From hi-fi bars to album listening parties, these are the 6 best spots to listen to music in L.A.
- Listening bars, often referred to as jazz kissas — where people can relax and listen to vinyl records carefully selected by a bartender over a high fidelity sound system — have been popular in Japan since the 1950s.
- In recent years, listening bars have been popping up in the U.S. There’s a handful of them in Los Angeles, along with other events that encourage people to be present with the music and actively engage with it.
On a recent Thursday night in Hollywood, I walked into Grandmaster Recorders, a storied former recording studio — where artists like Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan and the Red Hot Chili Peppers once laid down tracks — now transformed into a rooftop bar and restaurant. After grabbing a drink, I found a seat in the dimmed room, which was filled with more than 100 other music aficionados all there to do one thing: Listen to Frank Ocean’s critically acclaimed album, “Channel Orange,” on vinyl.
The hosts played the record over a high fidelity (hi-fi for short) audio system — a term used to describe the high-quality reproduction of sound — that sounded so crisp that it felt like Ocean was singing live in front of us. I’d listened to the album at least 300 times before and have seen Ocean perform live, but I’d never experienced the record in this way before.
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“I think listening to [music] on your own is amazing,” says Free Oribhabor, founder of the Record Club, an album listening event that he’s been hosting in Los Angeles for nearly two years. “But there’s just something about doing it in a room with other people that makes it even more special. It just magnifies the experience of listening to music, especially if you just zero in on the music and allow yourself to go where it’s taking you. It’s like a group meditation.”
The Record Club is just one of a handful of experiences or public places in L.A. where audiophiles — folks who are obsessed with high-quality sound and audio gadgets — can gather, relax and vibe out to music with other likeminded people. Unlike regular bars, where people often go to socialize, turn up and dance, listening bars typically have a more laid-back vibe, and the intent is to actively listen to the music. It’s a space where you can be completely present with what you’re hearing.
Many of these spaces are inspired by Japanese listening bars (known as jazz kissaten or jazz kissas), where patrons can listen to vinyl records that are carefully selected by a bartender from the venue’s collection on hi-fi sound equipment, while they enjoy Japanese whiskey, coffee and other beverages. At some jazz kissas, which have been popular in Japan since the 1950s, talking is prohibited at certain times.
In recent years, listening bars have been popping up in New York, Oakland, L.A. and other major U.S. cities. Among the first Japanese-inspired vinyl bars to open in L.A. was In Sheep’s Clothing in 2018, started by a record label and vinyl collective of the same name. It was shuttered during the COVID pandemic, but the team is planning to open a new lounge in the near future.
“It feels like almost an explosion of it happening all over the world,” says Phil Cho of In Sheep’s Clothing, which currently has a pop-up record store at the Row DTLA. Despite In Sheep’s Clothing closing its hi-fi bar during the pandemic, Cho says the shutdown likely played a role in the boom of listening bars across the U.S. “I think when the world started opening back up again, these spaces became a good in-between point for people to socialize and listen to music.”
The magic of listening to music at a vinyl bar or a similar space is the sound quality. Not only do you have to build a record collection (the rise of listening bars may be in part due to the resurgence of vinyl records), but a hi-fi system at home can cost a pretty penny. If you want to buy your own setup, it can cost upward of $1,500 for speakers, an amplifier, turntables and the cables needed to connect it all, depending on the brand, according to Wesley Katzir, owner of Common Wave Hi-Fi.
“I always thought that hi-fi speakers were kind of an exclusive thing to have — like you could only go to bougie spots to listen to music on there,” says Elwood Espiritu, who hosts an album listening party called Slow Jamz in the Arts District. “And they’re just playing jazz, but no one’s playing Ginuwine or Jon B., so I was like, ‘Dang, I want to make a change for that and give people access to listen to music in that way.’”
While New York is home to several hi-fi bars, there are surprisingly only a few in L.A. For this reason, this list highlights vinyl lounges and ongoing events like the Record Club that play vinyl records over hi-fi sound systems and create an environment where people can engage with the music in a more meaningful and deeper way.
Gold Line
Open since 2018, the vinyl-centered cocktail lounge is situated underneath Stones Throw Records’ office and is co-owned by the label’s founder, Chris Manak (a.k.a. DJ Peanut Butter Wolf), label manager Jason McGuire and restaurateur Tyler Bell. The centerpiece of the chic space is Manak’s wall-to-wall collection of more than 15,000 records, which are housed behind the DJ booth and long wooden bar. Bartenders and guest DJs are allowed to pick and play their favorites, but if they want to play an outside record, it must then join the Gold Line collection when they leave.
Grammy-winning artists such as jazz pianist Robert Glasper and singer Anderson .Paak — his duo NxWorries is signed to Stones Throw — have hosted parties here.
Patrons can sit on the many cozy stools near the bar or on the couches toward the back of the venue as they listen to an array of genres like Japanese funk, dance/electronic and ’90s hip-hop. Gold Line is still a bar, so don’t expect for people to be quiet here. But don’t worry, the music usually is playing at house-party levels, so you’ll still be able to enjoy it.
