By In a time where digital music is increasingly more popular and convenient, Fingerprints Music owner Rand Foster, 61, opens daily to the general public with an appreciation for vinyl records, CDs, cassette tapes and all things music.
Originally opening its doors in July 1992 on 2nd Street, and moving to a well-known downtown location on E. 4th Street 14 years ago, Fingerprints Music has sought to provide a curated repertoire for all genres and generations of music across Long Beach for 33 years.
Now, Fingerprints is making another move as incoming construction to the neighborhood limits access to the storefront.
“As much as I love downtown, as much as I love this building, I think it’s hard for customers to get here and I think it is going to, over the next couple of years, get more challenging,” Foster said.
Soon to be located in Bixby Knolls on Atlantic Ave., the store opened for its last day of operations at the E. 4th Street location on Mar. 23.
A customer looks through a collection of vinyl during the “Final Weekend Downtown” sale at Fingerprints Music on March 23. Photo credit: Isabella Siqueira
Shopping between the store’s remaining stock and last week clearance sales was Alexandra Matsuda, a local high school student, reminiscing on the memories she has of listening to CDs with her father.
“I feel like at the end of the day, having the physical records, for me, is more valuable than just having the music downloaded on my phone,” Matsuda said.
The record store proudly hosts a plethora of events, such as the upcoming Record Store Day on April 12 and live concerts from varying musicians and artists.
Customers flock to Foster at Fingerprints for opportunities to see and hear some of their favorites perform including Jack Johnson, Hozier, Pearl Jam and Josh Klinghoffer of The Red Hot Chili Peppers.
“You know, a lot of people see their first concerts here, they bring their kids because it’s very family-friendly,” Foster said. “It’s a record store first and foremost, but we try to do a little more than that and really try and focus as much as we can on community.”
An employee at Fingerprints Music takes down the shop’s wall decor on March 23 in preparation for the move to its new location at Bixby Knolls. Photo credit: Isabella Siqueira
Throughout their last week, Foster and staff welcomed in customers as employees packed up boxes full of records and memorabilia to be moved to the new storefront.
“It’s bittersweet to see this disappearing… but at least they’re not closing,” said Matt Valerio, employee and longtime customer. “Support your local record store.”
While there are fond memories being left behind, a bright-eyed, smiling Foster expressed excitement for the move and the future of Fingerprints Music.
According to their Instagram, Fingerprints Music is hoping to open their new location at 3811 Atlantic Ave in Bixby Knolls as soon as possible, and encourages their audience to keep an eye on their social media for news of their re-opening.
