Permanent Records

Well, the good first… prices are fair and they take trades. A few decent gems in the used stuff. However it’s pretty small and not the best vibes. Still worth checking out if you just like to get records.

Love this place!
Walking in was a little tricky. They sub out the space for a remote office, which means if you need an office? You can either rent a desk or a full office with a conference room. Walking past these desk spaces is. Permanent Records!
Your faced with the «bargain bin» $ 2 records, they had some good ones like «Heatwave» (always and forever. Each moment with you. Martin Lawerence sings it better in House Party)
Once you move over is where the real deal gems are located. Their collection is varied, mostly Jazz and Classic Rock with a little bit of rap, we spent at least two hours looking at some delicious vinyl albums.
The manager (owner?) was so nice! My youngest son, always polite tells him your mom raised him right being so polite. Um. Hello! How about Dad raised him too! J/​K. She was so nice she threw him a small discount for being a student. (wink wink)
I highly recommend Permanent Records for all your vinyl needs.

Pretty cool location and the set up feels nice, only thing is that they concentrate mainly on rock

Love these guys. This is basically the only place I go at this point. I stick to used records mostly (pretty eclectic, but my soft spot is new wave). The team there gets to know you — they took note of my taste in records and have been great about recommending music that I hadn’t heard before. They also make sure to let me know when a record/​artist that I’m looking for has come in — they make sure I don’t miss it.
One particularly nice anecdote: Every member of the staff knew that I was looking for Cure records. One day, I come in and find not one, but two in the new arrivals stack. I go to purchase them, and Matthew goes, «I was hoping you’d get them.» The next time that I came in, Greg asks me if I got the Cure records. He also was hoping I’d get them. They pay attention, and they’re extremely nice.
In short, highly, highly recommend.

It’s a little bit out of the way in South Slope. However, personally I find it well worth the effort. Great selection and very helpful staff. Always check the new arrivals. The are gems just waiting for you.

Wow, whatever you do, don’t question the owner on why two records by one artist in a same reissue batch were priced differently in the used bin. I did it rather politely and got a snotty reply about how she can’t stand there because she has to go monitor the buzzer, then when impatiently took my query coldly replied about how she knows what they’re worth, she prices the records (despite no questioning as to whether she was capable of doing so), explaining that one was more desirable hence priced higher (though they were recently available and still are retail/​non-​used at the same price). OK, fine. Sorry to bug you. But when your customer is checking out, don’t come back, yell over his shoulder at the cashier asking how much his sale added up to, then snorting as if it wasn’t enough to warrant the break, NOT acknowledging or including the customer in said conversation, then flitting away. Lame way to thank someone for shopping. Went to support a new store in the neighborhood, won’t be back. Oh yeah, I worked in a notoriously crabby NYC record store and never did anything like that to a customer (nor have I written a bad Unilocal review of a record store because they already have a lot to struggle against). But screw this attitude.

Tucked away on the 2^nd floor of an anonymous building requiring you to be buzzed in and walk through a huge workspace of some sort, this place is a little gem in South Slope. While their very limited space precludes having a massive selection, the platters they have are thoughtfully chosen and arranged clearly. There is a large amount of really cheap records, and their recent arrivals bin holds some sweet deals, but for me the most wonderful aspect is that they’re located on 20^th St. No longer do I have to trek to Manhattan or North Brooklyn to get my fix!

a month or so ago, i went to their old location (not knowing they moved) and nearly had a heart attack when i saw the gates down.
permanent records has become my favorite record store. the selection is always good. not massive and not a mess, which is the way i like it. it’s manageable. when you go in you can look through all the $ 1 albums as well as all the very reasonably priced new arrivals (and there are quite a few rows of them!) with ease and without loud metal music blasting you in the brain. it’s a welcoming experience! they want you to stay and look through their stuff! they want you to buy something! and you will.
i always end up finding something awesome and ‘oooohh!’ worthy. anyway, i found them in their new location yesterday near the prospect ave subway station. easy to get to. good signage. i felt like i was on a scavenger hunt, or like alice making my way to wonderland. :)
signage. a sign to ring the doorbell. 1B. take the elevator. press the button that says ‘permanent records’ and you’re there. the office people were very nice as i made my way through their desks and found PERMANENT RECORDS. organized and welcoming. i hadn’t gone digging in a while and found about 12 things i wanted (had to put down a couple. sigh). matthew the sales dude was very helpful and cool when i asked which Rush albums he would recommend. he made great recommendations (i got 3 used Rush albums to start my collection).
sure, there’s Academy. but i like Permanent Records more because it’s the perfect size for my record digging needs, organized where it needs to be and fun (in the used new arrivals!) and their stock is always changing and they take care of their records. I’ve never gotten anything that was scratched up and unplayable.
welcome back, permanent records! i missed you and will visit you when i get the vinyl itch.

Meagre selection. Hard to find location. Bought three used albums, all scratched so much to be unplayable. Won’t be back.

Great store. Good selection of records and staff is helpful. I really enjoy browsing through their collection of music. Makes me sad that they are not in my neighborhood!

