South Bend, Indiana
Sound Bend Records
115 S William St, South Bend, IN 46601
Record shopping in Indiana
Gary raised the Jacksons, Indianapolis raised Wes Montgomery and Freddie Hubbard on Indiana Avenue, Bloomington raised Hoagy Carmichael and now houses Secretly Group's indie label empire, and Seymour raised John Mellencamp. The Hoosier State has been producing world-class music since the 1920s, and the shops carry every chapter. Indy CD & Vinyl runs 300,000-plus used LPs out of 808 Broad Ripple with a new all-ages venue attached, Luna Music and Square Cat Vinyl anchor the city's indie circuit, and Karma Records still operates Indiana's oldest independent chain. Out past Marion County, Wooden Nickel runs three Fort Wayne shops, Landlocked Music and Walkover Sounds & Stones hold down Bloomington's IU dig, and Atmosphere Collectibles fills in the Evansville side. Pull off 65, swing through Indiana Avenue, and see what the Hoosier State has been keeping in the crates.
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BEYOND INDIANA: VINYL JOURNEYS FROM THE HOOSIER STATE
As the last track wraps up in the Hoosier State, every shop you flipped through today is just one chapter in a much bigger Midwestern story. The Ohio River, Lake Michigan, and the interstates that link Chicago to Cincinnati to Louisville keep music moving in every direction, and the bordering shops are a quick run away.
Michigan Record Stores: Head north into Michigan, where Detroit's Third Man Records and the Cass Corridor shops carry the Motown and proto-punk lineage, Ann Arbor's college-town circuit catches the MC5 and Stooges spillover, and the Upper Peninsula keeps small-town vinyl scenes alive past the bridge.
Ohio Record Stores: Cross east into Ohio, where Cleveland's My Mind's Eye and Blue Arrow anchor the Pere Ubu and Devo lineage, Cincinnati's Shake It Records runs one of the country's best-stocked indie shops, and Columbus's Used Kids and Spoonful keep the OSU college dig honest.
Kentucky Record Stores: Drop south into Kentucky, where Louisville's Guestroom Records and Matt Anthony's Record Shop carry the city's Slint and Will Oldham post-rock lineage, Lexington's college-town shops cover everything from bluegrass to hardcore, and the Eastern Kentucky shops keep coal country old-time and gospel.
Illinois Record Stores: Roll west into Illinois, where Chicago's Dusty Groove, Reckless, and Beverly Records anchor a globally significant dig across blues, jazz, soul, indie, and house, the Loop and Wicker Park run the city's biggest weekday foot traffic, and downstate's Champaign-Urbana college shops hold the rest of the prairie scene.
Tennessee Record Stores: Travel south to Tennessee, where Memphis still spins Sun, Stax, and Three 6 Mafia in roughly equal measure, Nashville's East Side stocks outlaw country alongside Third Man pressings, and Knoxville keeps the Appalachian thread alive on the college-town shelves.
Florida Record Stores: Fly down to Florida, where Miami's Sweat Records carries the city's Latin and bass lineage, Orlando's growing shops stock thrift-bin gems between Disney runs, and Tampa Bay's veteran stores hold heavy psych and Florida death-metal pressings.
At Record Store Directory, every state line is an invitation to keep exploring. Share your finds, connect with fellow collectors, and chase down that next unforgettable album, because the perfect record is always closer than you think.
Happy hunting, and we'll see you in the next stack!
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