Wax on Hi-Fi
“As a solo traveler, I would hang out at the record bars [in Japan] and I thought it was such a cool experience to have a place to just listen to music and meet other people who just wanted to listen to music in a nice, chill environment. Not like a club setting,” says Johnson, adding that she’s found a similar vibe at Bar Shiru in Oakland as well as Long Play, a cafe in San Diego.
Open since June, Wax on Hi-Fi is located across the street from the Last Bookstore in downtown L.A. and is beneath the Alexandria Hotel. The sleek and spacious venue offers weekly programming including movie nights (vinyl DJ sets inspired by films with great soundtracks like “Love Jones”), game nights and open tables for DJs.
“I know what it’s like to be a DJ who doesn’t have a place to gig at or you’re trying to test your talent out in front of people,” says Johnson, adding that the open-tables event has helped her connect with other local DJs.
Wax on Hi-Fi’s impressive sound system includes a Isonoe ISO420 mixer, Technics SL-1200 turntables, McIntosh MA8950 amplifier and JBL speakers.
Just as intentional as the record collection are the drinks at Wax on Hi-Fi, including cocktails such as a sake highball and Obon, a cocktail with nigori sake and soju that is named after a Japanese festival that honors the dead.
The Record Club
“When you get into a room with some great speakers and you listen to the album on vinyl, it’s like you’re sitting in the studio with the artist while they’re recording,” says founder Free Oribhabor.
Before each session, Oribhabor plays early records from the featured artists and dives deep into the artist’s discography, so attendees can gain a deeper understanding of the music they’re listening to. Eddie Junior, the Record Club’s “sound wizard” and DJ, handles the records.
The intimate events typically sell out — capacity is roughly 120 attendees — and tickets start at $25. So far, the Record Club has hosted listening sessions for D’Angelo’s “Voodoo,” Kendrick Lamar’s “To Pimp a Butterfly,” Sade’s “Diamond Life,” Stevie Wonder’s “Innervisions,” N.E.R.D’s “Fly or Die” and more. It also holds bimonthly sessions at Public Records in New York City and has plans to expand to other cities in the near future.
In Sheep's Clothing
The shop’s hi-fi set up isn’t as robust as the former bar‘s system, which cost more than a luxury car and is stored at the collective’s headquarters, but it’s still impactful. On a typical day, you’re bound to hear an artist you’ve probably never heard of — but will come to love — or a new release playing over a pair of JBL speakers.
Good news for music lovers: In Sheep’s Clothing is planning to open a new listening bar in L.A. in the near future, according to Phil Cho, who runs the brand’s events, website and social media. Soon visitors will be able to enjoy coffee, tea, Japanese whiskey and other beverages as they vibe out to music for hours as they did at the original spot, which is worth celebrating.
Slow Jamz
Among Slow Jamz’ most popular parties is Vinyl and Vino, which Espiritu and his team started hosting in April 2023. At the event, the hosts play beloved albums such as Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” and “Dangerously in Love,” Justin Bieber’s “Journals,” Michael Jackson’s “Thriller,” Kanye West’s “Graduation,” “Riot!” by Paramore and “Take Care” by Drake. Unlike the Record Club where attendees are asked to limit chatter to avoid distraction, Vinyl and Vino guests are encouraged to get out of their seats to dance and sing aloud. (In fact, the Record Club hosted its first event at the Slow Jamz gallery in February 2023.)
At the beginning of the night, the Vinyl and Vino hosts provide snacks of information about the featured album, before playing it on vinyl. The Slow Jamz sound system, which they bought at Common Wave Hi-Fi, includes Klipsch Cornwall IV speakers and Technics 1210 turntables. The party is B.Y.OB. (bring your own beverages) and typically happens twice a month.
“There’s a lot of hi-fi bars in New York and everywhere else except L.A., but it’s nice to be able to offer [this] to the people,” says Espiritu, adding that his goal is to help people make connections with others through music and nostalgia. “A lot of the magic is in the space that we’re in.”
Common Wave Hi-Fi
Open since 2018, Common Wave Hi-Fi is a cozy, aesthetically pleasing musical haven filled with stereo gadgetry that looks like pieces of art. Many of the sound systems are limited production and bespoke designs made in places like New York, Japan, Switzerland, France and Sweden.
Founder Wesley Katzir, who has a background in furniture and experimental design, designed the 3,500-square-foot space to be approachable for music lovers of all kinds. So you don’t have to be an expert to appreciate it. Katzir and staff members walk customers through different audio scenarios, ask you about your favorite music genres and encourage you to touch the items in order to figure out which setup is perfect for you.
Common Wave Hi-Fi also throws occasional events including DJ sets, live musical performances and listening sessions. Most recently, the shop hosted an event called “Hi-Fi Night School,” where for 12 weeks a different curator presented and played an album that means a lot to them. Among the guest sound selectors have been Aaron Frazer of Durand Jones & the Indications and former KCRW host Mathieu Schreyer. Afterward, Katzir would teach the crowd a hi-fi concept, such as CD versus vinyl or new versus old pressings. Proceeds from the ticket sales for “Hi-Fi Night School” event went to LAUSD schools to help raise funds for a music teacher. Katzir said he hopes to bring the event back in the near future.
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