More often than not, the mere mention of the acronym “NJAM” will leave any local musician with a look of misty-eyed nostalgia. Not Just Another Music Shop was Vancouver’s most unique and truly best music store, filled with a dazzling array of vintage instruments, affordable used gear, locally made pedals and boutique amps. In 2010, after 25 years in business, it locked up its South Granville location for the last time and Vancouver’s music gear nerds were left with nowhere to go.
But here we are, four years later, with Exile on Main Street.
Exile Electronics Ltd. opened its doors on Sept. 1 to shine a light on Vancouver’s music community. Co-owner Chris Young explains:
“Three of the four partners are former NJAM employees. We all got laid off a few months before it closed. So I think we were just sitting around and kind of missed it, and thought ‘Let’s pool our efforts and do it together’. I thought of an idea for a stripped down version of [NJAM] so less of the cheap stuff and more of the nice stuff, as much as we could.”
Upon entering Exile, you are greeted by a well-stocked wall lined with guitars and basses, each of a reputable brand, including the rare 1960s Gibson EB2 bass, regal in its resting place. A 1963 Fender Stratocaster and 1968 Fender Telecaster in a beautiful copper finish bask in the corner, waiting to relive their glory days. Impressive vintage stock aside, Exile also take focus on locally made and Canadian products.
“We have the Halcyon [acoustic guitars] on order… They’re made in Vancouver, a small two-man operation out of a house just off Hastings. Ed Bond (Tinker Guitars) and his partner are former Larivee guys. We’re definitely looking into synthesizers. There’s a local company who do modular synthesizers called Intellijel, so we’re trying to work out a deal with them. [The founder] is quite an ingenious fellow. Some of my local friends who are into that stuff say he’s one of the biggest guys in that world and he’s here in Vancouver.”
Young also owns his own pedal company, Union Tube & Transistor, whose clientele includes Neil Young, Daniel Lanois, and Jack White’s Third Man Records. This is the only store in Canada to carry the Bumble Buzz, the pedal built for Third Man. In addition to a wide variety of pedals, Union is currently working on building their own boutique tube amps. Stay tuned.
Exile also provides repair services for pedals and amps, and handles guitar repairs in collaboration with the infamous North Vancouver-based Paul Iverson.
Above all, Exile exists to support the Vancouver music community. Whether you’re looking for a new set of strings on a Sunday (they’re open seven days a week!) or an Omnichord (like yours truly), you’ll find it here. And if they don’t have what you’re looking for, they’ll find it and bring it in for you.
Exile are Bob Main, Jon Wood, Kate Wattie and Chris Young. You can find them at 3720 Main, or on the cyber web at 21exile22.com Bring your concert posters, they’re redecorating!
To see current stock you can visit their instagram at @exilevancouver.
