Re-Animated Records is my favorite record store in San Diego, hands down. Amazing record selection over an excellent variety of genres, including super rad niche options. The owners are extremely kind, knowledgeable, and helpful. Popped in for Record Store Day 2026 hours after open, and still managed to snag a few on my list! Priced fairly and excellent conditions across the board. Highly recommend! read more

If you're looking for records this is a great place to look. Located in downtown La Mesa. Friendly staff and helpful also. I came in looking for a specific vinyl record and they did not have it but he right away got on his computer and looked for it and provided me with the information to a website where I could purchase it. read more

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I stumbled upon this little hole in the wall record store when I was in old town, La Mesa leaving lunch just down the street. There's so many businesses and this one in particular just seemed like it was very inviting. Upon entering the store it's filled with rich horror, culture, and metal music merchandise, which is super cool! They have interesting niche items here that you probably won't be able to find anywhere else. I picked up a few cool horror, movie magnets, and some spooky enamel pins. I grabbed the pins as gifts and I put the magnets on my fridge when I got home. The staff were very friendly, and if you have any questions, they will absolutely answer them for you, so that's helpful. And of course there's plenty of records in music to look through while you're there, you're bound to find a record you might want to take home. As far as the value goes, everything seemed fairly priced. Definitely a cool spot if you're into horror movies, and underground music! There are not too many places like this left here in San Diego. read more

Re-Animated Records - Vinyl Records Near Me - La Mesa, California

We were hanging out in the La Mesa Village when we spotted Re-Animated Records so we stopped in. I love music, I'm a huge metal head from Iron Maiden, Judas Priest to Trivium, Testament and Sanctuary and everything in between. I would not classify myself as a audiophile. I'm not a collector of vinyl of any other format. Although back in the day I had a huge cassette collection that became an even bigger CD collection. These days it's all Spotify and streaming, but I love a good record store and Re-Animated is rad! A mom and pop shop in La Mesa. They've got it all. Records, CDs, Cassettes, DVDs, VHS tapes, posters. The staff was ultra friendly and welcoming. Re-Animated is a pop culture paradise! read more

BEST RECORD STORE LEFT STANDING IN SD!! One of my fav spots to visit and run by one of the nicest families and the longtime homie Nick! More than just a record store, this is a part of the La Mesa community and conjures up sentimental memories and feelings of nostalgia! Whether it's rare horror memorabilia from your fav b-movie or underground post punk vinyl from a bygone era, REANIMATED RECORDS does not disappoint! Worth the trip for our of towners and locals alike! Reasonably priced vinyl, CDs, DVDs, VHS and more! Don't forget to check out Lynn's hidden gem of a vintage section in the back with cute retro clothing and wares for the hip discerning shopper! They don't make em like this anymore!! Love this spot!!! Some of the nicest business owners you'll ever meet! True allies and part of the progressive community in east county San Diego! read more

After getting some dinner at the Farmers Market my husband and I went to Re-Animated Records. We've been collecting vinyl versions of our favorite albums so whenever we see a record shop we definitely have to check it out. We were greeted right away and man was I in awe of everything. I love all the horror memorabilia, I saw a pin from one of my favorite B List horror movie 13 Ghosts and my heart was so happy. I love how organized and quirky everything in this store is, other than vinyls they also sell old comics/magazines, dvds, apparel, art, toys, there is something for everyone. My husband ended up getting a cat self defensive knuckle grip for me, it's actually super cute so I can't wait to take that with me on walks with my pup. Can't wait to come back and fully rummage through their collection, also the patrons at this store are really friendly! read more

This place is like home to me absolutely my jam ! If you're into Horror, punk and metal stuff that isn't mainstream this place is a gem. The owners are super cool my kind of peeps! They're celebrating 8 yrs in the business glad to see them survive some tough times like the Covid apakolypse! read more

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The service is very good and the selection values are good but I wish they had more of my favorite bands and indie music records but I love this place so much I might come back again to see it and the place inside of this building is very big and it has a lot of good music and space inside. read more

