By Eric Allen

The broken clock on the post outside of Nuggets Records and the sign that says “Since 1978” are a good indication of what you’ll find inside. So are the racks of faded DVD covers and dirty cassette cases that line the short walk to the door.

It’s clear that Nuggets isn’t trying to impress anyone, and that may be the most impressive thing of all. Located at 486 Commonwealth Ave., the record store has an extensive collection of albums, cassettes and forgotten DVDs.

The shop’s 1978 conception is evident, as the interior looks like it hasn’t been updated in 30 years and the achingly bright blue walls evoke a past of psychedelia. The ceiling is ornately designed, and probably lent some grandeur to the space at some point, but the upkeep has rendered any positive design irrelevant. There are leaves on the ground – inside the store, that is – and the fluorescent lights stuck to the walls aren’t helping the dated appearance.

Redemption can be found in the variety of albums. The warren of records looks incomprehensible at first – the rows stretch to the back of the store, winding into various loops and dead ends. But the owners have come up with a solution for customers who won’t navigate the maze.

Little paper signs taped to the walls, posts, wooden album cases and racks of cassettes dictate exactly the type of behavior that’s expected.

When you want to look at cassettes, a little sign on a swinging wooden door marked “Enter” welcomes you into that section of the store. Sitting on top of the tapes is a sign that reads, “Respect the Alphabet” – you must reinsert tapes into their alphabetically identified spot when finished browsing. A similar sign urges customers to put tapes in exactly the place they found them on a rack at the back of the store.

When browsing albums, the alphabetic order is clearly identified. For example the “H” section is marked “HHHHH,” with five characters, as is every other lettered section.

Signs taped to the walls tell customers that if they can’t find something, ask for help. It must be noted that the employees did not speak to customers unless they were spoken to on this particular trip to the store. A naysayer might take this as poor customer service, but after spending some time browsing albums in peace, the signs were decidedly helpful, and the absence of employees was refreshing.

The many nooks full of albums were somewhat charming, and so was the mural at the back of the store. In a small room dedicated to discount CDs, one wall was painted to display a collection of vintage guitars. In the same room, a sign with “SMILE” repeated five or six times under a security camera was delightful.

But then, just as the store was warming up with old-school charm, a display of grab bags in the cassette section looked a little too cutesy.

Who would pay 99 cents for a paper bag that contains three “cassingles?” The bags were stapled shut, and it seems completely unreasonable to spend any amount of money on unseen cassette tapes.

Similarly, the rack of homemade greeting cards by the door was laughable. Old photos of musicians are taped, or possibly glued, onto blank white greeting cards, and the edges of the photos are peeling up.

Disregarding the store’s silly attempts to offer more than music, it was mostly satisfactory. Sure, the maintenance was slightly abhorrent, but nothing can beat stumbling across that David Bowie album you’ve been looking for, if that’s your thing.

Nuggets Records is most easily accessible by getting off at the Kenmore stop on the Green Line.