Bought two records I knew for a fact I would not find in the crates down in my native saint louis. The cashiers knew the inventory and proved it via conversation. Lots of gems here. Will return the next time I vacation in the city. read more

I will begin with a positive. There is a good selection of vinyl at reasonable prices. But you have to endure the curt and unhelpful staff while they look down on your music taste. I will stick with Amazon, thank you. read more

I have visited this store a few times before but my visit there this past Friday night was horrendous. I get to the door and see that they close at 8pm. My clock read 7:53pm and there were other folks inside so I went in. I quickly found 2 of the CD's I was looking for but had one more in mind. I was then approached by one of the guys who worked there who says " yea we are about to close so I can take those for you and check you out". I figure that since he was going to the back, he might as well just see if they have the last CD I'm looking for. I hand him the 2 titles in my hand and ask him if the thinks they have the last one in stock. He says to me, no lie, "look, you're gonna have to come back tomorrow. We have a lot of sh*t to do so we can close today". I mean WHAAAAAT!? I was so confused as to what had just happened, I just walked up to the register to wait for the guy. I understand that people are tired at the end of the day but to curse at a customer who is just asking a question... no good. Maybe he thought since we were both young or whatever, that doing so was okay. My only regret was that I ended up spending the 8 bucks for the 2 CD's. I don't ever plan to go back there again! read more

Phenomenal vinyl selection and always something interesting playing in the store. LPs are graded accurately and most are at reasonable prices. Eccentric staff is always helpful and fun to chat with about...MUSIC! Trade-ins welcomed...customer since the '90s. read more

My favorite store to buy music from - especially vinyl records. They have a very friendly staff, consistently new selection of music, and great prices for downtown Chicago. MUST VISIT!! Btw, buy a t-shirt, it looks great and is American Apparel. read more

Ohhh Reckless...why did you have to do this???? Im not one of those folks who is mad that you opened in the Loop, vinyl shouldn't only be in hip 'hoods, but come on. It should be called Reckless Used CDs. When I first went in I thought all of the racks on the walls were there to represent vinyl. Nope! The other locations are great...this place...not so much. read more

Okay selection, but when I was there the music playing in the store was ill-chosen and oppressive. Then they put on an explicit, sexual ten-minute Nicki Minaj song while a couple browsed with their little girl - and the two male employees smirked at each other when the family finally left. One of the most uncool things I've ever seen in a store. read more

Came in for the first time the other day to buy some jazz records. Lucky for me they were playing Jazz music!! ... unlucky for me it was overdubbed FART SOUNDS!!?? When they first let one rip I said to myself, "was that a wind instrument? ... or someone breaking wind? I saw a few customers leave after the first few FART SOUNDS flatulated. I thought maybe it was a one time thing, ... but it just kept going!? Song after song after song. All laden w/ FART SOUNDS. They played about 10 tracks, versions of songs that I knew, and every single one had the sonic signature of sphincter. The sheer variety of different sounds was actually kind of impressive. There were really nasty wet fart sounds, trumpet style staccatos, & long gusts of hot air. There were so many, that I started to count them at one point; finally finishing after Farty Five. I tried to get past the gas, and I'll admit that it was kind of comical, but I don't know if that's really good for business. In all seriousness, I thought it was a bit immature, and it made us (customers) feel a little uncomfortable. This place really stinks! I guess it's true what they say; Who ever smelt it, dealt it! read more

I've only been here once to pick up a title that they held for me. Smallest location, so not as much to browse, but a good selection. Heavy on indie rock, punk, metal, rap, soul. Probably a more convenient location for Loop workers or commuters, but not really for me personally. Milwaukee Ave. location every time. read more

A nice place, unfortunately I always miss the place due to the location. But a fabulous place. Not a huge selection at this location, but the one up north is supposedly a lot better. I did some major damage in their .98 cent bins... I got my bum all dusty from sitting on their grungy floor for more than an hour. I must say I did find a bunch on my want list, so it was SO worth it! read more

I love Reckless and love supporting it, it's just too bad that 95% of the people that work there think their music tastes vastly exceed anyone else's. I guess my only wish would be to go in there to talk music to people who appreciate music holistically and are capable of talking about stuff they don't listen too, not to get scoffed at because I like Radiohead and Talib Qweli whose music is too main stream for many of their yuppy hipster-tudes. But, regardless of that, I love the atmosphere and listening stations. I like hearing the picks they have whether I end up wanting to take it home or not, so go there for the love of music but not to talk music! read more