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Super friendly and welcoming staff! I came in to sell a record I'd been holding onto for ages, and Nicholas made the process quick, easy, and gave me a price that was more than fair, I thought. I'm telling every one of my vinyl and horror-loving friends to come here for their pop culture needs! read more

Nice selection of music of various genres and movies, fair prices although some things are a little on the high end, well organized, clean, nice environment to be in, friendly staff, and good condition of materials. I also really appreciate the (used) free plastic outer sleeves they have. Always a good experience to visit. read more

Best record store in Southern California. I had the placer to meet the owner and he was so incredibly nice! They have a big selection of records of all genres! And he loves horror movies so there's a bunch of those too! This is my go to! Prices are really reasonable too. read more

This store has great people, great music, and great service! Check out the transylvanian recordings cassette section!

I am here in San Diego on a weekend trip with my wife. Just for fun I decided to seek out a Record Shop online and the one that caught my eye the most was one that not only sold music on both vinyl, CD, and cassette, but also sold movies on DVD, Bluray, VHS, and my personal favorite, Laserdisc! The place was a 10 minute ride from the AirBNB we were staying at and I assured myself I'd only stay for an hour max. It was an absolute paradise! Tons of amazing displays featuring original movie posters, collectible toys (a whole back shelf wall-to-wall of nothing but Pee-Wee Herman memorabilia!), rarities, and oh so much more! One of the owners was nice enough to point me in the direction of where the Laserdiscs were and let me know that the coup-de-grace of all names, The Criterion Collection was the first set I'd find! Perusing all the titles took me roughly 5-10 minutes and I managed to track down The Criterion Collection of the late Melvin Van Peebles' Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song and Beavis and Butthead Do America each for only 20 bucks! Next I perused the vinyl soundtrack area, but found nothing of interest. Then in the soundtrack CDs I managed to find a copy of the Lost Highway soundtrack for my wife and a copy of The Secret of My Success soundtrack for myself! Lastly, the VHS/DVD/Bluray collection was so immense I thought it would take me forever to get through! But I kept myself calm and didn't overindulge, and wound up passing on any purchases in the area. One last item I found for my wife was a vinyl copy of Angel Olsen's 'Big Time' which was completely sold out in Las Vegas where we were visiting from. By the time it came to paying, I told the female cashier what a blast I was having in their store and wished that I could stay for even longer since again I was only visiting for the weekend. She was so happy to hear all my comments that she gave me a free tote bag for my items and some free stickers too! Sure enough, I visited the place for exactly one hour! I have nothing but good things and high praises to give for Re-Animated Records! Rest assured, I will be back! read more

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Awesome record store! It reminds me of all the unique and interesting record stores I went to as a kid. Lots of great vinyl and a good collection of cds. Tons of blu-ray, dvd, and VHS. Lots of interesting horror movies. Everything is fairly priced. More collectable items seemed to be priced at or around the median sales prices of Discogs. Decorated well with lots of vintage toys, and movie posters. I will definitely come here whenever I am in San Diego. read more

My first record shop experience EVER was here, at Re-Animated Records. This one holds a dear place in my heart, I wouldn't trade it for the world and hope to continue to explore other shops in the future. I don't have much experience with record shops as I mentioned, but I was told this is one of the few that particularly focuses on the metal genre. They also display an array of horror films and posters. Situated in Downtown La Mesa, the shop is very inviting! On a good day, you'll see plenty of strangers exploring the inventory of video cassettes and movies right before they enter the portal that is Re-Animated Records. I love, love, love the overwhelming feeling of nostalgia you experience as you walk in! Vintage posters are hung for display to your right and two old school video cassette TVs to your left, showing live concerts and old movies. The layout of the store is somewhat of a loop and natural path around the store, ultimately leading you to the counter at the entrance and making sure you don't miss a thing behind you! Records are categorized in an organized fashion by genre, color coded, then put in alphabetical order. You have a section for merchandise, video cassette movies, cassette tapes, even books carefully wrapped in plastic for preservation purposes. The entire shop is a time traveling experience. It brings a wave of nostalgia and reminds me of our dearly beloved and sadly fallen, Blockbuster LLC. It's amazing to see such a high demand for items in the shop. I hope they continue to stay in business for generations to come. The owner, Nick, is also very friendly and interacts closely with his customers, which must also be a contributing factor to his repeated business. So grateful for this experience and I hope this isn't the last time I get the chance to visit! read more

