Darkside Records – 611 Dutchess Turnpike, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603 – Open
First opened in 2011, Darkside Records moved to its present spacious location on Dutchess Turnpike in 2016. Awash in garrish day-glow neon green, it offers new and used records across all genres. Not your typical Hudson Valley store, Darkside Records occupies a 6000 sq. ft. warehouse size building on Dutchess Turnpike. It also sells hi-fi equipment, movies, and cds, and has a large stage for in-store performances.
Darkside was one of the first record stores I visited as the Covid receded, as you can see from the pictures of the masked patrons, below. Once it was safe enough to go out, I ventured first to the great out doors. New Paltz is a favorite haunt, with easy access to the trails, towns and the plentiful record stores of the Hudson Valley. On this occassion, we paid a visit to the Walkway Over the Hudson. A converted cantilever bridge (the Poughkeepsie-Hudson), it spans the Hudson and ends in Poughkeepie. And while there, why not a quick visit to the local record store?
I spent most of my time digging in their plentiful 7″ collection, which included two cool singles by Pavement and Ween. They also offered the Vejtables – I Still Love You, from 1965, pictured below. Jangly Beau Brummel-esq. folk rock, which I happily purchased.
Wanna go? You can find Darkside Records on our Record Stores Map.
Here’s a 2017 piece from Medium.com Darkside Records: The Origin Story interviewing Justin Johnson, one of the store’s co-owners, about the store and its history.
And here’s a Behind The Counter espisode from 2022, also interviewing Mr. Johnson, which will give you a tour of the store and its offerings. This video is set to a great song I never knew – The Punk Rock Opera’s the Bad Plants from 2016. Snarling punk rock with cool lyrics – “just the product of the bad seeds, Just some guys that grew in to weeds. But we learned how to fight with sound, We are the bad plants NOW!!” Kinda what you go to a record store for.
Darkside Records regularly hosts in-store performances, on the large stage at the rear of the store. They also host a monthly podcast.
Here is American Film History performing Hz in store in April 2017. Kinda a 80s techno vibe, if you ask me. But you don’t have to, you can just click the video to decide for yourself.
So how did Poughkeepsie get its name? According to Hudson Valley magazine “The Wappinger tribe which initially inhabited the land named it Uppuqui, meaning “reed covered lodge”, along with ipis meaning “little water”, and ing meaning “place.” This all culminated in Uppuqui-ipis-ing, directly translating to “the reed-covered lodge by the little water place.” Time evolved this name into Apokeepsing, then Pooghkepesingh…and after 42 different spellings, Poughkeepsie.” A lot easier to say than Uppuqui-ipis-ing.