From the two times I have been here so far, both times I left with a few items in my hand. Although they have a smaller selection of records than some surrounding stores, over here its quality over quantity,
I don’t care how many scratched up records a store has, and I don’t instantly love a store just because they have Beatles or Bob Dylan records. Not to say they don’t have, they might, but thats not what makes me like a store.
Anyway, their prices might be a dollar more here or there. But when it comes to clean records for a dollar more verses a cheaper record with tons of scratches, you bet I’m getting the less scratched record. Their CDs are priced well too, three dollar records are five for ten bucks and better records are five to seven dollars.
Its definitely worth a trip to browse through their selection. And as long as they keep getting new stuff in, I’ll be back for more.

Permanent records is one of several used record stores in the neighborhood and it has some stiff competition. There’s Academy which is huge and probably the best used record store in New York. There’s Record Grouch which typically houses the most record snob type records. There’s The Thing which has the most Garbagey records and there’s Captured Tracks which has the Mac Demarco-​iest records.
I don’t find a record I need absolutely every time I stop in Permanent Records but when I do I tend to find around ten at once and usually for a couple dollars less than the competing stores.
If you’re some kid from an outlying boro or suburb or college freshman who wants to make a record purchasing pilgrimage to Greenpoint make sure to include this place in your walking circuit.

I’ve been to almost every record store in North Brooklyn (and Bushwick) and this easily ranks the highest in all categories needed for the overall indie record store experience: wide selection for a smaller store (new and used) fair pricing, the greatest staff of all of em, cleanliness, organization. I always feel welcome (unlike the pretentious ones we all dread having to deal with) and you will too! I will always make the trip to Greenpoint to grab some records here. Check ‘em out! You’ll love it.

As far as Greenpoint goes, Permanent is the first and still probably the best. Super staff, great prices, and an ever-​changing stock. The New Arrivals section might be the most fun 5 square feet in New York City… not to mention, the biggest bang for your buck.
Permanent’s also the best place around for new vinyl, both from majors and indies. And the staff is always playing good tunes.

Located in a great spot on beautiful Franklin Street, this is a great little record shop in the middle of Greenpoint. Bring a ton of money, because you’ll find a lot gems in the New Arrivals section. I’ve been coming here almost two years now and have gotten a bulk of great records here from Simon and Garfunkel to the Rolling Stones to a Nirvana reissue to Sesame Street.
Keep digging through, you’ll find some classics in the $ 1 section. They always have stuff from Record Store Day, so keep your eyes out.

Great little shop off the beaten path in Greenpoint… nice prices on the used stuff, a decent selection of new vinyl, and owners that don’t hover or act like db’s, make this a must stop when in Brooklyn.
Easy train ride (or walk on a nice day) make a stone’s throw from Sound Fix & Academy in Williamsburg…

A Haiku for Permanent Records:
Passion for vinyl
Ever changing selection
Cooler than hipsters

I came across Permanent Records while going to a few open houses in the area. They have a great selection of vinyl at prices you will rarely see elsewhere (Cheap).
If I wasn’t with my wife at the time I may have backed a U-​haul up to the door for all the great stuff I found. The staff is also friendly and warm which goes a long way these days. I honestly can’t wait to go back.

I found Permanent Records last week when I was waiting for my bike to get parts replaced. I had to get sucked into another record shop for sure. I found a ton of great records in the New Arrivals section. Glass Candy, and a lot of new indie artists. In the bargain $ 1 section I found a whole collection of Pat Benetar that I had to purchase! I also found an old Sid Vicious LP too. I asked the lady about her selection of punk and new wave, she told me its gone in the beginning of the day. I guess its pretty popular.
The only reason why it doesn’t get five stars from me is because there is only one listening turntable and there are some crappy headphones that you have to return to the front. I didn’t like it at all. Also the lady came over to grab the $ 1 records off my pile because she said I couldn’t play it. Of course I can read the sign and respect that, I would never… I guess she thought I was dumb?

Permanent Records — which, let me say, is a great name, very rock and roll — is one of the cleanest, most organized vinyl shops I’ve ever been to. Granted, you still shouldn’t expect alphabetized bargain bins, but hey, at least they’ve got bargain bins. For two bucks apiece, or three LPs for five dollars, there were a handful of respectable records in said crates — from John Lennon, Mott the Hoople, Frank Sinatra, to name a few.
What else is cool about this joint is 1) they are dog-​friendly, 2) they have a record player for you to test out potential purchases, and 3) the dude behind the counter was personally cleaning each and every vinyl before they went on the shelves. This allowed for a very comfortable, very cool, no-​pressure hunt.
I will admit, however, the selection store-​wide was a bit underwhelming when I’d arrived. My first mistake was going straight to the back and working my way towards the front. I didn’t find much in the new or used sections to my liking, scoured for a few artists and releases I’d typically expect a record store to carry, that were, unfortunately, not there.
That all changed when I discovered the «New Arrivals» — the first stop once you’re through the door, of course. I’d been looking for The Rolling Stones’ «Exile On Main St.» for quite some time now, but was unwilling to shell out upwards of forty dollars for the double-​disc. Lo and behold, Permanent Records had a copy in near mint condition for less than half of what it had been priced elsewhere. I’m no vinyl expert, but to me — this was a major score. It was a year-​long hunt. Call off the search party. We got ‘em.