Does Shake It Records participate in Record Store Day?

Yes. Shake It Records is Cincinnati's longest-running officially recognized Record Store Day participant, drawing the largest RSD crowd in Greater Cincinnati every April and Black Friday. Line formation begins before opening on RSD morning; serious collectors arrive at 6am for the most limited allocations.

What kind of music does Shake It Records specialize in?

Shake It's curatorial lane runs heavy on indie rock, punk, modern soul, funk, jazz, garage, and experimental music. The deep Colemine Records catalog gives the shop unmatched depth in modern soul reissues and original releases. Rock and pop back catalog rounds out the bins.

Can I buy Colemine Records releases at Shake It?

Yes. Shake It Records stocks the full Colemine Records catalog in addition to the broader modern soul and funk reissue scene. Colemine Records is based at Plaid Room Records in nearby Loveland, Ohio, and Cincinnati's two shops carry the deepest Colemine inventory in the country.

Shake It Records Cincinnati: Store Spotlight

Q: Where is Shake It Records located?

Shake It Records is at 4156 Hamilton Avenue in the Northside neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio 45223. Phone (513) 591-0123. The shop anchors an independent business corridor on Hamilton Avenue that includes cafes, bars, and art spaces.

Q: What are Shake It Records hours?

Monday through Saturday 10am to 8pm. Sunday 12pm to 6pm. One of the longer Cincinnati record store schedules, which makes it easy to hit after work or on a slow Sunday.

Q: Who owns Shake It Records?

Brothers Jim Blase and Darren Blase founded Shake It Records in 1999 and have operated it continuously for more than 25 years. Their deep involvement in the Cincinnati independent music scene is reflected in the curation of the shop and the releases on the Shake It Records label.

Q: What is the Shake It Records label?

Shake It Records operates a nationally distributed indie record label alongside the retail store. The label releases new studio recordings, reissues, and archival projects, with emphasis on Cincinnati artists and adjacent national indie rock, soul, and experimental music. Label releases are typically stocked first at the Hamilton Avenue shop before national distribution.

Q: How many records does Shake It carry?

Shake It Records stocks over 25,000 titles on vinyl and more than 15,000 titles on CD, making it one of the deepest independent record retail footprints in the Midwest. The inventory spans new releases, deep used catalog, the full Colemine Records discography, and specialty orders.

Q: Where is Northside in Cincinnati?

Northside is a historically working-class neighborhood on the northwestern side of Cincinnati, walking distance to Clifton and a 10-minute drive from downtown. Hamilton Avenue is the neighborhood's independent business corridor, with Shake It Records serving as the music anchor alongside coffee shops, breweries, and art galleries.

Q: What other record stores are in Cincinnati?

Cincinnati has four main independent record stores: Shake It Records (Northside), Everybody's Records (Pleasant Ridge, open since 1978), Feel It Records (Clifton Ludlow Gaslight District), and Plaid Room Records in Loveland. See our Cincinnati area guide for the full one-day dig plan.

Table of Contents

The Queen City's National Anchor
The Shake It Records Label
Inside the Racks
Hamilton Avenue and Northside
Record Store Day in Cincinnati
Plan Your Visit
Shake It Records FAQ

Shake It Records on Hamilton Avenue in Cincinnati's Northside neighborhood is the national-level anchor of the Queen City record scene. Brothers Jim and Darren Blase opened the shop in 1999, and 25 years later Shake It operates as a twin business: a retail store stocking over 25,000 vinyl titles and 15,000 CDs, and a working independent record label with national distribution. The retail and label sides feed each other in a way that almost no other American indie record shop can match, and the result is a Cincinnati storefront that regularly turns up on Midwest and national "best record stores" shortlists.

For readers arriving from our Cincinnati area guide, Shake It is the shop to start a Cincinnati record weekend at. For Northside neighborhood visitors, Shake It is the Hamilton Avenue anchor that other independent businesses on the block pair against. For national collectors of modern soul and Colemine Records releases, Shake It is one of the two or three deepest stockists in the country.