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Amazing selection of LPs and a really cool record store. Employees were friendly and knowledgeable about music (mostly heavy metal and hard rock) read more

Such a cool shop. Its like early 2000s nostalgia in here. Lots of old posters, records, cassette tapes, and knickknacks. So fun. read more

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Best record shop in San Diego and it's not debatable. Prices are reasonable. Selection is insane! And there's more than just records which makes for a fun time of picking. read more

Very very cool record store. A true throw back to an earlier time when kids didn't have a worry in the world. When people spent lazy Sunday afternoons in record stores pouring over record bins looking for treasures. RR has a very diverse collection of records and modern media (action figures, pins, posters, stickers, patches, etc). Bring your credit card because you can run up a $300 bill in this place, QUICK. The staff is great and friendly, a great place to spend a lazy afternoon and once you start, you'll be back... The place can be a little crowded, so be mindful of this before coming here. If you're not cool with people on top of you, go during off hours. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! read more

Re-Animated is the Vatican of Vinyl and VHS The Hanging Gardens of horror The Taj Mahal of morbid toys The Louvre of LPs The Colossus of esoteric. Bring your weird family members and your normal ones too, if you have any. Truly something for everybody who loves physical ephemera. read more

Such a great selection of collectors items. And don't miss the cute corner in the back with vintage toys! read more

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I love this record shop. Coming to this store is always a delightful experience, even if I am just coming in to look around. The owners are always so nice and helpful. There is a large variety of records, CDs, DVDs, VHS tapes, Cassette tapes, and so much more. This shop is great if you love vintage, there are vintage style bags, clothes, home decor, and music of course. I heavily recommend a visit to this store if you're a La Mesa resident, or just visiting! (The photos are my girlfriend and I in dresses we bought from Reanimated!) read more

Re-Animated Records - Me in this beautiful pink dress from Reanimated Records - Vinyl Records Near Me - La Mesa, California

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Absolute gold mine. This little shop is something special and deserves it's spot in downtown La Mesa. It's such a small store but it's always a fun time cruising by and seeing what movies or records they have. They've got tons of everything and a price that doesn't hurt. Posters, toys, cassettes, records, and movies, they have got it all. If you're a horror fan this is the spot for you. Movie collector? This is the place for you. The staff are legendary with their friendliness and how helpful they are. They consist of all the chill dudes that sat in the back of your class in high school who you weren't tight with but knew were a good time. This place is something special and I can't wait for my next visit. Come by and support your local business read more

A totally rad place! Decent prices, great selection, really nicely organized and Nick the owner is super! I wandered in during Oktoberfest and was totally surprised to see some original paintings up on the wall - a local artist has painted awesome portraits of monsters like Frankenstein & the werewolf. Do yourself a favor and head over there to see what a treasure trove it is--it's a little local hidden gem. read more

I'd like to give this business a better review, but I wasn't able to shop here. To the business owners: please update the hours on Yelp. I drove here based on the hours provided, which states 11am to 7pm seven days a week. But when I got to the store, there was a sign in the window that says closed on Mondays and Tuesdays. It's says on Yelp that your hours were updated just a few days ago... why wasn't this changed on there? I used gas to drive there, I paid for street parking, only to be let down. Too bad because looking into the window, it looks like you have a pretty cool shop. read more

There aren't many record stores around anymore so I was so happy to see this place! So decided to check it out and before I could even go inside I see these milk crates with cds and dvds for real cheap. I go inside and the place is very will organized and clean which is nice for an old school record store. They also have a very nice size dvd collection mostly used but they cost a few bucks which I thought was a steal. They had some good movies too and some classics in my opinion like "What about Bob?". The one empolyee that was there was cool and very personalable. Its a little spot so keep that in mind but they do have some gems in here so if I were you i would defintley check it out. read more

