California has Amoeba. New Jersey has the Princeton Record Exchange. New England has… Newbury Comics.
What is Newbury Comics, you uninitiated ask? Well, if you listen to some of our more mookish locals, it’s the Best Record Store Ever–you know, much in the same way that Fenway is America’s Favorite Ballpark, even though it features “Fan Service” instead of Customer Service and the aforementioned fans are generally jerks to anyone who dares to enter the hallowed space wearing the opposing team’s colors.
Okay, so I’m obviously jaded NOW, but when I first moved here, I naively believed that no lover of America’s favorite pastime would jeer at me (not to be confused with “heckle me,” which is fine because it requires some measure of intelligence) for four entire innings of a ballgame. I also did a lot of retail therapy at Newbury Comics because I was lonely and bored, and the store was a warm place to go on a frigid winter night. That, of course, should have been my first tip-off. Much in the way that Fenway (albeit historic) is not terribly representative of America’s other ballparks (where middle-to-lower class folks can generally afford to take the kids on a family outing), Newbury Comics (although convenient) isn’t much of a record store.
Whereas your average REAL record store devotes ninety percent of its (linoleum) floor space to dusty racks of CDs and vinyl, relegating most extras to wall displays, Newbury Comics gives up about forty percent of the (carpeted) floor to New England sports paraphernalia.* Worse, because all of the Hot Topic locations in the greater Boston area are located in the South Shore suburbs (hmmm…) Newbury Comics has decided to pick up the slack. For this reason, at Newbury Comics one can buy such classy bumper stickers as “Fuck Me I’m Irish” and “I’ve Got the Biggest Dick in the Band.” In short, the store’s interior looks suspiciously like the bastard child spawned when a Spencer’s Toys and Gifts drunkenly hooked up with a Tower Records to celebrate the Pats’ victory in Super Bowl XXXIX. Kids, remember that the closer you are to that cherry bedroom set from Jordan’s Furniture when you open that six-pack of Narragansett, the more regrets you’ll have the morning after.
Speaking of beer, Newbury Comics has now combined all of its 
best elements–novelty items AND music–to bring you the Newbury Artist Pint Glass* series. The first musical “artists” featured in the series were The Used, whose limited-edition pint glass debuted on May 22, 2007 and almost certainly sold out (only 1,000 copies were made!). The next musical artist is Marilyn Manson, whose pint glass will be guaranteed to those who pre-ordered a copy of Eat Me, Drink Me and available to the rest of the public starting Tuesday, June 5.
Tragically, I won’t be able to make it to the store on June 5 because I’ll be at the Paradise seeing The Sea and Cake (a band that believes in a kinder, gentler form of drinking and eating). If anyone wants to pick up a Marilyn Manson pint glass for me, that’d be… um… wicked cool. Yeah!
Release date: June 5, 2007
Label: N/A
Rating: 3/10 (the text on the glass is clearly a credsuck, but the heart is kind of cute)
*Look, I believe it’s cool to like sports AND music, but, historically, bad things sometimes happen when the two mix. Bronson Arroyo starting a band. Barry Zito playing Dave Matthews Band covers. The fact that both pitchers (and why is it always pitchers? What is their problem??) do a lot for charity in no way diminishes the suck factor of the music itself.
**Newbury Comics did one thing right–the 6.6.6. pint glass was brilliant. My Wisconsin-born roommate really enjoys using this glass to knock back a tall glass of milk.
[Ed. note: All images for this article were originally created by Newbury Comics. Christine, who was never really into Marilyn Manson, filled most of her high school sketchbooks with visual interpretations of songs by the Indigo Girls.]
6 Comments »
eew. this doesnt sound like a fun store at all. but i suspect it once was a great store…these things happen. sigh.
Yeah, I’d definitely believe it used to be great… I know people here who can probably remember those days.
There are actually some neat record stores here–you know, real ones, with cheap lino floors–so I’ll have to do a follow-up on those.
i don’t know about sad - they’re just trying to stay in business with record sales on the decline. most stores still have pretty knowledgeable staff, a decent selection of deep stock and indie labels, and good magazine rack. if they happen to sell other stuff on top of that, does it really matter? even most of your “real” record stores are looking to branch out, lest the be put out of business by increasingly shitty sales.
As far as the glasses - if it gets people in the stores and buying the cds, who the frack cares? people who don’t like the used aren’t going to buy the album, people who do will be able to swill their chocolate milk out of something a little classier than a sippy-cup.
now, if there were a marilyn manson sippy cup, i’d be all in. man. i’m gonna go call Larry about that.
Guess what folks. These pint glasses probably cost Newbury 50 cents each. They are selling them online for $13 shipped. Conservatively lets say they make $10 each. That’s 10,000 for this little stunt. Congrats Newbury Comics. Any of our writers have an idea for a pint glass?
Oh wait Marilyn probably takes 1/2 the profits. Still………
@Mris: I understand how capitalism works… that doesn’t mean I have to enjoy all of its manifestations and effects. Plus which, though Newbury Comics is independently owned, there are 27 locations throughout New England. I highly doubt that they are struggling to make ends meet. I will keep my eye out for a sippy cup for you, though… 
@Commissar: isn’t selling merch against our spirit of communism? But if we must, I suggest shot glasses with our hammer and headphones logo.
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Comment by literati — June 4, 2007 @ 9:06 pm
Once upon a time, Newbury actually WAS a pretty cool store, when they actually were a record and comic shop, and not a “novelty” store. So sad how the wrong things change sometimes.
I think the Newbury logo might be more terrifying than the Manson one…