Halcyon

 

0

3

Devin B.

Newark, NJ

I definitely dig the Halcyon shop in Dumbo.  It's like Brooklyn's answer to Manhattan's Fat Beats, except it carries a sick selection of 'zines (Wax Poetics is the essential crate diggers' gospel) and nutty books.  Also Fat Beats is limited to hip-hop vinyl while Halcyon offers a broader range of music.  Halcyon hosts some mean events too.  Check it out if you're into the vinyl arts...

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5

30

Shaina S.

Brooklyn, NY

Gotta agree with Bill J. here.  There just wasn't anything like the former Halcyon on Smith St. anywhere in the city.  It was one of my favorite places to go for a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, while admiring the every-changing furniture and listening to top-notch DJs spin their records.  Plus, they had a really big cat who would come and chill with everyone, sleep on top of the stacks of records and just generally watch over things like a guard cat.  He was seriously like 20 pounds of soild cat.  Any place with a cat and records is worthy of 5 stars, in my book.

The current version of Halcyon maybe not so much.  My boyfriend DJs as a hobby and with my own affinity for house and techno, I tend to tag along with him on his record buying adventures.  I find vinyl intoxicating.  So in that sense, Halycon is pretty cool, in a very clean, hip and modern way.  No dusty bins of records here.  I can't really comment on the selection, other than what everyone else has sad.

In any case, records stores are a dying breed in this city, so if you still spin vinyl, make sure you stop by before this one is gone too.

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Elite '08

10

37

Bill J.

Brooklyn, NY

It's hard to review Halcyon without thinking about it's past in Carroll Gardens when it was a coffee shop with a few records and CDs in the back.   Before it moved to Dumbo, Halcyon was easily worthy of 5 stars.  Now that it's become a full time record store, it's hard to visit without thinking about coming in late on a Sunday afternoon and hearing lots of great DJ's play while some danced, and others sipped on coffee.

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0

1

davie c.

New York, NY

Sadly, I have to agree with Heather S.

This place has the WORST customer service, which I could understand if their selection was brilliant, but it 's not  - no wonder people have turned to shopping online to get the product they want -- without the bad attitude.

%#@*  Halcyon

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Elite '08

330

224

Justin C.

Brooklyn, NY

Halcyon is the best record shop in NYC for new house & techno. They specialize in Ibiza / Berlin style vinyl, stocking a lot of labels like Poker Flat, Connaiseur, Dubsided, Orac, etc. In addition to the new titles, they have quite a stockpile of older 12" of all sorts, including loads of 80s, Funk, Soul, Hip Hop and the like. The discerning digger should certainly pay them a visit and flip through their stuff. They have store wide discounts on Sundays and discounts for ladies on Thursday evenings. Their prices are a little high on this material material.

They also carry some cool CDs & locally made garb which is generally hip, and regularly feature artwork from local folks on their walls. It's a cool store and well worth a visit.

They used to be located on Smith St. where they had a combination record store / cafe atmosphere. The move to DUMBO has hurt them for a lot of reasons, certainly the most obvious of which is the loss of that environment. They are now truly an independent, specialized record store, and unless they change or update their business, I don't think they will be around for too much longer. It would be a shame to see them go, but as music shifts online increasingly, shops of this nature are forced to cater to increasingly fickle and niche-y market; hardly an enviable task.

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1

9

Heather S.

Brooklyn, NY

Horrible Customer service.

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85

193

Trixie J.

San Francisco, CA

Halycon stocks CDs, new and used vinyl "for virtually every subgenre filed under dance music," weird zines, local artwork and apparel designed by Brooklyn labels.

Stumbled upon. Not that easy to find in raw & industrial DUMBO. Cool shop. Nice staff. Go visit.

On most Thursdays from 4pm to 8pm, staff DJs host listening parties.

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