Guides · 掘り Hori

Digging for records in Japan

Neighbourhood guides, shop by shop, and the practical stuff: grading terms, obi strips, buying from abroad. Written from the shops’ own pages, with hours and addresses you can check.

Start hereThe best record shops in Tokyo, neighbourhood by neighbourhoodWhere to dig for records in Tokyo: Shibuya, Shimokitazawa, Shinjuku, Ochanomizu and Jimbocho, Koenji, Nakano and Kichijoji, Ikebukuro. What each area is good for, the shops to plan around, and when they open.4 min read19 shops

All guides

How to buy records from Japanese shops when you live abroadHow to buy from Japanese record shops when you live abroad: shops that ship overseas, Discogs sellers, Japan Post shipping and import duty in 2026. · 4 min2 shopsdiskunion guide: which store for which genrediskunion splits its stores by genre. Which branch to visit for jazz, rock, club music, soul, Latin, punk, prog and Shōwa kayō in Tokyo. · 4 min13 shopsElectronic record shops in Tokyo: techno, house, bass and ambientWhere to buy techno, house, disco, bass and ambient records in Tokyo: Rana Musica, Lighthouse Records, diskunion's club shops, JET SET and more. · 4 min10 shopsJapanese record grading and terms: obi, 美品, 盤質 and the restJapanese record shop grading explained: diskunion's S/A/B/C scale, obi strips, 見本盤 promos, ヤケ and 反り, and how they compare with Goldmine grades. · 6 min1 shopJazz record shops in Japan: where to dig for jazz vinylJazz record shops in Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka, Kyoto and Fukuoka worth a trip: diskunion's jazz floors, UNIVERSOUNDS, DISCLAND JARO and more. · 4 min10 shopsRecord shops in Kyoto: Kawaramachi to OkazakiKyoto's small, specialised record shops: JET SET, Workshop Records, Parallax, Hard Bop, Meditations and Sixth Garden, and how to walk between them. · 4 min7 shopsRecord shops in Osaka: Amerikamura, Horie and UmedaOsaka's record shops in Amerikamura, Minami-Horie and Umeda: Newtone, Grind, KINGKONG, Rare Groove, Time Bomb, FLAKE, jazz shops and diskunion. · 4 min11 shopsRecord shops in Shibuya: Udagawacho, the big floors and the specialistsRecord shops in Shibuya: diskunion, Manhattan Records, Face Records, HMV record shop, TOWER VINYL and more, most a few minutes apart in Udagawacho. · 4 min11 shopsRecord shops in Shimokitazawa: where to dig and in what orderFive record shops near Shimokitazawa Station: diskunion, Rana Musica, JET SET and Flash Disc Ranch. What they stock, hours and a route for one afternoon. · 4 min5 shopsA two-day record digging itinerary for TokyoA two-day route through Tokyo's record shops, timed to their opening hours: Ochanomizu, Jimbocho and Shinjuku, then Shimokitazawa and Shibuya. · 4 min15 shops

Before you go digging

Compare your Discogs wantlist with Japan’s record shops, using Hori Hori checks record shops every day and tells you on LINE which one has a record from your wantlist, and at what price.

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