In Your Ear Records

This is what a record store is supposed to be: sort of secret (it’s in a basement), messy, fully stocked, with a cheap used records selection and good records from all over the world. I loved their boxes of soul and folk. They even have tiny sections of old music magazines and books, as well as those billboards of musicians seeking band mates. You don’t find this stuff in the newer, more hipster and more expensive vinyl revival stores. I wish I’d had more time to spend checking out its massive collection. My hands got dirty :)

Great staff! Awesome selection! Snagged a couple of garage comps that I would normally buy via mail order, but they had them and more!!!

A crazy old school comfy place. There are items crammed everywhere! Lots to look through so plan to spend some time here. The help is helpful. Ask if they have a John Zorn lp and they can put their fingers on it quickly. Lots of old school. Bring cash. They have to call in credit cards. Very 1979.

Decided to check it out while staying in Boston and after arriving exactly at noon (when the place opens) this shop was not opened. Waited for an hour and no one showed up, what a waste of time.

This location should be called «In your basement». This satellite location was located below street level. It was cramped, cluttered, and very musty– not a great environment to be storing records much less selling them. That being said, I would say the selection of jazz and rock was good. I walked out with a dozen or so records. The dude working was very friendly, thanked me for coming in, and directed me to the main location, which he said had a larger jazz selection.
I’d visit again if I were in town, but I strongly recommend they do something about the moisture and musty smell in there.

The shop looks interesting enough as you enter, with good music coming through the speakers, and stacks upon stacks of music in any medium you can think of (CD’s, Vinyl, Tapes, VHS…). It looks like someone could spend several days sifting through everything that is here, and it really fits the stereotype of a dusty basement vinyl record shop that we have all become so used to. If you spend all day, you may find a few great lp’s, but there is no way anyone could, the dust and mold is overwhelming. Although this sounds like a digger’s paradise, many of the top shelf bins were almost at eye lever, which creates a difficult environment to dig throughm as you can’t really see what your doing. Although i breezed through a few interesting records, I couldn’t spend more than 10 minutes down here before my eyes stared burning and throat dried out. The store is basically a mess, although vinyl is in bins/​boxes, it is hard to find any further resemblance of organization. The condition of the vinyl i looked at was so-​so, probably relatively hit or miss. The store would be vastly improved if they would just cull their stock down a bit, just donate those 10 extra huey lewis lp’s and make room for people to browse.

I concur with the reviewer who said that the Cambrige IYE location only gets docked a star because the Commonwealth Ave store is superior. The other location *is* better, yes, but don’t let that deter you from this one. Talk about great vinyl-​shopping atmosphere. Among the things I encountered on my lone visit:
1. A gigantic, awesome dog reclining between stacks of vinyl. Upon our entry, he cocked his head to the side and seemed to acknowledge us with his facial expressions. I am not exaggerating about any of this.
2. Two thirty-​somethings half-​heartedly sifting through records as they animatedly discussed The Godfather trilogy, quotes and spoilers and all. If I hadn’t seen the films, I suppose I could be salty about the plot points given away, but as I have, I just found the entire thing entertaining.
3. An unobtrusive — but surprisingly friendly — clerk that, thanks Evan M., did look exactly like Garth Algar.
More to the point, they have a hell of a selection. Not Comm Ave IYE large, but comparable, and in a smaller space. It feels a bit like a vinyl speakeasy, what with the trip underground, through narrow, musty hallways, and down winding sets of stairs where you’re greeted by a leprechaun that insists on having the password. (I may or may not have made up the leprechaun thing. You’ll have to find out for yourself.)
For those of us who like record shopping for the fun of it, IYE Cambridge — either location, really — is a fantastic place to kill a couple of hours. I spent about an hour here myself, and didn’t tire of it (my travel companions did, hence leaving before I was in a complete record coma). I like the lack of organization — it lends the element of surprise and discovery to the whole shebang. That, and I carted off a decent haul for under 10 bucks.
Oh, Boston. You have my heart.

Any place that plays Massive Attack and has photographs of Nicky Wire and Ian McCulloch in drag on the door is quality enough in my book. I’ve been to this location and the one in Allston and I like them both equally. I honestly go in not expecting to buy anything, just to browse. Sometimes I buy something, sometimes I don’t, but it’s fun to browse through the seemingly endless stacks and boxes of records. They also have old British weekly rock mags in the back, which are worth a look as they’re pretty damn hilarious.