I've always loved this particular location. They always have something interesting at a good price. Good budget stuff, new and used, all formats, and also film and games and other stuff. They seem to always remain hip and decently priced. read more

Great little store. If you like to browse it's wonderful, since it's not too big, it's organized, you don't have to handle jewel cases, and you never know what's gonna turn up in the used selection. Everytime I go there without anything specific in mind I end up spending much more than I expected. If you are looking for something specific, call or check online first because they may or may not have it. New cds still cost a little more than online usually but the used cds/records/DVDs are very affordable. I mostly enjoy finding used out-of-print classical recordings because they are priced cheaper in these hipster stores... read more

Yet another one of those businesses to watch! Regardless of the economy the store offers a huge selection of unique and varied stock- from DVD to vinyl to cd to magazines and books and its literally a place where you can find something even if your not looking directly. The larger stores outside the Loop are just loaded with posters, advertisements and all sorts of fun, wacky, odds and ends and the staff is no less animated- coming from a mix of Bohemian, geek and generally trendy or slightly punkster types. It's been a long relationship coming to the store and prices are always agreeable. It settles the score entirely on the solid practicality of buying films and music used in this type of economy and when your done you can nicely turn it in for trade or cash. Its a non stop affair and worth it! read more

Good and honestly priced selection and nice, knowedgable staff. Its one my favorite places to go when I'm in the loop. I always make a point of going in whenever I have the time (I can browse that store for a good 40minutes). Very pleased with their online inventory- it makes life alot simpler when I'm not in a browsy mood. It deserves 4 and a half stars really (half knocked off for the size of the shop- the Broadway location is a true 5star establishment). read more

Spent a lot of money here. Got 2 vinyls that skipped. The guy was full of attitude, said "those vinyls are just perfectly fine and this will be the last time they will exchange anything." Well those seems "perfectly fine" vinyls skipped on my player and I've tried them MANY times. I don't return/ exchange unless they are for sure skipped. Just his attitude alone, like he's the vinyl all-mighty, "this will be the last time, we won't do this for you anymore!" Well I guess I won't be shopping at this location anymore. read more

I just happened to stumble across this location of Reckless this week. It was so great to see a used CD store downtown. I still miss Tower Records and Virgin. Please pay them a visit. Great prices and staff is friendly. read more

Though I definetly prefer the Lakeview location to this or the Wicker park one, I must say that despite having a much smaller selection (as a result of the smallest space of the three stores) the staff here are RIDICULOUSLY nice and helpful. Probably not the best selection but if either of teh other two location happen to have it- having it sent for pick up is not even remotely and issue (further more they hold it for seven days- I was going to have push eight and the girl who answered the phone gladly held it for me for an extra day) read more

This place is a waste of your time. I went in there after work with a list of CD's that their website told me were available. When I arrived, I asked the clerk if they had the cd titles I was looking for in back (their policy is to store all the actual CDs in back and just display a semi-alphabetized slew of leaflets to the customers; a sensible policy to prevent shoplifting). He confirmed that they had the CD, but instructed me to find the corresponding leaflet somewhere in the "x" section. Why waste my time spending time hopelessly flipping through your disorganized system when the cd is sitting on a shelf meters from you? Why waste my time coming here at all when I can buy the same cd for the same price online or literally anywhere else? The customer service and the selection are terrible. Don't waste your time. read more

I really like Reckless. It's probably the best mostly mainstream record store I've been to. Like Mirrin said, you don't have to sift through a lot of junk to get to the good stuff; everything is organized nicely. I've found many awesome punk, new wave, and rockabilly albums on vinyl and CD in there and the prices aren't too bad. read more

Interesting shop. Someone behind the counter really likes to push buttons by playing Pig Destroyer, followed by Taylor Swift, and then Deicide. I saw a lady get a bit annoyed during PD and another celebrating the moment when Swift's record went on. Either way, I bought a record and left happy to have had a Hi Fidelity moment at a record shop while in Chicago. read more

I was downtown for an art and book fair, and just stumbled upon this place. While small, it has an amazing selection of records, cds, and movies. I was only able to pick up 2 cds as I had other things to do, but absolutely loved this shop! I plan to go back next time I head downtown. I also plan on checking out the other locations. read more

as the others have said, great selection for such a small place. I've always found exactly what I wanted.

