Thanks to work I found myself in Florence, Italy with some time to myself. I knew this prior to my trip so i did what I always do when visiting somewhere, I type the words RECORD SHOP into Google maps, they exist in Florence in abundance. I didn’t expect to get to them all but I knew I could certainly fit in a few and trim the want list, if that’s possible?
Starting right in the centre, right next door to the ‘Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore’ which is the main central cathedral with Brunelleschi’s Dome, a true masterpiece of renaissance engineering and true focal point of the city was Move On, an Italian pub and record store. Stylised downstairs in the bar area, with a cinema theme forming its design. Retro yes fresh and I have to say very welcoming. Before we went upstairs to the vinyl room we did stop for food and a beer. The waiter was upbeat and chatty in a good way and good food.
The upstairs vinyl room was space that was styled as well as the bar area, open and spread out making searching through the beautifully crafted crates easy. Records were not packed in and a large selection was on walls in full view. They had a DJ one end playing a set and i spent some time looking around, as much at the interior vibe as the records. A good selection but nothing I would not easily find in my local record store back in the UK so nothing bought. Definitely worth a visit.
From there I took a walk up the round about a hundred metres to a shop called Sleeve Records, again a great selection, this time with a heavy lean towards Afro Beats and Techno which was look through but not what I’m looking for at the moment. They did have couple of crates of Hip Hop but any records they had I would have wanted I already have in my collection.
Next up was Rock Bottom Records, I simple “WOW” to this place. You need some serious time in this shop, the selection was immense and if you’re a fan of indie, grunge or alternative music you are in for a treat. There are many many genres to scour but not so much for Hip Hop, only 2 crates tucked away. You need some serious time put aside here, more than I realistically had but did my best.
I walked out of here with The Now Now by Gorrilaz and Interstate 8 by Modest Mouse. There was plenty that caught my eye but those jumped out at the time as I wanted to fill gaps in my collection.
Onto ‘Contempo Records’ next, a great selection again and certainly one for the ‘Prog Rock’ and ‘Metal’ connoisseurs. I had a good look around and saw a few gems in their including two Jefferson Airhead 12”s later know as Airhead of Funny How and Counting Sheep fame from the early nineties that stood out, them being more colourful than nearly everything there. They seemed out of place among the genres present. I would have liberated them but I already have better versions on my shelf.
Last up was Logout Records. As I walked in the DJ started playing Moon Safari by Air so I knew I was in a happy place. Not a massive selection and a lot of what they have is dance, techno and Italian dance, the latter I have no clue what I was looking at but it did have a decent indie section. I found a reissue copy of Bleed American by Jimmy Eat World which ticked a box for me, I had it on CD but never on vinyl, now I do and I also picked up a copy of Heavy is the Head by Stormzy which surprisingly I had not bought in the past, it’s a present but will live in my house so a win win.
If you get to Florence these shops are worth a look. I can’t speak for all but if these set the standard I hope the remaining shops match it. They seem to have chosen lanes so you know which with suit you and all in easy walking distance of the centre. Florence is not necessarily a record collectors dream, but it’s close and will keep you occupied for longer than most places.
I’d love to have spent more time looking, maybe next year if work sends me back again. Im happy with the small haul, now to pack it well with the extra cardboard I readied before I left and packed in preparation. I also could have spent a small fortune including extra baggage allowance but I picked up records that I wanted so a great Disco di Vinile walk.
