

We tend to think of vinyl as being analog, but it’s quite scientific. And vinyl records have become all the rage in the 2020s. We’re all just a click away from playing one of billions of songs available on streaming sites, but many of us obviously don’t mind getting up from our seat and flipping the record after 30 or so minutes just to play music.

Compared to those days, there are fewer shops for vinyl fanatics to visit. So they poke their heads around, trying to find places to go digging (act of trying to find records). Let us introduce you to two vinyl shops that give you an opportunity for special experience. They remind us that records don’t just exist in our memory, but they’re with us right here and right now.

The sleek interior design is what separates Dive Records for other vinyl shops today.

You can check for scratches or dust on records using the microscope.

Dive Records’ exclusive selection
Dive Records, located near Euljiro 3-ga Station, is just the place where you can discover the joy of stumbling on good music. Once you enter the shop, you’ll be hearing some mysterious but undeniably hip music playing out of impressive sound systems. Dive Records is housed in an old building but the shop itself is the definition of neat and clean. Handpicked album covers are arranged along the walls, giving the shop a feel of an art gallery. There are also pieces of equipment that you wouldn’t be able to identify at first glance.

Music books and magazines

Dive Records’ own vinyl cleaner
Dive Records wants to be a shop that plays good music produced by honest work of artists and shares that joy with its customers. Kwon’s recommendations know no boundaries, covering a Chicago-based soul band, disco- and boogie-based gospel, and Korean style reggae. During our visit in September, ‘Antera’ by the Los Angeles-based electronic artist Jarren graced a corner of the shop as the ‘Album of the Week.’

The automatic record changer, designed and built by Dive Records

Albums recommended by Dive Records

Digital frame showing images based on Instagram hashtags
Grab a cup of coffee and listen to recommended songs and try cool-looking equipment at Dive Records. Sure, it’s fun to finally find the record you’ve always wanted. But Dive Records is here to remind you that there are other joys you can discover in music.
Address 2nd Fl, 55-1 Chungmu-ro, Jung-gu, Seoul
Instagram DiveRecords

Vinyl records at Dope Records that take you down the memory lane


Albums and merchandise for classic rock bands
Dope Records, which opened five years ago, is living right through it. The location isn’t exactly convenient, since it sits between Daeheung and Gwangheungchang stations on Subway Line 6, but the shop is usually crowded in afternoon hours. You will find anyone from high school girls in uniform to 20-something office workers to middle-aged music fans. Dope Records holds about 20,000 albums. In addition to LPs, it has cassettes and CDs, which just may be more difficult to find these days.
When it first opened, Dope Records mostly sold rock albums. But as the popularity of vinyl grew and visitors started getting younger and younger, Dope Records began stocking its shelves with albums in other genres. Modern artists like Billie Eilish, Beyonce and Khalid are also putting out LPs. Vinyl no longer just leans on trips down the memory lane for old music fans.

The shop is packed with new releases and used records.

Albums by Billie Eilish and Corinne Bailey Rae, among the most popular records of late

Cassette tapes, enjoying a resurgence of late
Dope Records just doesn’t have tens and thousands of records. It stays on top of news in music and keeps its fans posted. The shop posts daily updates on new arrivals on Instagram. Despite growing vinyl sales, most of the records are imported. Because there are only limited numbers of imported records allocated to Korea, it’s important for shops to secure as many as they can when they can.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask the staff. Dope Records owner Kim Yoon-joong is an expert in rock. Each staff member has a specialty, so you will get professional help from them regardless of your favorite genre. Latest releases by Billie Eilish, Corinne Bailey Rae and Halsey are some of the hottest records these days. The shop has also been fielding questions about the newest album from the British heavy metal legend Iron Maiden.
It’s no longer strange to see a student in uniform asking about a Led Zeppelin LP at Dope Records.
Address 4th Fl., 211 Dongmak-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul
Instagram DopeRecords