The Shake It Records Label

A shop that runs a label

Shake It Records releases new studio recordings, reissues, and archival projects under the Shake It Records imprint, with national distribution. Label releases reach subscribers and fans across the country; the retail store stocks the full Shake It catalog first, often before national release. The label focus runs heavy on Cincinnati artists and adjacent national indie rock, soul, and experimental music, reflecting the Blase brothers' decades of involvement in the local music community.

The label side of Shake It Records is the detail that separates it from a standard retail shop. Most independent record stores buy from labels and distributors. Shake It is a label. Jim Blase's A&R work and the shop's curation feed each other: what catches attention in the retail store often signals a future label signing, and the label's back catalog becomes long-term retail stock. Collectors of Cincinnati indie rock, garage, and soul keep a standing search on Shake It releases because the pressings are limited and the curatorial bar is high.

On the retail floor, this translates to a label-stocked wall that has releases you will not find at a shop without direct label connections. Modern soul and funk from the Colemine Records catalog (based at Plaid Room Records in nearby Loveland) sits alongside Shake It's own catalog, giving Cincinnati two shops with unmatched depth in that scene. Numero Group, Light In The Attic, and other curated reissue labels fill the wall alongside.

Inside the Racks

The retail floor at Shake It carries over 25,000 vinyl titles across new releases and deep used catalog, plus 15,000 CDs for the format's dedicated holdouts. The front of the store runs new releases and featured label product. The walls and back floor run organized genre bins: indie rock, punk, garage, hardcore, soul, funk, jazz, classical, country, hip-hop, experimental, and the adjacent smaller sections that each reward a patient browse.

What to dig for:

New indie and punk releases. Fresh-off-truck pressings arrive Fridays throughout the year.
Colemine Records modern soul and funk. One of the two deepest stockists nationally.
Shake It label catalog. Limited pressings, Cincinnati artists, curatorial picks.
Used vinyl with volume and depth. Weekly turnover through trade-ins and buys.
Record Store Day exclusives. The Cincinnati RSD anchor for 20-plus years.
Numero Group, Light In The Attic, and curator reissues. The full reissue scene, stocked deep.
Cassettes, 7-inches, and adjacent formats. For collectors who run the full format spectrum.

Staff at Shake It are the kind of record store employees who can carry a conversation about a title you could not find the day before. Ask about a specific pressing, a label, or a genre rabbit hole, and expect a real answer. This is the shop you go to when your question is harder than the algorithm can handle.

Hamilton Avenue and Northside

Shake It Records sits at 4156 Hamilton Avenue in the heart of Cincinnati's Northside neighborhood. Northside is a historically working-class district on the northwestern side of Cincinnati, walking distance to Clifton and the University of Cincinnati, 10 minutes from downtown, and one of the most walkable independent business corridors in the city. Hamilton Avenue runs through Northside and hosts coffee shops, breweries, art galleries, restaurants, and Shake It as the music anchor.

For a day in Northside, the pairing is straightforward: Shake It for records, a Hamilton Avenue cafe for coffee, a Northside brewery or restaurant for dinner, and a music venue (Northside Tavern, The Comet) for the late evening. Northside has hosted Cincinnati's independent music scene for decades, and Shake It is the retail piece of that ecosystem. Parking on Hamilton Avenue is street parking or side-street free parking within a block.

Record Store Day in Cincinnati

Shake It Records is the Cincinnati Record Store Day anchor. Both the April RSD and Black Friday RSD events draw lines that form before 6 a.m., with the most limited exclusive pressings (Pink Floyd, Pavement, Miles Davis, The Cure, and similar) allocated in single-digit numbers per store. Serious collectors arrive with coffee, a folding chair, and a list in order of priority. The shop handles the volume efficiently and has built a reputation for fair allocation and genuine stock depth beyond the headline titles.

