Head down the stairs at Crash Records on The Headrow and the city centre noise gives way to something altogether more absorbing. Wall of Sound occupies the basement beneath one of Leeds’ best-known music shops, and it is given over entirely to second-hand and rare records, with walls of sleeves, crates packed tight with LPs and singles, and shelves of CDs, DVDs, books and music memorabilia waiting to be worked through.
Background / History
The story begins in 1986, when Elliot Smaje, fresh out of his student years and inspired by old Leeds haunts such as Gerol’s in the Merrion Centre, set up a market stall selling the records and books he had collected. He worked the second-hand markets of Leeds, Huddersfield and Dewsbury, later swapping Huddersfield for Barnsley, and added record fairs to the round. Vinyl quickly outsold the books, and in 1990 he opened his first shop in The Piece Hall in Halifax, which is where the Wall of Sound name was born. After seventeen years there he moved in 2007 to a large two-floor shop in Huddersfield selling new as well as used music, which closed at the end of 2012 as the recession and the rise of downloads bit hard. The break did not last. Wall of Sound was revived in Harrogate in December 2013, sharing a building with a vintage shop and bar, and after eighteen months Elliot brought it home to Leeds, opening in the Crash Records basement on 4 July 2015.
What You’ll Find
This is a one-man operation built on nearly four decades of buying, and the range shows it. Rock and metal, punk, indie and alternative sit alongside prog, psychedelia, jazz, experimental, soul, funk and blues, with folk, country, reggae, dance, hip-hop, classical and even exotica in the mix. LPs and 7-inch singles make up the heart of the stock, backed by second-hand CDs, DVDs, music books and ephemera. Everyday listening copies share the racks with genuine collector’s pieces, and the more notable items are often displayed face-out on the walls with handwritten notes. Records are bought, sold and exchanged, and Elliot will travel to view sizeable collections, so fresh stock arrives constantly. Only a small part of the shop’s stock is listed online, which makes the racks themselves the main event.
Experience / Atmosphere
Browsing here is a proper dig. Almost every surface is covered with records, the yellow shelving is stacked with sleeves, and the aisles reward anyone willing to take their time. It can look gloriously crowded at first glance, but there is order beneath it, with sections clearly marked by genre and era. Elliot is usually behind the counter pricing and cleaning new arrivals, and he is happy to talk records or point you towards something you had not thought to look for. Having Crash Records upstairs, a Headrow fixture since the 1980s, makes the building a natural stop for anyone spending a day in Leeds looking for music.
Why Visit
- Nearly forty years of record dealing behind a stock that spans almost every genre
- Deep crates of second-hand LPs and singles, with rarities and collectable pressings on the walls
- Most of the stock is only available in person, not online
- Records bought, sold and exchanged, with visits arranged for larger collections
- Two shops in one building, with new releases at Crash Records upstairs
Summary
Wall of Sound is the kind of basement record shop that rewards patience and curiosity. With a stock shaped by Elliot Smaje’s long journey from Yorkshire market stalls to The Headrow, and a range that runs from blues and prog to reggae and classical, it is an essential stop for anyone who loves digging through second-hand vinyl in Leeds.
