Going to Tokyo? Tower Records Losing Steam

Started by flyingdutchman, September 04, 2019, 01:33:55 AM

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flyingdutchman

I've both lived in and gone to Japan for what has been the best market for classical cds over the years.  Last year, when I went Disk Union had moved and while not having lost a whole lot of stock at their new location, it was Tower Records that concerned me the most.  Last year, on my annual trip the cds were pretty much in full stock and the two stores in Shibuya and Shinjuku both had full floors dedicated to classical music.

Well, this year when I went the Tower stores have halved their stock and classical now shares space with other forms of music.  We all have been watching as cds have lost steam all over the world, but I can say that this year marks what I believe will be a downward trend even in Japan.  Sad indeed.

flyingdutchman

It's been some 25 years since I first returned to Japan to live and work.  I ended up living in Japan for about 11 years until 2005, but some of my favorite time in Tokyo was spent walking the streets of Akihabara, Ochanomizu, and Shinjuku where I shopped at the multiple stereo hardware shops and went after the difficult to find classical cds, long out of print in many places.

Yesterday, I decided to go back to Akihabara to see what has happened to the once-proud electric town and while I know that Ishimaru is gone as are the other hole in the wall cd places what has really surprised me is how the stereo hardware shops have gone under replaced by Otaku shops all over the place.  Used to be you could go anywhere in Akihabara and see equipment to your heart's content.  Now, it is replaced by gaming stuff and toys for the perpetual gaming and computer geek.

I miss those days and I do fear that cds, while holding out in Japan long after they've gone under elsewhere, will soon be gone here too.