Record Journey — An ode to vinyl LPs and record stores with a great vibe

Review by C.J. Bunce

Streetside Records, with every corner stacked with old vinyl LPs, vintage posters of favorite bands, and musical instruments wired to the ceiling. San Francisco’s Fog City Diner. Millie’s Tenderloins or Winstead’s and their 1950s juke box. Everyone has their own past with records and the colors, designs, and of course the pops and clicks of the music. In the manga Record Journey, available for pre-order now here at Amazon, Ryoichiro Kezuka takes readers through the culture of vinyl records, then and now, via five stories of records, music, rock, bringing people together. Shifting from post-war Japan to a time of banned books, to a band getting its footing and a pirate radio ship trying to get rock music to those who want it but can’t have it, Kezuka shows he knows his subject, tugging on the right amount and kinds of nostalgia that will have you wanting to get back to your own local record shop.

This is the first English edition of the title’s first volume, published by Titan Manga. It’s also one of the best translations yet, courtesy of Jan Mitsuko Cash, whose familiarlity with American culture pulls in the use of the word “podunk” in the right place. Take a look inside of this great manga:

First of all, Kezuka’s drawings are precise and evocative. Are record shops everywhere like this? In capturing the record shop and record collector niche, he’s bringing together cultures via their common heritage, past, and preferences.

The stage is set in the first story, where a young woman is trying to figure out what to do with her grandfather’s record collection after he passes away. When a similarly aged young woman from the local record store shows her excitement in his collection, it’s an odd looking record from another culture that puts her on her own journey of discovery. Who were the band called the Staggs? And why is a man hiding a collection of records in his own secret record shop? What will another girl do to save records on a ship dedicated to broadcasting banned music?

You’ll meet a young disc jockey that might remind you of Stevie Wayne dishing out late night vibes at the Spivey Point lighthouse over KAB in Antonio Bay. You’ll wonder what happens next to them all. The author has completely captured a great nostalgic vibe. This book, originally published in Japan in 2022, will make you want to go back and watch High Fidelity, Pretty in Pink, or Empire Records. Add Record Journey Volume 1 now to your pull list at Elite Comics, your own comic shop, or pre-order it here at Amazon for a blast from the past as you time travel back to a medium that has had more than a few renaissances since its heyday. Its street date is May 26, 2026.