Entry No. 76 — the New Orleans file — filed under: records
Domino Sound Record Shack
Domino Sound sits in a small shotgun building on Bayou Road, and the crates inside skew hard away from classic rock: Jamaican dub and roots reggae, calypso, highlife and West African pressings, plus whatever oddity the buyer dragged home last week. The shop doubles as a record label — Domino Sound issues its own numbered catalog, most recently a solo-violin-and-electronics record drawing on Ethiopian music, so you can buy a record here that exists nowhere else. They buy and trade over the counter and will make house calls for a big collection, which is why the bins turn over fast. The hours are the catch: a daily midday window from 10:30am to 2pm, with a second evening shift only on Thursday and Friday.
→ Three more vintage, record & maker shops in New Orleans — never the same twice
The story
Domino Sound opened in February 2007 in a small storefront on Bayou Road, and its own description is the fastest way to understand it: new and used vinyl, cassettes, dominoes, and some stereo equipment, including turntables. The claim it stakes is narrow — what it believes to be the largest selection of reggae 45s and LPs in the South — with an International section running to hundreds of records from around the globe plus bins of punk, blues, jazz, soul, hip hop, rock, folk, avant garde and local. The house position is printed plainly: “We're a shop, not a museum, and the records are priced with the idea that we might sell them.” Cash preferred.
It is also a record label, run by Matt Knowles, with a catalog past number 045. The releases are mostly African and mostly rescued: Aselefech Ashine and Getenesh Kebret's “Beauties,” a 1976 Addis Ababa duo record reissued in cahoots with Mississippi Records; S.E. Rogie's 1960s Sierra Leonean palm-wine sides; Tewolde Redda, Eritrea's guitar pioneer, 1970–73. Number 045 is Kaethe Hostetter's “Woradj Alle,” solo violin and electronics drawn from eleven years in Ethiopia. The LPs go out through Midheaven in the States and Honest Jon's in Britain. When the Oromo singer Ali Birra died in November 2022, Knowles wrote the shop's tribute himself.
The bins move because the counter buys — usually Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays until 4pm and Saturdays, with house calls for a large collection, though the days shift often enough that the shop asks you to phone 504-309-0871 first. The same taste travels: the Domino Sound DJs, Precious Cargo, Lady Li and C'Est Funk, play records out at bars around town under the “Jumbo Dominoes” banner. The hard part is the clock — a midday window only, closed Monday and Tuesday, with an evening shift on Thursday and Friday alone.
What it's like
Bayou Road is a short commercial strip, so you park on the street and step off the sidewalk straight into one room. It is small — two people can work a crate comfortably, three is a negotiation — and the density is the point: 45s in boxes, LPs in bins, cassettes, stereo gear, and actual dominoes for sale. Nobody hovers, and asking what something sounds like gets you an answer rather than a shrug. Prices are set to move, not to impress, and the shop states it prefers cash, so bring some instead of discovering the question at the register. The real etiquette is the clock: Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday the door shuts at 2pm with no grace period, so arrive by one if you plan to dig properly.
The move: Go on a Thursday and hit the 6–9pm evening window, which is the only stretch when this place is open after work. Give yourselves a rule — each person pulls three records from a section they know nothing about, sleeve art only, no phones — then buy the best one and walk it down Bayou Road to dinner.
📍 Before you go Closed Monday and Tuesday. Open Wednesday–Sunday 10:30am–2pm, with an extra 6–9pm block Thursday and Friday only — the Thursday/Friday evening slot is the only after-work option. The shop's own site says the buying days sometimes shift, so call (504) 309-0871 before making a trip to sell. Street parking on Bayou Road; the building is small, so it's a two-people-at-a-time kind of aisle.
- 📍 New Orleans
- 💸 $
- ⚡ Low-key
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: 2557 Bayou Road, New Orleans, LA 70119
Hours: Added 2026-08-26 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- Bayou St. John / Magnolia Bridge (Cabrini Bridge) — Bayou Road runs off Esplanade a short walk from the bayou, so the 2pm closing time lands you at the Magnolia Bridge exactly when a slow walk over the water is the correct next move.
- Kermit's Tremé Mother-in-Law Lounge — Same neighborhood, opposite format: you spent the morning buying records nobody played for you, so go hear Kermit Ruffins play in Ernie K-Doe's hot-pink corner building instead.
- Chickie Wah Wah — About a mile away on Canal Street, and the natural landing spot after the Thursday or Friday 6–9pm shift — buy the record, then go watch someone play live.
More weird in New Orleans
Good to know
When is it actually open?
Wednesday through Sunday, 10:30am–2pm, plus a second 6–9pm block on Thursday and Friday only. Closed Monday and Tuesday. That Thursday/Friday evening shift is the sole after-work option, and it is the reason to plan around a Thursday.
What does it cost, and can I pay by card?
Browsing is free and the stock is priced, in the shop's own words, “with the idea that we might sell them” rather than as collector display pieces. The site says the shop is cash preferred, so carry cash — the label's own LPs and the reggae 45s are what you will most regret not being able to buy.
Can I sell or trade records there?
Yes, over the counter — usually Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays until 4pm and Saturdays, and they will sometimes make house calls for a large collection. Those days change, so call (504) 309-0871 during business hours or email [email protected] before hauling anything over.
How do I get there, and is parking difficult?
2557 Bayou Road, in Tremé, a short hop off Esplanade Avenue on the way between the French Quarter and City Park. There is no lot — it is street parking on Bayou Road and the side streets, and the strip is small enough that a bike is genuinely easier.
Can I still get the label's records if I miss the hours?
The Domino Sound catalog is stocked at the shop and distributed in the US through Midheaven, with overseas stockists including Honest Jon's in the UK and Shiny Beast in the Netherlands. Some titles are gone for good — the S.E. Rogie LP is already listed sold out.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Official site
last checked: 2026-08-26