One of the great things about college towns is that the young population allows seemingly strange businesses to thrive. There’s something very special about having an experience that makes you say “I didn’t know places like this were still around.” This is exactly how it feels to walk into Bizarre Bazaar. One of the main reasons these nostalgic feelings sweep over you is the distinct smell. The odor isn’t offensive in any way, it simply smells old, and a little dusty. I can see why people say it store smells like their grandmother’s house, but truly I think of this as a good thing. Seeing or smelling something that reminds me of my grandmother’s house reminds me of being a kid, of simpler times. Always a welcome feeling, even if it’s fleeting.
What to expect from Bizarre Bazaar
You only have to take one step into the store and look around to figure out where this smell is coming from. It’s coming from everywhere. Turntables and audio equipment from over 30 years ago cover every square inch of the shop’s entrance, alongside posters, various pieces of artwork, comic books, action figures, and a million other items that are begging to be remembered. This front room is also where you would go to sell your used books, music, and audio equipment. Another thing worth noting in this room is the repair shop where you can have your speakers, turntable, or other audio equipment repaired. As far as I know, this is the only place in town that offers such a service which is a godsend for wannabe audiophiles that have no idea what they are doing. (Me)
Book selection at Bizarre Bazaar
Bizarre Bazaar is mostly a bookstore but one with a tons of other stuff. Going through a small hallway takes customers to the extremely impressive used book section. A massive fiction section that contains at least 3 copies of every James Patterson and Stephen King novel ever published takes up about half the large room. The aisle spacing is just the right amount of snug. You are unlikely to bump crotches when passing a stranger, but walking the aisle alone still provides the coziness that one desires when shopping for used books.
The books themselves are crammed into every nook and cranny. On the ends of shelves, on the tops of shelves, in spinning displays, and on the sill of the room’s only window. Interested in things besides airport novels? You will not be disappointed. There are large sections on philosophy, foreign languages, every non-fiction topic you can imagine, and more.
The students of Colorado State University, which is directly across the street, seem to have donated much of the collection. This means that more obscure non-fiction titles are available for about $200 less than the student likely paid. It also means that there are 50 copies of the Communist Manifesto available at any given time, but I digress.
Record selection at Bizarre Bazaar
Wait there’s more! Through another narrow hallway is the music room in Bizarre Bazaar. Described as a “browser’s paradise,” the nickname lives up to the selection. This isn’t the place to come searching for contemporary records, but the variety of used records available is quite impressive. Thousands of records are loosely alphabetized throughout the room in a way that collectors will appreciate. This is not a store in which you search for a specific record. This is where you browse through every single sleeve looking for the record you didn’t know you were missing. The record you didn’t know you needed. The selection can be a bit of a mixed bag like any used record store. However, I have found some good stuff on my visits.
The music room doesn’t stop at vinyl either. Those interested in cassette culture will have plenty to browse as well as those inclined toward CD collecting. The east wall of the store features a DVD section. Though not as impressive as the records available, it’s still plenty browsable if you’re trying to track down some banned Japanese horror movie, or whatever it is that DVD collectors do.
Other stuff at Bizarre Bazaar
Finally, there is a selection of music books. Both of the sheet music variety and musical biographies, are satisfyingly placed as close to the book room as possible, while still being in the music room.
The music played on the speakers in the store is as varied and interesting as one might expect from a store that seems to dabble in everything cool and vintage, meaning you could spend hours wandering the store without being subject to a single Imagine Dragons song and instead be treated to a Smiths record, a John Coltrane record, and something completely unidentifiable but no less delightful. The atmosphere is calm and friendly and there is not the slightest semblance of judgment from customers or employees. An attitude of “you like what you like,” is something that few used records and bookstores do better than the Bizarre Bazaar.
My Take on Bizarre Bazaar
This is an “old stuff” store. If you find these kinds of shops anxiety-inducing or don’t enjoy digging for the good stuff, this isn’t the shop for you. The record selection is about what you’d expect from such a store. There is some cool stuff, some unique stuff, and lots of records in less-than-ideal condition. The book selection is less stressful and better organized. 9 visits out of 10 I’m sticking almost entirely to the book section.