801 Queen St. W. 416-504-8447 [see on map] Official site

ROTATE THIS is an independent record shop and a music collector's paradise.

Since the 1990s, it's been a staple of shopping on Queen Street west of Bathurst, offering a wide selection of music - independent, import, obscure - with a loyalty to vinyl. In its first location at 620 Queen West it squeezed in live bands to the back of the room: Change of Heart and the Melvins are just two of the free all-ages performances that have gone down in the history of the many long-time customers, those who wiled away their youth riffling through Rotate's bins, perusing the gig flyers for otherwise unknown bands and loitering on the couches.

Owner Brian Taylor (formerly of TO punk legends YouthYouthYouth) oversees the place, his reputation as the ultimate music obsessive intact. In 2008, Rotate swung its "not tonight dear I have a headache" closed sign around for good and moved a few blocks west, taking over a space previously home to Songbird music instruments. No gigs in there but still a whole lot of music.