Its great to find an indie record shop alive and kicking in small town like Warminster. The staff…read moreare friendly, knowledgeable and willing to order you in stock if they don't have it. The real joy of the shop is the basement which is full of vinyl from 7" to boxsets. Rows and rows of 80's LP, books, video, tapes. It is a really lovely place to spend a few hours in.

Amazing little shop, half-way down the picturesque Cheap Street in Frome…read more The front window is crammed full of retro goodies - videos of favourite, classic and obscure shows and films from way way back. Even to when videos were first invented! It's certain to trigger a whole fit of I remember that even before you go inside. There are also CD's for sale, music or soundtrack, of old classic hits in the same vein. The owners are passionate about their stock, and if you can't see it on display, they'll do their utmost to get a copy for you. Perfect for finding presents for hard-to-get-for people who are older, and absolute Nostalgia Heaven for a browse around. Prices are very reasonable too, so be warned, you'll probably be unable to resist treating yourself.

Feels like a permanent record fair in here, with vinyl lovely vinyl stacked in genre order all over…read morethe floor and secondhand CDs at hand-flicking height. Great for finding anything more than a few years old. Their dance music vinyl section is particularly strong. Go out the back and up a spirally staircase and you will find more vinyl and also lots of secondhand musical equipment and instruments for sale, from amps to guitars. Bonus is that it is open quite late as you will get sucked in here...

Plastic Wax is very much my sort of record shop. They've got stacks and stacks of second hand CDs…read moreand vinyl covering a variety of genres - I don't think I've seen such a range anywhere else in Bristol. The place has a very stripped down feel to it. This is more or less just a room with lots of boxes with lots of records in - exactly as things should be. Buying music is not a lifestyle choice here. The lack of effort at decorating the place isn't mirrored in their organisation though. The gigantic stock is well ordered, making it easy to find stuff. The prices aren't too bad, and if you keep an eye open for their clearance sales and you may well be able to pick up something on the cheap. They buy as well and claim to offer decent prices though I can't say I've ever sold anything to them. Plastic Wax Records can be summed up as a first class record shop with loads of stock.

From the outside this shop looks every inch the perfect record store. There's graffiti, vinyl in…read morethe window and posters supporting the latest cool bands. Inside is just as trendy. Filled from floor to ceiling with LPs, EPs and CDs. Having a record collector for a Dad I'm used to trawling round record shops, trying to find an elusive 50s jazz record, or a sought after first pressing. But Rooted Records is better for DJs than collectors - especially those who love jungle or drum 'n bass. This shop has a great atmosphere, but sadly I've always left empty handed.

This shop really does give out a vibe of "don't come in unless you're cool enough and know your…read morestuff". It always reminds me of the record shop in Nick Hornby's book, 'High Fidelity', where the guys live their lives through their record collections. Having said that, once you get inside it's a pretty cool little shop. The guys are actually really friendly and helpful. Gloucester Road is definitely a great place to come vinyl shopping in Bristol if not in the whole of the South West.

Split into two little shops either side of the staircase at the back of Clifton Arcade you will…read morefind this little gem of a store. This is how I remember all record shops to be - even the new ones! All items here are second hand and they do a particularly good range of vinyl. Most will be in the rock and pop genres from 60s-80s which is great for me. If you are a Queen fan I think they have everything ever made ever.... They also have CDs, DVDs (mostly in the shop to the left) which are priced around the £6 mark which is the same as online but you get to spend time shuffling round a shop which is infinitely nicer then an online buy. Also t-shirts for you retro slogan wearing kids and music sheets for the talented ones. You are welcome to browse and you will definitely find something unusual here. Like a record fair imploded.

Right at the very end of the Arcade you'll find this record shop. Not huge, but with a good…read moreselection of vinyl and a few posters and CDs as well. They'll have music on when you go in, which I've always thought is a bit questionable, but nothing my ears couldn't bear for ten minutes of browsing. Not big enough to have a properly extensive collection, this isn't really the place for music aficionados. There's specific sections for metal and prog rock, to give you a flavour of what they stock. If you've got a spare tenner and an afternoon in Clifton this is a good place to discover something new. The owner is happy to give advice, and there's just enough on offer for most people to find plenty of stuff they haven't heard before. A run of the mill independent record shop, X is good for wasting a bit of time.

Cunningly disguised as just another warehouse as part of a trading estate, we used to drive past…read morethis not clicking that it is the shop. However when you walk in the banging tunes tend to give it away... Sparsely fitted with some vinyl for decoration and several computer stations for you to find what you want to buy - vinyl, DJ equipment, clothes and some silly gadgets. You take your order to the counter and then someone will find what you want in the warehouse storagy bit and bring it to you. Yes - it is like a super cool Argos. We've bought vinyl and some pretty expensive electronics from here - not that they are expensive, in fact they are willing to negotiate on price a little for the big items if you find it cheaper online. Good for just browsing as well as going in with a purpose, a highly recommended vinyl heaven.

