Creep Records has returned to West Chester for the first time since they closed their doors here in the early 2000s, carrying on the vinyl torch of the Mad Platter.
They’ve only been back in town for about a month, but Creep Records has settled in tidily to the storefront on West Gay Street, set a little ways back from the street in a cozy little slice tucked between a brow bar and a barber shop. They’ve dedicated the majority of the shop to the vinyls they’re known for—and they’re everywhere: stacked in boxes, on tables and lining shelves along the clean white walls. CDs and cassette tapes take up a smaller footprint, and along the wall by the clear glass checkout counter they’ve got an impressive selection of record players, brand-emblazoned Creep Records merch and other miscellaneous goods. Their shirts are unique to the West Chester location, resplendent in purple and gold on black with the borough name across the bottom of the design. Further back, a curtain blocks the doorway that leads into the restricted rear section of the shop. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see where they house glassware and other forbidden goods because I forgot my ID, so I’ll have to leave the mysterious contents sold behind that colorful tapestry to your imagination. They have Juuls at the counter, though. I can definitely confirm that.
Creep Records has always been a local name, born in 1983 and raised in the area by owner Arik Victor. According to the appropriately messy and vulgar “About” section on their webpage, the brand got their start when Victor and a friend named Sid came up with the idea to start their own studio—which they did—in “a suburban house in Downingtown, PA” dubbed the Creep House. They kicked off the success of their little indie label with a raucous Halloween party, where Victor invited several bands to play the night away in the Creep House basement.
They grew rapidly from that fatefully spooky Halloween night, going from hosting shows and pressing singles in their basement to opening a storefront in West Chester to fill the gap after their favorite local record store closed. They eventually moved to a larger venue in Philadelphia and have now reopened a sister location back here in West Chester. They continue to showcase live music from local bands at their Philly location—albeit no longer in a moldy, flood-prone basement and sell everything an enthusiast might need from vinyls, cassettes and CDs to glassware, lighters and CBD oil.
You can find them on Facebook and Instagram under the name “Creep Records Store,” or visit them in person any day of the week at 133 West Gay Street.
Quad readers may want to be aware of Electric Avenue at 323 E. Gay St. in the Cambridge Square Shopping Center a few blocks up Gay St. with Rita’s and Jersey Mike’s as well. They’ve been there for a few years and are Record Store Day participants, so Mad Platter leaving wasn’t going to leave West Chester without a record shop anyhow FYI.