What store can we find you at, and when did the store open?
You can now find us at our brand-new store in Bondi Junction! After four years of running Bondi Records as an online business from home, we’ve finally opened our doors, giving people a proper space to dig through crates, discover new favourites, and talk music in person.
If Bondi Records had a theme song, what would it be?
It’d have to be “Music Sounds Better with You” by Stardust—because that’s what we’re all about. Music, community, and the belief that everything feels a little better with a record spinning.
What made you want to open a record store?
Bondi Records started as a passion project—a love for music, vinyl, and making it easier for people to get their hands on great records. Opening the store is the next step in that journey. There’s something special about crate-digging in person, finding that unexpected gem, and talking music with people who truly obsess over it.
What sort of music can people find at your store? How do you decide what to stock?
We like to think there’s a record in the store for everyone! We stock classics, essentials, and new releases, plus cult records and deep cuts you won’t find everywhere. Our curation is based on what our customers love, what’s moving in the vinyl world, and what we’d personally want on our shelves. If we wouldn’t play it, we don’t stock it.
Tell us a bit about your own personal vinyl collection. What was the record that began it all?
My vinyl collection has gone through a few phases since I first begged my parents to buy me a 7” of Frank Sinatra’s New York, New York at age four. Growing up, our house was filled with 60s, 70s, and 80s records—my dad had built up a solid collection heavy on soul, funk, and disco.
As a teenager, I got into DJing and spent every weekend working just to blow it all at the local record stores on Monday morning—skipping the first two periods of school to dig through crates of house, drum and bass, hip-hop, and R&B. By the time I moved to Australia in 2007, I’d built up around 800 12”s… and made the shocking decision to rip them to MP3s and sell them, thinking it would be easier to travel light. Safe to say, I’ve never quite gotten over that one.
Now, I’ve built my collection back up to around 500 LPs. I try to stick to records I love listening to front to back, but it’s a mix of all the good stuff—classic rock, indie, hip-hop, electronic, and a few weird and wonderful finds along the way.
What is your most valuable (both sentimental and monetary) record in your collection?
The one that took me forever to track down was a box set of The Maccabees’ albums. They’re one of my all-time favourite bands, and I was gutted when they split. I finally found a copy in Italy, but it got destroyed in the post—brutal. Eventually, I tracked one down in Macedonia, paid way more than I wanted to, but there was no way I was passing it up. Every album in that set is a masterpiece, and now, with their reunion shows happening later this year, it feels even more special.
Introduce us to your favourite Australian artists and a song you’d recommend of theirs.
In a past life, I was a video journalist for a major news organisation, and one of the best parts of the job was filming live performances by both established and up-and-coming artists. It was an incredible way to experience music—up close, raw, and often in intimate settings.
One of the standout moments was filming Paul Kelly and Neil Finn at the Sydney Opera House when they toured Australia together. I’ve always been a Crowded House fan (yes, I know, they’re technically from across the ditch), but watching them perform Kelly’s Dumb Things together was something else.
Here’s a mini playlist of Aussie essentials that always find their way back onto my turntable:
INXS – ‘Original Sin’ (timeless and still sounds massive)
Gang of Youths – ‘Heart is a Muscle’ (pure energy and emotion)
The Avalanches – ‘Since I Left You’ (a sampling masterpiece)
The Go-Betweens – ‘Streets of Your Town’ (melancholic and perfect)
Tame Impala – ‘Let It Happen’ (modern psych-rock perfection)
Tash Sultana – ‘Notion’ (hypnotic and otherworldly)
Rüfüs Du Sol – ‘Sundream’ (warm summer nights!)
DMA’s – ‘Lay Down’ (Britpop revival done right)
Angus & Julia Stone – ‘Chateau’ (dreamy, cinematic folk-pop)
Courtney Barnett – ‘Depreston’ (storytelling at its finest)
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – ‘French Press’ (jangly, driving indie rock)
Dope Lemon – ‘Uptown Folks’ (cool, slow-burn groove)
Icehouse – ‘Great Southern Land’ (an all-time Aussie classic)
There are so many more, but these are the ones that never get old.
If you could have one musician come into your store and have a chat with them, who would it be?
Kurt Cobain. I was absolutely obsessed with Nirvana growing up—I had the posters, the CDs, the bootleg live recordings, all of it. I still remember exactly where I was when I found out he’d died.
If I had the chance to sit down and talk with him, I’d love to hear his thoughts on the last 30 years—how he’d feel about the way music has evolved, the resurgence of vinyl, and what kind of music he’d be making today. Nirvana’s impact was massive, but I can’t help but wonder what could have been.
We’ve heard you attempted to play many instruments. If you could play one, what would you pick?
Honestly, I think I’ll stick behind the decks—I’m much better at spinning other people’s great work than trying to make my own!
What are your plans for Record Store Day 2025?
We’re going big. Exclusive RSD releases, live performances, DJ sets, a sausage sizzle, and maybe even some surprise giveaways. The goal is to turn the store into a music lover’s paradise for the day.
And finally, you’re closing up the store—what’s spinning?
I recently brought a record box from home to the store, filled with albums I haven’t been giving enough time back home. The one that’s been getting a lot of airtime is Groove Armada’s Vertigo—such a solid mix of chill-out vibes and dancefloor energy. It’s one of those records that still sounds just as fresh as it did when it first dropped.