decided not to go to the smaller shops as more than likely they would focus only on LPs and tend to have odd hours / days of operation. I had a flexible agenda and truly enjoyed the "chase" at Disk Union locations. In all honesty it was a gamble from store to store.

Unless it’s an in print / newer release, you are going to have to dig through and HOPE Which was fun for me as I had all the time in the world.

Other thoughts:

• The stores were generally busy with enthusiastic customers of all age ranges (Tower Shibuya was an absolute mad house though)
• Disk Union focuses a lot more on used. And had a much wider selection of box sets than TR. Depending on the location DU might have a specialized store or section - e.g. classical only or Punk only etc.
• Osaka had a Classical only shop, nothing else. Luckily I asked if they had any Jazz and he pointed me to the store on the other side of the hall with other genres (yeah, I missed it. But in fairness, it was kinda dark in the building )
• High resolution content is not distinguishable easily. Some stores had tiny High Res (“Audiophile”) sections. Most places SACDs etc. were simply mixed in with the rest of the media. Sometimes you can spot the SHM or SACD or Blue Spec logos. But hit and miss. I did manage to find multiple SACDs. It took more effort than I would have liked. Still the thrill of “the chase”… you know
• The spines are often in Kanji / Kana (?) But sometimes a thumb nail of the album cover maybe visible on the spine
• Even though DU stores have the same brand name, it’s almost as if they operate individually. One store cannot look up the used inventory of another or may only focus on a handful of genres.
• If you are looking for Japanese artists (Jazz / City Pop) - you will have to ask the staff for help as names on the artist divider thingies will be localized. No English names
• Language does tend to be gap. But services like Google Translate help both parties
• In general artists will be organized by the first letter (Bill Evans is under B, not E)
• Carry your passport if you want them to adjust the taxes for travelers. You cannot come back the next day (same day is ok I believe) And ,yes - I did not have my passport on me. BTW - in general this will only work at retail stores that specifically say they offer the tax refund + as of now there’s was a 5000 yen minimum spend. For instance Disk Union does not offer the tax refund
• The exchange rate as of Oct 2023, made FOMO a little affordable (I spent WAY more than I intended to)
• Lastly, I also ordered several disks from Amazon Japan and had them delivered to my hotel. Shipping was relatively inexpensive needless to say.

For Reference: for those with limited time, would recommend focusing on these.

• Tower Records:
  1. タワーレコード渋谷店- TOWER RECORDS ONLINE - 7 floors!
  2. タワーレコード新宿店- TOWER RECORDS ONLINE - did not visit, but appears to also be multiple floors
• Disk Union:
  1. https://diskunion.net/pdf/shop/e_shop_routemap_l.pdf
  2. OCHANOMIZU Station – 6 different stores!
  3. SHINJUKU Station – 8 different stores!

PS: this was a write up of my Record Store experiences only. The trip has given me a lifetime of memories in terms of culture, food and friendships. For which I will remain eternally grateful and return again & again

Man what a great come back. Thanks for all the details! And that's an awesome collection of purchases in your other pic. If you have any other cool stories to share you might want to post them in the Simply Random thread. I've wanted to visit Japan & S. Korea for many years, probably never will. So I love reading about those that have.

 

[sakst42]

Masayoshi Takanaka - Rainbow Goblins Box, 3 SACD + 2 BD (BDs are upscaled I believe), nice nice nice. unfortunately not flat transfers though, i think the only Takanaka SACDs with flat transfers is the Golden Best one and the Liveteria one
That's the Tatsuro Yamashita Best of Collections...not to be a downer but I have NOT heard good things bout the dynamic range on that box
Hiromi Uehara's Spectrum! And Another Mind!
I see, some kazumi watanabe, nice
TBM SACDs are nice because they're all flat transfers...

Surprised no new Tower SACDs? Were they not there or simply not your taste? Or maybe they're online only and I'm stupid.

The Three Blind Mice discs are all standard CDs. With the exception of the Hidehiko Matsumoto Quartet title "Sleepy"

With age, space limitations and the need for convenience - I am able to tolerate "quality" of the source as long as I enjoy the music

I bought a bunch of discs that I might not have otherwise considered, since I was already there on the ground. And the exchange rate was very, very favorable. And really just enjoyed the whole experiencing Japan at a different life stage (I was last there 15+ years ago)

BTW @Mr. Afternoon - which are the Tower SACDs you are referring to? Do you mean the Sony EP sized ones? Or something else?

I forgot to mention - I got to see Watanabe live with a few special guests..

@Sonik Wiz - I do hope you will get a chance to visit Japan. For me, its a space where I felt in balance (a polite, respectful society - its an oversimplification, I know; rich & complex history and just amazing food everywhere)

Based on the number of posts I have made, you can see that I'm not a prolific writer (although I suppose I made up for that with an extended write up above!) - but maybe I will share something on the Random thread...

 

[Mr. Afternoon]

BTW @Mr. Afternoon - which are the Tower SACDs you are referring to? Do you mean the Sony EP sized ones? Or something else?

I forgot to mention - I got to see Watanabe live with a few special guests..

Tower has exclusive SACDs they've been making as of recent...the Jadoes 2022 reissues immediately comes to mind...

Also so cool you got to see Watanabe! Did you get a chance to talk to him?