08/14/03

Williamsburg's maiden record store--as arty and snarky as the neighborhood.

by Contributor

The Scene
Accept Bob Dylan as the godfather of indie rock, and the life-sized cutout of him in the doorway of Earwax will make complete sense. Nestled in the heart of Williamsburg hipster central, Earwax is a comfortable stop for indie-rock diehards. The only place you'll find Creed's latest is in the used bin, and the clerks are bound to laugh out loud if you've got the gumption to purchase it. Flyers for local clubs and art installations are stuffed under the glass countertops and the kitschy-but-endearing day-glo decor adds an artsy touch.

The Goods
A bin in the center is stocked with modestly priced vinyl, but the larger part of Earwax is devoted to an impressively indie CD collection. You'll find discs lining three sides of the room organized by genre--"drum and bass, techno, electro" "hip-hop & turntablism," etc.--and the picks hung on the walls boast each genre's indie elite (Neutral Milk Hotel, Avalanches, Bullfrog). The box-set collection is impressive, but its crowning glory is a small but fetching cache of used (read: cheap) box sets.