OK… I’m not a neat freak but come on… atleast file in some sense of order. I don’t care if you want to file by the 3^rd letter in the artists name but atleast gimme something to work with! Too many random stacks piled on top of random stacks ontop of records that have been there too long.
I’ve dug through basements, attics, yard sales, goodwill stores & what have ya & this store provides the same challenge. The only difference is that you are guaranteed to find something ya want. Fatigue can set in early at In Your Ear but if ya hang in you will be rewarded.
If ya stay the course you’ll come up with good stuff. I stood up to stretch my back & my eye caught 2 inches of black & white spines in the middle of the spined cheesy pop vocal section. seemed out of place, took a closer look & it was a handful of great out of print Arhoolie LPs — Lightin Hopkins, Clifton Chenier, Mance Lipscomb… all in great shape @ a really fair price. The trade off … it took 2.5 hours to come with with 5 LPs.
Everytime I’ve stopped in when I’m in town, the clerks are always funny & chatty talking about a variety of topics & news, not just all music all the time. Which is nice.
So, don’t give up, bring a snack to keep your energy up, bring a handkerchief if your allergic to dust and stay focused. You will be rewarded.

awes reggae on tape, vinyl all over the place, basement, more vinyl all over the place= heart ! blaze one out and dig thru stacks for a couple of hours!

Navigating this store can be a nightmare, and shopping here can be hazardous if you’re allergic to dust, like I am.
I have made some great finds in this location over the years, mostly in the «new arrivals» bins. I’m not sure how long something stays in the «new arrivals» section, but from the look of the non-​new arrivals rock section, it would appear that the records filed up there have spent a LOT of time here. Even in plastic sleeves, most are as dog-​eared as any Goodwill record.
The CD’s are still priced as if CD’s had value, and as such aren’t really worth flipping through. Root through the new arrivals section and a few of the crates in their vicinity, and you’ve adequately scoured this store. If you find yourself walking past the register to look at records, you’ve gone too far.

I know that I have walked by this record store many times without noticing the sign that leads one down some stairs, but once I had finally found it the place was added to a nice collection of Harvard Square record stores to frequent for those ‘need some new music’ shopping days.
What is charming about In Your Ear is that it looks like it is bursting with music. There are piles of CDs and records near the front desk that look like they have no room to be filed anywhere. Evidence of some organization can be found in various cupboards, but obviously those are already filled up with who knows what. Despite the poor lighting and exceptionally narrow walkways, you will be able to see tempting collections to thumb through in every direction.
The same thing that makes this store a busy place to sift through is also what makes it sub-​par. It can be rather inconvenient to edge around customers while trying to search for a section of music that is vaguely labeled. Even when you get there you won’t necessarily find the title you’re looking for, since the store doesn’t consistently organize their stock and doesn’t always have the newest material easily available. I did find some new releases in a box once, but they weren’t where they should have been for customers to see. Also, the fact that the store has stacks and stacks of unfiled music means the place needs to seriously consider reorganizing how they display their wares.
The prices on the used CDs are within a good range of $ 7 – 9 while newer ones tend to be around $ 10 – 11. I didn’t get a chance to thumb through the records much, so I am unsure as to their quality. The store does have a $ 5.99 or 3/​$ 15 thing going on, but some of those discs should no longer be priced as they are since the nineties are not only over but also undesirable in regards to most mainstream music. There is a fun $ 1 bin wall which has afforded some pretty good stuff in the past, but you have to spend some time with it.
I think the staff there is very friendly and relaxed, though one has to peer around stacks of cluttered CDs and the like to speak with them. The store doesn’t accept credit cards, so make sure you pick up some cash on the way in. Overall I think the store is worth a stop, but with such a frustrating layout, it may deter one from sticking around too long.
If the management were to take a week off to remodel the place, they should seriously consider emulating what Planet Records does and put their CDs in sleeves to reduce space. They could also stand to toss out some of their ancient, unpopular CDs and start anew with more buyable and recent stuff. It would really, really help.

I sprained my back while hunching over record bins here, and I still frequent this store. Is that a good recommendation? I’m not sure.
Anyway, I’ve found a lot of cool stuff here. They have a LOT of records, some of which are organized and sorted well, but certainly not all, if you’re determined to find some specific album or single, you best be prepared to put in some work. And there’s a lot here to go through, but you’ll almost invariably be able to find some gems. The local band section is always worth checking out, as is the new arrivals bin.
The staff is generally friendly and helpful if you ask nicely, though they’re mostly content to let you do your own thing, and all but ignore you unless you approach them. Which is fine; I don’t care for salespeople to be constantly bugging me. If I need your help, I’ll ask you for it.
The vinyl hunter would be remiss to not make this place part of their search.

