One for all of the trippers out there, F’lmore carries psychedelia and counterculture across all eras, in every variety possible. These amazing records are tightly packed with ingenious descriptive labels – “Spiritual Afro”; “Ambient/New Age/ECM/Chill Out/Raga”; “Minimal Electro/Synth Beats/Cosmic”; “Progressive – Spain”; “CTI, Groove Fusion” and “Brazil/Bossa Nova/MPB” to name but a few.

Was impressed to see some rarities filed away in “Progressive – Australia” as well as a Whirlywirld 7” on the wall. Found quite a few records that I’d been desperately seeking including Goblin’s Contamination soundtrack and an esoteric Rinder & Lewis alias, while a few friends blew my mind with some weapons they pulled out for public play. Given that these are not easy finds, prices were reasonable. There were also heaps of cheap boxes filled with random goodies around the counter. The owner made it a friendly experience.

F’lmore Records Sanko Bldg. 3F 2-1-8 Kitazawa, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo, Japan

Within walking distance of Rare Groove, Revelation Time is a magical store that I’ll never forget. Its owner Eiji speaks fluent English, having previously lived in London and travels to Utrecht twice a year.

Eiji’s stock stands alone as being very Euro-centric but also accommodates a lot of US, Canadian, Bollywood and South American music. Whether it’s new age, Turkish, electronic, psych rock, Balearic or fusion, each category boasts deep knowledge. Even Theo Parrish, Harvey and the Idjut Boys have their own sections.

A quarter of the store specialises in roots, lovers’ rock and digital dancehall in bulk quantities of quality. Revelation Time sets the bar high, almost as if a board of directors had to rigorously judge each record before granting it entry. Just like in dreams, I found many long desired discs here as well as making many exciting new discoveries thanks to Eiji’s recommendations. Just ask him about Japanese new age, cosmic and psychedelic groove and again, allow lots of time for listening. Take a glimpse inside online with audio samples of choice cuts.

Revelation Time, NOA Bld, 4F-A, 4-9-5 Minamisenba, Tyuo-Ku Osaka-Shi, Osaka, Japan

I read the reviews of this place on Record Junkie  before I made the trip and quite frankly I was put off! Having had the negative experience of being kicked out of a record store in Berlin, diggers comments about this place sounded all to familiar. I didn’t even bother writing down the address but came across it by accident and my curiosity got the better of me so I thought I’d give it a go.

I was nervous from the outset, felt like the store guys were watching me! There was just such an overwhelming amount of vinyl in there, more than I’d ever seen in one spot. I didn’t know where to start. The other thing that made it difficult was that it was so tightly packed, you really had to get stuck in. One guy there asked if he could help me and I thought, this is it, he’s going to kick me out -  but he showed me to the section I was after.

I pulled out some good stuff over the hour I was there. Prices were decent. Eventually my arms got so sore I couldn’t lift them to hold rows of records back as a lot of good stuff was on the upper shelves, so I listened to some of my selections through the store speakers. This is always a little bit awkward I find, but the store guys were interested in my choices, even asking what some were. I don’t blame them, with all the stock in the store they can’t remember everything.

There were some real hard core collectors in there at the time. Flicking super fast, talking mumbo, holding scrunched lists of records. It was a cool place! Don’t be put off. You gotta check it out.

Record Collector, Lange Koepoortstraat 105 2000 Antwerp, Belgium

I’m pretty sure I have the address right… if you catch the train from Mechelen  – which you would pass coming from Brussels I believe – get out of the station and follow the main road that has the tram line on it going into the main city square. It’s a bit of a nonsensical set up of a city in that the main station is almost 30 mins walk out of the CBD or tourist centre.

Anyway, I chose to walk so I could get to know the streets better. This paid off too because I came across this bookstore that sold records (bookshops often seem to be where you find the best records in Belgium). Picked up a rare Afro number and some cosmic 7″s for 1 euro each. Definitely worth popping into.

Make sure you continue up the street and into the main township. It’s really beautiful. Grab a waffle and just sit on the canal and take it all in. Marvellous!

Boeken En CD Markt de Kaft, Kortrijksesteenweg, Gent, België