Less than two years ago, a wander into the Drag's beloved Sound Exchange always promised the revelation of some obscure wax necessity. Cruel memories of rummaging through reasonably priced records are but a tease. Fortunately, since the opening of a little record store over on North Loop called Sound on Sound, things have been looking up. While the store's collection is still in its infancy, the spirit of vinyl lives on in this quirky little alcove. Proprietor Jason Costanza stocks most of the releases offered by distributors like Earmark, Hardcore Holocaust, and Ebullition, and also offers a wide variety of used records. Carrying on in the glorious tradition of the Sound Exchange's "equal in the eyes of the collector" policy, Sound on Sound allows Russian presses of Black Sabbath's Ozzy-era catalog to hobnob with fan-club editions of out-of-print psych masterpieces in the vein of Roky's Elevators. Jazz classics rub elbows with "gone-metal" Discharge embarrassments, in the spirit of true diversity. If the Sound Exchange took you that much closer to nirvana, have faith! Your experience with its reincarnate counterpart might just prove to be a religious experience.
