Photos by Angela Ratzlaff
Smells of torn cardboard boxes linger in the background while punk music fills the room. Dust-filtered sunlight hits recently placed shelves and Long Beach resident Gary Farley cracks a smile when looking around his new home–a vinyl record shop.
Third Eye Records houses new as well as used vinyl, buttons, artifacts, band t-shirts and brightly colored 1960s plastic turntables. Farley made the move from a room in the back of Broadway’s eclectic clothing store Gypsy Treasures to the corner of Fourth Street and Ohio Avenue about one month ago.
“I decided, this isn’t gonna work to keep it going. I need more space,” Farley explained about the transition. “This kind of just happened. It was really kind of odd. It just fell in place.”
Bordering on the size of an apartment living room, the shop, which opened on June 7, now holds two rows of records. Genres span from rock, blues, punk, electronic and hip hop. Farley even reserves a special section for local artists, where he stocks vinyl releases from bands like experimental alternative group Wild Pack of Canaries.
For years, Farley has been collecting records along with record accessories, like vintage LP and 45 cases. He said selling records and music had always been in the back of his mind.
“It’s most kids dreams, at least in a teenage perspective, to have your own record shop, and to say that you’ve done it, has always been a dream of mine,” he said.
Long Beach is no stranger to record shops with locations like Fingerprints, Dizzy on Vinyl and Durty Mick all acting as local music-retail staples.
The advent of the MP3 and the death of major music retailers like Tower Records in 2006 caused plummeting record sales in the beginning of the millennium. However, a new interest in physical formats, led by special events like Record Store Day and new vinyl releases from current acts, has recently taken over.
According to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry’s (IFPI) website, vinyl record transactions peaked in 2012, accounting for 56 percent of music sales, which reached the highest point since 1997. Farley said that there will always be a place for MP3s, but the recent resurgence in vinyl may prove that the record craze is not just a trend.
“There’s always going to be technology that’s going to capture a least a segment of the society in terms of, ‘Oh this is new, we want to explore this tool,’” Farley explained, “But there’s always going to be this section of people that’s going to hold on to something tangible.”
Even before the official grand opening, which will take place in late-to-mid-July, Farley said that business in the shop has been steady.
He even plans to expand his shop in about a month, filling a second room that came with the property. Prospects include more records as well as additions like CDs and space for potential art galleries.
“There’s a lot of really creative people here and a lot of really great musicians, and people here are very receptive to music, and the arts in general,” he said. “My goal, and whatever I can promote, is that. Local musicians, local artists, in whatever format.”
Third Eye Records is located at 2701 E Fourth St. Farley also hosts a quarterly record show in Long Beach. Keep up with the Long Beach Record show on Facebook to find out when the next one will be.
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