Brussels, Record Stores, Vinyl

Veals & Geeks Record Store: A Step Back in Time

May 2, 2023

Veals & Geeks record store on Rue des Grands Carmes in the heart of Brussels is like no other. It’s not often you find stores with more than just a product to sell. This one had a concept we could really get behind. Keep in mind, we’ve been to hundreds of record stores at this point. None where we were so focused on the music in front of us.

Love it or hate it, being forced to put your phone away as you enter a store isn’t exactly common. Veals & Geeks record store actively block phone signals to force you back into a more nostalgic past.

The selection of records on offer at Veals & Geeks may offer an insight into the motivations behind the no phone policy. You may find yourself spending just a little bit more time in this Belgian record store compared to the others in the vicinity for this reason alone. The music, the records and the experience takes over, and you find yourself spending much longer digging.

On our first visit to Veeks & Geeks Record Store, we were greeted with the sound of Dorothy Ashby’s “The Rubaiyat of Dorothy Ashby”. Staff, friends and local clientele were sharing drinks at the counter as summer came to a close across the city. Something different was in the air.

The store is separated neatly into categories ranging from essential to Rare and obscure to cult. Raymond Scott, Magma, Gary Numan, Gil Scott-Heron and Isaac Hayes were in stock.

Pricing for Veals & Geeks is reasonable. Given the amount of first pressings that we came across, having a Discogs price is beyond fair, especially given the saving on delivery. Pricing isn’t standardised, but diverse. We picked up an original Gary Numan’s The Pleasure Principle for 18.

That doesn’t mean there isn’t deals to be found. Original Beatles Pressings, French Bowie Pressings and many more rare finds are there too.

Staff are beyond helpful, and you will see them answering requests of customers throughout the day who are seeking that one specific record that they can’t find.

Record Stores across the world, never mind just Brussels, could benefit from a no-phone policy.

Check out the Veals & Geeks Facebook Page for updates.

Follow the Veals & Geeks Bandcamp page.

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