For visitors planning an RSD trip around Shake It, book accommodations for the Thursday night arrival, plan to queue by 7 a.m. Saturday for a reasonable chance at top exclusives, and budget the full morning for the shop. Pair with Everybody's Records on Montgomery Road for the afternoon once Shake It's crowd clears, and finish at Plaid Room Records in Loveland for a full Cincinnati metro RSD circuit.

Plan a Cincinnati Record Weekend

Full guide to every independent record store in Cincinnati, with a one-day dig plan and drive times between shops.

Best Record Stores in Cincinnati

Plan Your Visit

Shake It Records

Cincinnati's national-level indie record store and label. Hamilton Avenue in Northside since 1999. 25,000-plus vinyl titles, working record label, RSD anchor.

Address: 4156 Hamilton Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45223
Phone: (513) 591-0123
Hours: Mon-Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 12pm-6pm
Web: shakeitrecords.com
Discogs: Shake It on Discogs
Facebook: Shake It Records on Facebook

Getting there

Shake It Records is at 4156 Hamilton Avenue in Northside, 10 minutes northwest of downtown Cincinnati via I-74 or Colerain Avenue. From the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG), the drive is about 25 minutes via I-71/I-74. Street parking is available along Hamilton Avenue; free side-street parking is usually accessible within a block. Northside is walkable from the Chase Avenue and Spring Grove Avenue bus stops for visitors on Cincinnati Metro transit.

Make a day of it

Budget 90 minutes minimum for a first Shake It visit; 2 hours is more typical for collectors. Pair with a Hamilton Avenue cafe (Sidewinder Coffee, Bean and Barley) for coffee before or after, a Northside brewery (Urban Artifact, Alice) for afternoon drinks, and Northside Tavern or The Comet for evening music programming. For out-of-town visitors, the full Cincinnati metro dig continues to Everybody's Records on Montgomery Road and Plaid Room Records in Loveland.

Find More Independent Record Stores

Every brick-and-mortar shop in the U.S., mapped and organized by state and city.

Record Store Directory

Shake It Records FAQ

Where is Shake It Records located?

4156 Hamilton Avenue, Northside, Cincinnati, OH 45223. Phone (513) 591-0123. Open since 1999.

What are Shake It Records hours?

Mon-Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 12pm-6pm. Among the longer retail hours in the Cincinnati record scene.

Who owns Shake It Records?

Brothers Jim Blase and Darren Blase, co-founders since 1999. See the intro.

What is the Shake It Records label?

A nationally distributed indie record label operated alongside the retail store. New recordings, reissues, archival projects. See the label section.

How many records does Shake It carry?

Over 25,000 vinyl titles and 15,000 CDs. One of the deepest indie retail footprints in the Midwest.

Does Shake It participate in Record Store Day?

Yes. Cincinnati's official RSD anchor for over 20 years. See the RSD section.

What genres does Shake It specialize in?

Indie rock, punk, modern soul, funk, jazz, garage, experimental. Deep Colemine and Numero catalog.

Where is Northside in Cincinnati?

Northwestern Cincinnati, 10 minutes from downtown. Hamilton Avenue is the independent business corridor.

Can I buy Colemine Records at Shake It?

Yes. Full Colemine Records catalog in stock. Cincinnati's two main shops (Shake It and Plaid Room) are the country's deepest Colemine stockists.

What other record stores are in Cincinnati?

Everybody's Records, Feel It Records, and Plaid Room Records. See the Cincinnati area guide.

Hamilton Avenue, Northside, 25 years of Jim and Darren. Cincinnati's national-level record anchor.

Photo CreditsHero image: Photo by Eyes2Soul on Pexels. Shake It Records logo courtesy of Shake It Records. Profile based on publicly available information from shakeitrecords.com, Google Business Profile, and verified public listings as of April 2026.

Shake It Records Cincinnati