Collecting vinyl records has seen a rebirth in the past few years, and Soulessentials Records is just the store to cater to the demand from Vancouverites.
Located at 1470 Commercial Dr, Soulessentials has been open for less than a year but has already emerged as one of the best stores to buy records in the city.
Soulessentials owner Crispin Richards has been collecting records for over 20 years and opened the store to showcase his collection.
“The store is just like my basement. It is me opening up and showing how I live and who I am to the world,” Richards tells V.I.A.
Richards was previously a videographer and music engineer who moved to Vancouver at the age of 20 from Montreal. Now 52, Richards says that collecting records is his favourite hobby.
“I have been collecting vinyl records for so long…I could buy a record from $2 to $100 and it is something that I have always done. I always go out looking for the next song or the latest album,” he says.
Soulessentials Records boasts a wide collection of used and new vinyls from a huge range of genres such as Rock, Hip-Hop, Jazz and Soul.
The store also offers clothing, books and merchandise from your favourite music stars.
What makes Soulessentials Records stand out is their open, soulful vibe with live DJs spinning vinyl.
Richards says that he is trying to make the store like back in the 90s.
“That is what I grew up on. A place where people are playing Hip-Hop on the turntables, interacting and having fun, and that is the vibe I want to recreate in 2023,” he says.
The store sees all kinds of shoppers from 20-year-olds to people in their 60s, but Richards says that most of his customers are from a younger generation.
“They buy old Jazz and Hip-Hop records and are really big collectors,” he explains.
Nothing makes Richards happier than seeing young people buying vinyl records.
"I am so glad that they can enjoy collecting records just as I enjoyed it,” he says.
Richards named five of his favourite records available at Soulessentials:
- Nas - Illmatic
- Wu Tang Clan - Wu Tang Forever
- The Notorious B.I.G. - Ready to Die
- Bob James - One
- Ramsey Lewis - Sun Goddess