Blink and you will miss the sign leading to this underground record shop. Walking down the stairs, I could smell which direction the dusty vinyl was wafting from. At first I thought it was a cool place for some rare vinyl, seriously from floor to ceiling. As I was walking through, actually scooting sideways through the tightly stacked milk crates holding the once worth-​buying records… i felt claustrophobic as well as a sneeze attack coming on. It is not posted anywhere, but you should weigh under 200 pounds to maneuver through the store.
They have like 20 of the same Pat Benatar album and like 8 Fine Young Cannibals (etc etc) but check the condition before buying, it’s a journey to find something in good condition here. They also have cassettes and eight-​tracks and I’m not sure why… it seems like a waste of space.

Awesome, just awesome.
Like most record stores, you have to dig to find the gold… but there is plenty of gold to be found!
The guy who looks like Garth Algar was super friendly, and somehow knows where absolutely everything in the store is. I was looking for a Left Banke record that (he informed me) is now apparently out of print, so he offered to burn it for me… and even print me out the artwork! What a guy!
I love this place!

i just changed my 1 star review to 3.
a couple years ago i thrashed the place because all the records were dirty and i wasn’t happy with the selection. buzzed back thru recently and they were cleaning and repricing records as i shopped. i easily found records i wanted to buy and they were clean and in great condition. definitely an archive worth checking out.

Fantastic. It may be cramped but that’s great because that means more inventory. More inventory = better selection = awesome times.
I’m still bummed that the one in Providence closed. That’s where I got all of my music in middle and high school.

The only reason this gets 4 stars is because the Comm. Ave. location is better, honestly I’d give this one 5 stars too, but I want there to be a difference.
That said, IYE is amazing. This location is my second favorite vinyl shop in the Boston area, beat out only by the other location. They have tons of vinyl, and the first time I went in I was very lost trying to find what I want because is seems very disorganized, but after spending a little time in the store I realized it’s actually very organized, just oddly, so it was really easy to find stuff I was looking for (which they almost always seem to have) once I figured out their system. The staff are extremely friendly and knowledgeable, and are just really cool guys over all. Being a hardcore audiophile I can spend hours in a vinyl shop, and IYE is one of the few that even after being in there for 2 – 3 hours I still find one more album I want to buy before leaving. Definitely the place to go for vinyl in Boston.

In Your Ear looks intimidating. It’s in a basement and down a short hallway littered with indie papers that look like someone slept in them, and its CDs are terrifyingly unorganized. Like, they have no band sections whatsoever: it’s just ABC… DEFG…etc. You see something like that and you think it’s gonna be a nightmare. But they’re alphabetized a lot better than you think they’re gonna be. I was pleasantly surprised by the place. The dudes behind the counter absolutely couldn’t care less about me and my awesome taste in music, and they cage their CDs in those nasty plastic skeletons from the 90s, which I hate because they’re huge and pointy and bad for the environment. But the selection is pretty good, with some stuff that surprised me; this store is worth a visit.
I BOUGHT: Onyx, «Bacdafucup» ($ 8), which I was absolutely flabbergasted to find. Who would think this joint would have any kind of hip-​hop selection at all? But because no one would think that, it turns out that In Your Ear has some of the albums that you never find in used CD stores. I saw LL Cool J’s «Radio» and Public Enemy’s «Takes a Nation of Millions» in there. Those are both such perfect albums that you can’t really buy them used, because who would sell them? And if they did, who wouldn’t immediately buy them? But they’re here, gathering dust, because hip-​hop fans must not come here. And insanely, they [used to] have the mighty Onyx, whose flow was far deeper and more complex than anyone gave them credit for. All anyone thinks of is «Praise the Lord, ’cause even nuns get stuck,» but try rapping along with them sometime. Those lyrics are dense.

Hit or miss, but isn’t all record shopping?
This place is pretty disorganzied with tons of records on lower shelves below the main alphabitized ones. It’s the kind of place you should have an hour or so to kill in.
You can come across rare wax everyonce in a while, but what it’s really good for is to pick up that Stones record you’ve been missing for a few bucks. They have a lot of popular stuff cheep.
Also, the clerks their are not the typical music snobs– they won’t roll their eyes at you if you walk to the counter with a well known pop record…