I didn't know this location existed until I was helping a friend move and decided to look up other Reckless locations. A decent vinyl selection for such a small store and the staff was really friendly. I definitely hit this place up every time I visit the windy city. read more

If you're a punk and/or hardcore music enthusiast this place can't be beat. It's great for all other genres as well but it really shines in the punk department. Great selection, knowledgeable staff and it's awesome that a mom and pop place can not only hold its own but seemingly thrive in the big bad loop. Great place, highly recommended. (Get it?) read more

I love this place. Small but high impact. One of the few places that is often playing something that I haven't heard but need to own. A place like this is as only as good as the people who sell there and these folks have a pretty good crowd of sellers. I can consistently find things that are unusual but right in my sweet spot. read more

This is the best place to buy punk rock vinyl in the city. I seriously don't even bother looking at the CDs because I know I'm going to blow all my alotted money on vinyl. I mean fucking hell man, there were GAUZE lps! read more

I love Reckless Records. They always have a great selection at a reasonable price. The store is kinda small but they carry LPs, CDs, and DVDs. I got a great copy of Brian Eno's Ambient 4: On Land here. read more

Service was okay, but that does not excuse that the record I purchased as "new" was in terrible condition. I purchased Brian Fallon's "Painkillers" for $20, labeled as new, and my record player quickly showed that it was riddled with scratches and incredibly warped. Very disappointing. read more

This might be the best place to buy albums in The Loop area. Great used cds selection at great prices and a very wide selection of vinyls as well. Just be prepared to stay quite a while in there! read more

Sure this location isn't as big as the others, but they have one thing going for them the others don't; no pretentious employees. It is well organized, have decent prices, the staff is always ready to help and very clean. I was looking for a record which they had at another location. I didn't want to go over to Wicker Park, so they had it sent to the loop store and I was able to pick it up just a couple days later. The fact that all Reckless sort their records by specific genres and then alphabetically, and then include a "fair", "good", "very good", "New" label makes them the best. I will be buying many more records from them in the future. (They also sell record players, cds, cassette tapes, dvds, and special box collections. I just didn't mention that in my review) read more

Reckless Records is a cool store to go to if you're in the downtown area. They have a great selection of CDs, LPs, and DVDs at reasonable prices. read more

I was in town for business and wanted to check it out since I was close by. It's a small store with a decent selection for it's size. I'm a CD collector and found JSBX bootleg, Sonic Youth bootleg, and a star shaped Flaming Lips CD. When I first walked in, I didn't expect much, but I was relatively surprised. I also found a King Crimson Larks Tongue pin. Extra bonus!! Only down fall I found was parking. I would give it 4.5 if I could. read more

The selection is ok at best. Prices are also ok, they are fair considering it's downtown Chicago. The guys working at this location were total dicks today. Idk if they were having a bad day or if they always are this disgruntled, but I won't make reckless a frequent stop. Hyde Park records or Beverly are worth the trip south. read more

The totally had the new Party Downers on vinyl!!! I love this place so much. So easy to get stoked on things when they have listening stations AND new arrivals sections. Plus, they bought a bunch of my old crappy cds! read more

I love Reckless. The guys in there are super friendly, they can find just about anything you're looking for and the prices are more than decent. read more

while i know that the wicker park store is much more robust, i still stop in this downtown location every few weeks, since i work near by. The staff is very nice, and was able to make some interesting suggestions after they saw the first bunch of albums i brought to the counter. unfortunately, their electronic music vinyl section seems to be dwindling, and unless its a rather popular group or release, you probably wont find it at this location. It has slowly been moved from being one of the main sections, to being only two rows of records in the corner :( dubstep and techno sections aside, they always have a very interesting selection of rare noise, experimental, and metal (more scandinavian style) records. their prices are fair, and seem pretty standard (with dance music anyways) - imports are between 10 and 15 dollars per disc, which is about what you'll pay on Juno(uk), once shipping is added in... i do wish they would get a buyer to beef up their electronica section though... read more

The staff are extraordinarily rude. The selection is OK. My money will be better spent elsewhere. Good luck.

quality soul selection, slim electronic selection. the staff is unbelievably pretentious, it was so bad I honestly felt like I was in a SNL skit read more

The smallest of the Reckless locations in Chicago but still a very solid record store. This place has LPs, 45s, CDs, DVDs and probably some other formats that I am forgetting. Relaxed atmosphere inside but if you cannot find something the staff knows where everything is and is good about helping you find what you're looking for. You can check online to see if something is in stock before going so you do not have to hunt too much. Since this location is in the loop it is really easy to pop in and get something on the way home. read more