Musical instruments hang from the walls in Robot Monster Guitars. Credit: Instagram / robotmonsterguitars

Music fans on your holiday shopping list can be hard enough to buy for, but if you’re trying spend your dollars locally, it can be even more or a challenge.

That said, don’t just throw up your hands and buy them a gift card to iTunes, Spotify or Guitar Center. There are plenty of ways to spend the money locally and support retailers, creators and music makers here in the community.

Let’s run down a few.

Music stores

If the music junkie on your list still buys physical media — meaning vinyl records, CDs and tapes — it’s always fun to make a shopping excursion to one of San Antonio’s many music stories and ditch the impersonal move of ordering from Amazon.

Venerable Hogwild Records (1824 N Main Ave., (210) 733-5354, instagram/hogwildrecords) is a great spot to find new releases across a variety of genres, including punk, metal, EDM and Texas music, and the store’s selection of band merch, including not just T-shirts but patches, badges and even socks, can’t be beat. Relative newcomer Flagship Records (6336 Montgomery Drive, (832) 566-6838, instagram.com/flagship_records), located inside the Corn Pound arts and retail space, scratches a similar itch with an abundance of rare and hard-to-find punk and indie releases plus cool posters, shirts and more.

If you’re buying for someone who craves vintage vinyl, an amazing selection of locally owned stores including — but certainly not limited to — Friends of Sound Records (700 Fredericksburg Road, (210) 971-8044, instagram/friendsofsoundsa), Southtown Vinyl (1112 S. St. Mary’s St., (210) 231-0512, instagram.com/southtownvinyl), Crazy Rhythms Records (3617 Broadway, Suite 402, instagram.com/crazyrhythmsrecords) and Batcave Vinyl (555 W. Bitters Road #122, (210) 990-0071, facebook.com/batcavevinyl) can help on that front. And definitely don’t snooze on the vinyl selection at La Segunda Bartique and Gallery (1302 S. St. Mary’s St., (210) 314-2740, instagram.com/la_segunda_bartiqueandgallery), a hip vintage shop that has the distinction of serving alcoholic drinks to get shoppers in a spending mood.

If the person on your list is a fan of Tejano and conjunto music, it’s hard to beat longtime purveyors Del Bravo Record Shop (554 Historic Old Highway 90 West, (210) 432-8351, delbravorecordshop.com) and Janie’s Record Shop (1012 Bandera Road, (210)735-2070, janiesrecordshop.com). With Del Bravo in operation since 1966 and Janie’s since 1985, buying from these spots supports San Antonio history and cultura.

La Segunda Bartique and Gallery, offers vintage vinyl shopping while customers sip on alcoholic drinks served on-site. Credit: Instagram / la_segunda_bartiqueandgallery

Music instrument retailers

Unless you’re buying for your significant other or an immediate family member, you’re probably not going to drop several hundred dollars on a new musical instrument for the person on your list, but you can certainly give them a gift certificate for a locally owned music store. Depending on their instrument of choice, there are plenty of options.

Both Robot Monster Guitars (609 E. Dewey Place, (210) 320-1710, instagram.com/robotmonsterguitars) and SpaceTone Music (416 Austin Highway, (210) 930-3662, instagram.com/spacetone_music) specialize in used electric guitars, amps and effects. If your gift recipient is a gigging musician, there’s a good chance they’re already familiar with one or both these funky and fun spots.

Olmos Park shop GuitarTex (4330 McCullough Ave., (210) 822-1595) specializes in acoustic guitars sales and repairs with an emphasis on friendly service.

The granddaddy of San Antonio music stores, Alamo Music Center (multiple locations) has been in operation since 1929 and offers a diverse selection of instruments, from accordions and pianos to guitars and high school band gear. They also stock DJ equipment and offer lessons and repairs.

Local musicians and bands

Far be it from us to recommend what local bands and musicians fit the tastes of the person on your list, but if you know some of the ones they like, by all means look for those releases at the music stores listed above.

Another alternative to keep in mind is that Bandcamp (bandcamp.com), the online music site focused on indie artists and labels, offers gift cards that can be used to purchase “millions of digital releases” or physical goods, including releases by Alamo City creators. At that point, it’s up to the person on your list to keep those dollars local — although it never hurts to give them a good-natured holiday nudge in that direction.

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This article appears in Nov 27 – Dec 10, 2024.

Sanford Nowlin is editor-in-chief of the San Antonio Current. He holds degrees from Trinity University and the University of Texas at San Antonio, and his work has been featured in Salon, Alternet, Creative...