Chemical Records, you have a retail area and someone has chosen to drive to your door wanting to…read morespend money. Do you a) Go to great lengths to help them, and ensure they leave satisfied, happy to recommend you to friends b) Treat them with a reasonable level of interest, attempting to be helpful where possible c) Be indifferent, rebuff your customer's concerns, and if you think you might actually have a helpful answer, stop - count to five - and say something dismissive instead. Judging by my experience, along with other reviewers (Rob E. and Ian D.), Chemical Records chooses (c) every time. Maybe they're great for vinyl, but I went there for DJ equipment. I chose to go there because they are a Bristol retailer with items in stock, rather than an online seller I've never heard of with only pictures. And I truly wish I had not bothered. What I was after was a laptop stand, of which they sell several different types priced from £30 to around £80. Neither member of staff would let me see or even measure the item I was on the verge of choosing, unless I placed and paid for my order - and "no refunds", even if I just peek in the box right there in their shop. So I found myself in the surreal position of having to choose between several items by looking at the limited photos on their own website, using the staff computer right there in the shop. I start to wonder whether this is really any better than the "online seller I've never heard of" option. Apparently not: at least then I could return the product under statutory rights. But no, I'm glad I tried to complete my purchase in the shop because it proved how awkward and indifferent the people at Chemical Records can be. I wanted to compare dimensions of two items. One product page gave dimensions, the other didn't. Staff reaction: "they'll be just the same" Me: "But there's £15 difference in price, and they look different in the photos". Staff: "........." I kid you not. Oh and this is almost funny. One of the photos was upside down (laptop stands have a lip to stop the computer from slipping forwards, but the picture had the lip at the bottom). I pointed this out light-heartedly. "No it's not," came the female reply. "It sits on the edge of the desk". "Hmm... OK, but why do the others all have the lip on the top and this one doesn't?" "Yeah, well... which one do you want?" Ever realised that some interactions are just not worth your time and effort? I pulled up a web browser on my phone and Googled the item number of the KAM laptop stand in question. Up comes www.djstore.com they had exactly the information I wanted. The more expensive stand was adjustable to nearly 80mm higher than the other one. That, Chemical Records, makes a difference. So despite having to pay £3 more to order online, despite having to wait a couple of days for delivery, and despite even being stood two feet from the chap who had it in stock - www.djstore.com is where I chose to buy it.

Growing up with a record collector for a Dad I have always had an affinity towards anywhere selling…read morevinyl . So whenever I'm taking a walk through St Nicholas Market I take time to pay a visit to Wanted Records. Record collecting may now be seen as a bit of a dying art form, so it's always a thrill to see collectors hunting out a rarity or bargain. On the whole Wanted are on the lookout for Jazz, Soul, Funk , Reggae and obscure records rather than pop, country and western or country music. If you're not sure whether what you have to offer is worth anything, it's worth giving them a call rather than dragging your stuff down to the city centre. It doesn't matter whether you're a serious collector, have something to sell or just want to listen to some great music - it's definitely worth a visit. And remember -"we don't buy records by Chris de Burgh"!

Ok...sorry all you other record stores in town (that I love very much) I have found my favourite!…read moreAnd although you might think that is a very subjective decision to make, you'd only be half right. You see the music sold here is the best ever made and is what all the music of today is born out of. Ok needless to say any shop that makes it so the first thing I see as I enter is a label that reads 'Hendrix/Who/Floyd' and then supplies their best albums directly below it in the beautifully preserved vinyl form gets my vote. It's such a fantastic record to store to be in considering they specialise in the old stuff (best stuff), it's so clean and dust-free, unlike some record stores where searching through the boxes and shelves of dusty vinyl can get pretty tiring. They also have the most beautiful collection of records, and tell me, honestly, does anything on earth feel as nice as The White Album by The Beatles on Vynil!? A thing of pure beauty (if your answer to that question is yes, go away, you suck). This is a record store for the guys mentioned in High Fidelity who are looking for deleted Smiths singles! While the owner and his friend (or random customer) discussed a blues record from Memphis in the 60s and play it for us mere mortals to hear and enjoy I began to think that anyone who wanted to start collecting records could enter this shop with £100 and leave with an extensive collection of the best music ever made. I left as the blues singer got into his lyrics, "if you catch me sober...please make me drunk again" and I thought...time to go to the pub.

Small vintage boutique tucked beside The Lanes bowling alley. This has an area for vinyl and then…read morethe shop has clothes on tall racks. There is a nice range of eras on show here, and very reasonable - I saw a 60s skirt suit here for £20. Keep an eye on their website/shop as they often hold vintage fairs here with the bigger space of the lanes available. Then shops from all over the country visit with some serious period panache.

If you're looking for a place of sanctuary, away from the generic high street stores found in the…read moreCabot's Circus/Broadmead area, come for shelter here. It's a cute little retro vintage store, with a small selection of individual items to spice up the fashion jerseys and plain jeans in your life. Found in the entrance to Bristol's city centre bowling alley, you could almost strike lucky with a well priced find. There's an especially good range of accessories and vinyl on offer here too and with a retro bar round the corner, you can't loose.