OFF CAMPUS — As a diehard Bay Area kid, my first couple of months at UCSD were filled with desperate Amoeba Music withdrawals. Luckily, I found a SoCal remedy — a slice of hip-hop heaven on Garnet Avenue in Pacific Beach.
Access Music crams a large selection of hip-hop related CDs, vinyl and clothing into an tight space. Even better than its variety, though, is its staff — a collection of local deejays and all-around heads that know their hip-hop. If you shoot the shit with them enough, they’ll start to get a feel for your tastes and pass along stuff you’ve never heard of. If you hang around enough, you’ll also get a chance meet artists in-store — the intimate atmosphere practically forces conversations with the underground elite.
