Wax Trax Records occupies a storefront at 638 East 13th Avenue in Denver’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, a short walk from Governor’s Park and the busy Colfax Avenue corridor. The shop is one of the city’s go to sources for vinyl records, stocking new releases, used and collectible pressings, CDs, and cassettes alongside turntables and record care accessories for anyone building or maintaining a collection. Inventory is organized by genre and era, which makes it easy for a browser hunting a specific decade of punk, soul, jazz, or classic rock to move through the bins efficiently rather than digging blind.
What sets Wax Trax apart from a typical used bin is the range of curated sections layered on top of the everyday stock. The store maintains a rotating Staff Picks display where employees put their own listening recommendations front and center, a discount section for bargain hunters, and a dedicated corner for signed albums and other artist exclusives that turn a routine visit into a chance at something one of a kind. Record Store Day is treated as a genuine event here rather than an afterthought, with limited pressings and exclusive titles pulled aside for the annual release day that vinyl collectors circle on their calendars every spring. The shop also runs a straightforward buy and sell program, so a customer looking to thin out a collection or fund a new one can bring records in rather than only ever taking them home.
Beyond the sales floor, Wax Trax keeps a running blog called Wasted Energy that covers music news, staff reviews, and bits of Denver music history, giving the store a voice that extends past its physical shelves. The shop is active across Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, posting new arrivals, staff picks, and glimpses of in store happenings for followers who cannot make it in every week. Gift cards, band merchandise, and apparel round out the offerings for shoppers who want to bring a piece of the store home even when they are not walking out with a stack of records under one arm.
For Denver residents and visiting collectors alike, the East 13th Avenue location functions as both a neighborhood fixture and a destination stop, the kind of shop where a fifteen minute errand can easily turn into an hour of flipping through crates. Its position in Capitol Hill puts it within easy reach of the city’s other independent shops and cafes, making it a natural addition to a walking afternoon through the neighborhood. Whether the goal is tracking down an out of print pressing, picking up a turntable to start a new hobby, or simply seeing what the staff has pulled out for their latest picks, the store caters to both casual browsers and serious collectors under one roof.
Wax Trax Records is a Denver vinyl record store on East 13th Avenue in Capitol Hill offering new and used records, CDs, cassettes, turntables, and accessories, with staff picks, signed albums, Record Store Day exclusives, and a buy and sell program for collectors throughout the Denver area.
