>>So... should I check the Reckless "n1 soul basement" in Islington? Is it any >>good?
It depends on how much time you have! I've found good things there but its stock is smaller than the Berwick Street store, and it is quite a bit more expensive; as with the the other store hip hop and disco/boogie are priced very high and you could save money searching EBAY or US dealers even with the additional shipping. You should also check the middle racks on the ground floor right by the door as they put a lot of dance in there (and price it cheaper than downstairs ;) ) >>I didn´t like the MVE´s in Camden and Soho that much last time I went. I >>have 2 full days, so maybe I wanna check some more stores... MVE has moved across the road in Camden to a bigger store and they have managed to find some spectacularly rude staff, including moving the guy from Soho there who chucked record sleeves at me and went and sulked out the back when I questioned his adding up. You're better off concentrating on the Soul and Dance Exchange in Notting Hill Gate where the staff are friendly and you can always find good stuff, plus if you have time over you can skim the bargain basement and first floor where you can turn up rare and classic records for 50p if you have a few hours to dig through lorry loads of wack trance promos... The Indie shop also has a dance section on the right on the way in and is sometimes worth a quick 10 minute scan. >>I remember I stayed 4 hours in Reckless Soul & Dance last time I want >>there... Ohh.. was I a happy kid (with little money left when I came out). Reckless is the other shop I would always recommend spending several hours in - just remember to check the condition there as they aren't as fussy about what they sell as MVE! Around there you can check MVE's stock in 10 minutes (don't worry, the tosser who throws record sleeves at customer has been moved to Camden), Selectadisk sometimes is a good place to find stuff, and lots of good smaller shops selling new stuff down Berwick Street and the streets directly off it - Sounds of the Universe on Broadwick Street is particularly nice (they also run the Soul Jazz label). If you like hip hop then Bongos on Poland Street (parallel to Berwick Street in the direction towards the Marble Arch end of Oxford Street) is worth a visit... You could also check out Smallfish in Hackney and Rough Trade in Covent Garden... Cheers David BTW New Order - if you can find the 12" of Video 586 that is worth picking up - despite being recorded in 1981 it sounds very much like a techno record, moreso than anything they recorded since... Although it appears to be a one-side release there is a sneaky bonus track on the blank side right by the label! Substance is a good overview covering all the singles to the point where they stopped trying; if I remember rightly the CD has a bonus disk with all the b-sides too - you may do well to pick the cd up and find which ones you like as the 12"s are very easy to find, probably moreso than the Substance vinyl! They had a policy of not putting more than one single on an album so their albums also contain lots of original material - Basically anything on Factory will not be wack!
