If you want to buy a record in Charleston, you’re going to Monster Music. Record hunters flock to Orleans Road to sift through the piles of amazing vinyl; and while CDs and DVDs might seem a bit outdated, local collectors are bound to be found there.

The shop dates back to the early 90’s. And Galen Hudson just crossed his 30 year anniversary as Monster’s owner.  Hudson references his long career as “an excuse for not having to get a real job.” As a kid growing up in Chapel Hill, he was “always searching for records at stores and yard sales...anywhere I could find them.”

Despite a serious appetite for vinyl, Hudson didn’t plan on entering the music industry. He got a degree in psychology before getting a job at a Chapel Hill record shop. “It was so much fun, and I never really left the business,” he says.

His girlfriend at the time insisted on moving to Charleston, so they “picked up their roots and just went.” That’s when he discovered Monster, originally named Manifest.

30 years since walking into Monster, he still has the buzz for the business. Hudson cares deeply about the music scene in Charleston, saying “There’s always been a drive to be a national scene. Honestly, Hootie and The Blowfish kind of broke that scene. Shovels & Rope are a great example, too. A lot of people here are playing music...a lot of really talented people. The drive and devotion of these folks trying to play keeps us all going.”

“Charleston’s music scene is certainly farther and wider than a single record store,” Hudson says. It’s pretty damn diverse.”

Stop by Monster Records for your next favorite album at  946 Orleans Road, Charleston, SC 29407. monstermusic.com. (843) 571-4657