Some things have such a significant effect on culture that even past their heyday, they can resurrect themselves like a pop-culture Lazarus and continue that wave of popularity like it never stopped in the first place. The vinyl record is such a thing. Vinyl has risen from the dead for a great many years now, and it doesn’t show any signs of slowing down anytime soon, so its reign of influence doesn’t seem to have a clear end in sight.

Which is great because who doesn’t love the retro/modern sensibilities of vinyl? So, for those of you out there looking to add a few more gems to your vinyl collection or you’re looking to start one, the many record stores in Buffalo Niagara will indeed have what you’re looking for!

Getting a vinyl is never as simple as just “getting a vinyl” (even if you already know what you want before stepping into the store). Getting a vinyl is always, at best, an adventure, and at worse, a mildly tiring time with its occasional peaks. Because when you’re looking for vinyl, you can’t just look at one. It’s impossible. Your eye naturally wanders then your headed down a rabbit hole. Before you know it, you’re flipping covers with such speed from one to the next you half expect there to be a moving picture effect to take place.

This can be wonderful or annoying because it’s involuntary. If you have even a smidge of interest in records, this is going to happen. You can set the alarm on your phone, tell yourself I’m only going to be here for x amount of minutes, or give yourself a fake excuse so you can leave. Whatever you choose, it will only get you so far before you’re sucked in quasi-hunched over the crate like you’re inspecting a well. It comes down to the allure of the vinyl. The way its frame fits in those eye-catching covers. The slight rush you get when you slide it out, to do an obligatory spin between your hands. Thus placing it on the record player. As you slowly let the needle hit the black river flowing like a match hits a brittle surface, you then feel a tiny electric spark within yourself right before the music starts.

Although it may be a common thing that many record stores do, all these things combined nonetheless have the effect of putting you in a transient spell. With the music playing in the background along with the collage effect of the vinyl on the walls, all adding up to put you in the mood to scavenge for vinyl (whether that was your initial intention or not), this is indeed a prime place for scavenging the crates set out all across the store, brimming with vinyl peaking out begging to be flipped through and discovered. There’s none of that records-laying-on-top-of-each-other poor organizational skills here.

No, at Revolver Records, the crate is king, and may it reign forever! It’s the type of place where you walk in, you dive into a crate, and after a while you glance at your phone thinking only 10 or 15 minutes have gone by only to discover a half-hour has gone away as you try to decide which cover has the best Al Green smile on it. The places’ layout is engaging as well. With the records and crates at the bottom floor, and the manager at the top of a small flight of stairs like a cool dad chilling out upstairs while the kids are having a good time downstairs rummaging through his old records. It’s a natural homey feel that works for the place.

In life, there are very few things that have a timeless quality. Everything seems to have a time and a place. Then they make way for something else. Yet the vinyl came back and thus only made room for itself. It’s a rare occurrence that not too many other forms of media will experience. This may be due to the vinyl’s design. Is it that the look of the sleek black disk never really goes out of style? Is it the sound quality that, when paired with good speakers, beats cassettes, CDs, and streaming? Or is it the bragging rights and pride one gets when he or she knows they have a stupendous vinyl collection waiting for them at home?

Perhaps it’s a bit of all these answers plus a few more that I haven’t touched upon that add up to make up the reason as to the vinyl longevity. However, as it stands, the vinyl itself is still standing strong with tens of thousands of people hearing the reading crackle of their record player as I write this.

So why not stop by one of the great record stores in Buffalo Niagara and give yourself an excuse to hear that alluring crackle once again!