Re-Animated Records - Vinyl Records Near Me - La Mesa, California

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Super awesome record store! Has everything that you could ask for in a local record shop. The employees are always great and everything is reasonably priced. Go there and support local businesses! read more

Finally got to visit again after their recent renovation/upgrade into a bigger store. As always, customer service is top notch, and the items in store are always so interesting and the variety is great! Definitely one of my fave record stores in the SD county. read more

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I occasionally drop in to look things over and I always find something interesting but the prices are always high. Usually by 5 or 10 bucks higher compared to other shops or the internet namely Discogs. Last night I found a Stones album original pressing again too expensive. They printed millions of this album so it's not rare and the jacket was not even exceptional but they still wanted 20 bucks. The reason I walked out was the music was obnoxious. It was this loud grating loop of guitar distortion and squealing something. It lasted from the minute I walked in until I left. One can only take that for so long before the anxiety sets in. This shop is for younger audiences who don't mind paying too much and hearing annoying loud "music". The owner seems nice. read more

Came for the laserdiscs and they did not disappoint! Most places I go to don't bother organizing them, but these were all alphabetized. Large selection of movies and records as well. Prices were quite fare and the employees were pleasant to talk to. read more

Awesome owners make for an awesome record store. This La Mesa gem is run by an effortlessly cool husband and wife duo who've cultivated an unpretentious place to shop for all your new and old favorites. In addition to a dope vinyl selection, they have a classic selections of DVDs, funky collectibles, and cool band merch. If you're looking for something that isn't in-house, they can usually order it for you and they'll notify you when it arrives. Whether you're looking for a place to brush up on the latest punk releases or searching for a place to bring your dad whose searching for Steely Dan, this place has something for everyone. read more

Love going here! The owners are some of the loveliest people, always friendly & welcoming. They recently started selling the most beautiful and nice smelling candles. I honestly can't get enough. read more

One of the best shops in SD. Always got good used records coming through and their horror selection is unparalleled. Super friendly/helpful staff as well read more

Much appreciation for the local record store. Alway fun to browse in here. Seems like they always have some new stock to look at. I'm a CD shopper and mainly focus on that. Prices are reasonable...except on vinyl, but that's everywhere. read more

It's hard to believe I only known about this place for a short time . I am mostly interested ih the dvd side of things , and they have added soooo much to my collection . I have shopped at other movie stores over the years , and they all seem to have 50 copies of jaws and whatever , here you never know what your going to find , but I always find a lot . Congratulations of your 5 th birthday . I will see you on your 25 th birthday , read more

Nice and friendly staff who are knowledgeable and helpful. I was looking for certain vinyl records and they were able to help me find what I was looking for.This shop has more than just vinyls the have an assortment of collectibles. Worth the time to go in and look around, you never know you mind something you want! read more

This store is so cool - they have LP's, CD's DVD , laser discs and many monsters I have sold to this store from my brothers estate - Jonnie B - my brother kept all of his treasures in pristine condition - the owners of this store have been so awesome valuing his collection and selling - I have and will continue to recommend this store to anyone wanting to find the unfindable classics of Horror, Classic Rock - everything cool - dropping off this week about a 100 plus of the best horror books ever written - thanks AGAIN NICK - Barbie read more

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This is a great family run shop and they are very friendly and helpful. I always discover something new every time I go and most records are just a few bucks. Re-animated records is a great place to browse and make a great find to enjoy at home. If you don't own a record player, go get one and start making your own discoveries! read more

I love this shop. Always getting new stuff in constantly and super fair prices. Recently did a trade in and I got a super fair price for my stuff. I'm in here once a week looking at everything! Great location and the owner and his wife are great. Two thumbs up! P.S. There's so much more than just records! read more

Dude! They have so many oldies in here it was so cool, and they even had 8 track tapes, and old vinyls! I was like: Damn this is cool! I actually went in hoping they had a new CD I wanted, but this place isn't a place to buy new CDs, this is a cool and trendy place to buy old stuff that is hard to find elsewhere. Go in and take a look it's pretty freaking cool! read more