Sound Storm Records

Sound Storm Records in Berlin, Maryland sits close to the Eastern Shore beach traffic, but Brandon describes a shop shaped just as much by locals, coffee conversations, and deep genre curiosity. The store carries both new and used vinyl, with used stock coming from local collections rather than ordered inventory.

Interview

Berlin is a small Eastern Shore town near the Maryland beaches. How does that setting shape who comes through the door?

It's always an interesting mix. We are a big spot for vacations, holidays, and events. Summer to Christmas is always the time we're the busiest, so we see tons of new faces all the time. We always want to have a huge selection of choices so everyone can find something, but also giving them that lasting experience where they say, "wow...that was a cool spot!." The locals are always awesome, the benefit of being in a small town chatting up music while grabbing coffee is something i've always wanted. Honestly I was surprised about the mix Berlin has. You would think at a place close to the beach there would be a lot of reggae and skate punk, but we also have a surprisingly dedicated fan base of Jazz, Harcore, and Folk.

You've said you're an emo/hardcore/rap/metal person yourself but take pride in listening to everything - Billie Eilish and Agnostic Front in the same breath. How does that shape what you stock?

It's a blessing and a curse haha. I had an audio professor when I was in college who once said, "if you're going to be in the Audio industry, you need to have an ear for everything," and I guess I took that to heart. It's so funny how many people always have songs or artists they like, but are embarrassed to admit it, but variety is the spice of life and you truly do gather an ear for everything in the process. I love my emo, that's my bread and butter, but people are surprised when they say I like some Ariana Grande albums, Joe Jackson, Public Enemy, LCD Soundsystem. Hell I'll say Limp Bizkit. As much as they are a laughing stock, "Break Stuff" slaps. Hell, while i'm working from home, my listening usually consists of 80's new wave and 90's dance.

You don't order used records - everything used comes from locals selling their collections, so the bins are always changing. What makes a collection an easy yes when it comes in?

Classics are always a no brainer. Seeing any Talking Heads, The Doors, or Led Zeppelin, there's a good chance I want your collection. I do love when newer releases come in here, like we have some used Charli XCX and Fidlar, allowing for record trades always helps with that when it comes to variety. As time keeps moving on, we are seeing more 80's, which I personally love, especially if it's a New Wave collection. That being said, it gets hard when we hit the 90's, a lot of people don't want to give that stuff up.

You price used records by Discogs and try to be as accurate as possible, from 50 cents to $150. How do you approach that pricing?

Discogs has been a website i've been on for years, and I love how the peer to peer works on there figuring out different presses, pricing, etc. I think there was a post once by a guy named "Top Cat 45's" who made an entire list of what certain symbols mean in the runout of a record, which was an amazing tool to look up records. Another thing that's big is the quality of the record, everything from Poor to Mint. I personally am a little more of a stickler when it comes to pricing, in the sense that a record can be NM, but if I see some ringwear on a sleeve or a few minor scratches, I'll lean it more towards VG+. It's always a great tool to gauge record pricing because it's made and run by fellow collectors instead of finding a random listing for an album on eBay for $500, when in reality it's only worth $10.

On the new side you try to get everything in, from Sabrina Carpenter to MF Doom. How do you decide what to order for a small shop?

I try my best to keep up with what's new and popular. It does get tough sometimes, you don't realize how much music is out there until you see all in front of you haha. I also try to get a variety for everyone, some things fly off the shelf instantly, and others stick around a little longer (I don't know how much of a Death Grips or Cursive following there is on the Eastern Shore), but when they do sell, it's always a great feeling. Hearing that gasp and someone couldn't believe I carried an obscure band or album. I also like to throw in some of my "off the beaten path" favorites, just so people can check out new stuff. It's always fun because it feels like I'm shopping at a record store virtually, the hardest part is trying not to fill up the cart with stuff for your personal collection.

You mentioned recent used arrivals like Parliament, Rolling Stones, Tom Waits, and The Doors. What's a find that surprised you?

Shew there's been a few. I've had a sealed Tracy Chapman s/t come in, a promo 45 of Stairway to Heaven, someone brought in an insane emo/hardcore/black metal collection once that has some crazy presses of Knocked Loose, Mayhem, Sorority Noise.

I think the crown jewel is one I framed that I'll probably never sell, and that's a Jimi Hendrix, Electric Ladyland, UK pressing with the original artwork sleeve that was banned for being "pornographic." To this day that's probably the most insane one I've seen.

When someone wants to sell records, what is the best way to start?

shooting us an email at soundstormberling@gmail.com is the best. I try to be good about getting back to everyone in the sea of emails I get everyday, but it's the best way because we can also recieve photos of collections to see if we're interested in the first place instead of hauling your collection down here just for us to decline.

First visit to Sound Storm - what should someone dig through first?

Definitely run to our "Just In" section to see what's fresh in the shop. It also helps that its in the middle of the shop so you can either go left to our new section, or right to our used section. Plus seeing our collectors wall and bin is a MUST.

Thank you! it's been fun answering these questions

Last updated: 2026-07-26