Rust and Wax Record Shop – 2512 Florida Ave. West Palm Beach, FL 33401 – Open
With the renewed interest in vinyl, came a resurrgence in record stores. New mom and pops heard the siren call of running their own record store, and opened new mom and pops. That was the case with Melanie and Jesse Friedman, who followed the call and opened Rust and Wax in 2017.
Their present location is in Industry Alley in West Palm Beach off Belvedere. A larger space, it offers new and used vinyl in a wide variety of genres. Soul, funk, rnb, hip hop, rock, modern pop, jazz, indie, alternative, punk, metal, experimental, electronic, latin, blues – you get the idea. It also sells 45s, cds, cassettes, t-shirts and books. When I visited, they had a great 45 collection, with lots of garage revival 45s. And like all new record stores, the space is clean. No mess allowed.
Rust and Wax sells a really cool store t-shirt, which comes in both adult, and in a first for me at least, toddler sizes as well. Nothing like a little father son, grandpa grandson bonding. The t shirt was designed by Gather and Seek, along with other store gear.
Try before you buy is available.
And they’ve done in-stores. American Sigh appeared on January 7, 2023 and did an acoustic in-store. And from Eventbrite, here’s a list of other old and upcoming in-stores.
A nice store. And don’t just take our word for it, there were lots of people in the store when we visited, as you can see from the pictures below.
Wanna go? You can find Rust and Wax Records on our Record Stores Map.
What the Press is Saying
From WPB Magazine (West Palm Beach) comes this June 4, 2021 piece Rust and Wax Brings Back The Community Record Store. It interviews store owners Melanie and Jesse Feldman about their store’s new digs, and what led them to open a record store.
And here’s an earlier article, published in VoyageMia on July 5, 2018 Meet Jesse and Melanie Feldman of Rust & Wax in West Palm Beach. This describes the store at its earlier location in Elizabeth Avenue Station, before it moved to its now larger and present digs in Industry Alley.
Here’s a brief video tour of the store – from its owners – that will give you a better idea of what the store has to offer. This will display on Instagram as they will not permit it to be embedded here.
Cool Vinyl Bought There
The Soft Boys – (I Want To Be An) Anglepoise Lamp (1978)
The Soft Boys were a great, but criminally underappreciated English band. Fronted by Robyn Hitchcock, they made two albums in 1979 and 1980, and then disbanded. A reunion in 2001 produced a third. Hitchcock went on to a prolific solo career, with some of the same players, while his fellow guitarist Kimberly Rew found success with Katrina and the Waves.
At a time when punk and New Wave were big, the Soft Boys did neither. Instead, they reached back to the British psychedelic sounds of the late ’60s which they blended, along with the ringing guitars of the Byrds and Beatles into punk and rock. Think Syd Barrett era Arnold Layne Pink Floyd. No three chord heros, they laid harmonies and surreal lyrics over their guitar driven sounds. A step in the evolution that led to the indie / alternative sounds.
Their highlight was 1980’s Underwater Moonlight, featuring such greats as Insanely Jealous, Queen of Eyes and Kingdom of Love.
(I want to be an) Anglepoise Lamp was the Soft Boy’s first proper 45. Released in 1978, it combines punk and psychedelia, with surreal lyrics and great ringing harmonies. Ever heard of a song about an Anglepoise Lamp? Or for that matter, have a clue as to what an Anglepoise Lamp is?
By the way, that’s a fair price for this single (with cover). Recent sales on Discogs have it going for between $30 and $52.
And for fun, here’s an Anglepoise lamp, invented by the British designer George Carwardine in 1932.
