Crate-Digging in the Back Rooms of Berlin
Past the obvious shops and down a flight of stairs, where the good records hide and the owner remembers everything.
Every city’s best record shop is the one you have to be told about, and Berlin has more of those than most.
The front of the shop is for tourists; the real digging is in the back, where the dollar bins aren’t a dollar and the owner has opinions.
The room behind the room
I spent two hours and left with four records, a sore back, and a tip about a basement in Kreuzberg I’d never have found alone.
A few things I learned, in no particular order:
- Bring cash and a tote; cards and dignity both fail you eventually.
- Ask the owner one real question — they’ll open the good crates.
- Check the vinyl in the light before you commit.
A great record shop isn’t a shop. It’s a person who happens to be standing near a lot of records.
Three of the four still get played. The fourth was a mistake, which is also part of the ritual.