Photo courtesy of Cosmic Sounds
Zach Reno - Cosmic Sounds
Zach Reno with his dog at Cosmic Sounds in West Allis, Wisconsin (2026).
“A record asks you to make a decision, put something on and spend time with it,” Zach Reno of Cosmic Sounds says. “The real appeal is that it gives the music some weight again. It gives the sequencing of an album a purpose again, because you can’t skip around as easily.”
Milwaukee music lovers recently got another reason to be cheerful when Cosmic Sounds opened in an unassuming neighborhood in West Allis at 7415 W. Becher. St.
Along with records the store also sells genre films on DVD, Blu-ray, 4K UHD and VHS, vintage stereo gear and pinball.
Owner Zach Reno recently offered the lowdown on his history, thoughts on vinyl and vision for the shop.
Cosmic Sounds comes across as the record collection of a person who just happens to be selling those records. How does the music you stock reflect your listening habits?
That’s pretty accurate. The store’s collection is a mix of a few large buys I made before opening and things I specifically sought out for the shop.
The same is true of much of the ongoing stock. I’ve never wanted the inventory to feel like it was selected from a spreadsheet. I’ve worked at those stores, carting around stacks of whatever the latest pop record was. Most of it is music I own, have owned, or would be excited to own or hear myself.
I’ve worked in record shops since 1994. After that long you get to know the difference between something that simply exists and something you can genuinely stand behind.
I want the store to be as adventurous and esoteric as possible without ever feeling exclusionary. You should be able to come in looking for the classic rock or soul record you already know you want, but also stumble across some deep, strange record you didn’t know you wanted—or even knew existed. Ideally, the store works equally well in both directions.
At the same time, the store has started influencing my listening too. Customers bring things in, ask for records I haven’t considered, or get me excited about something that sends me down a completely different path.
So, it reflects my taste, but it isn’t stuck there either. It’s become a conversation between me and the people who shop here—which is exactly what I’m striving for.
Why has vinyl returned?
On the one hand, I’d like to say it never went anywhere.
But for most of the world, it did. If you were in a punk band or putting records out on an indie label in the ’90s, vinyl was still happening. If you were, say, a drum-and-bass DJ throughout the ’90s, you might be sitting on the phone long-distance, deciding which 12-inches to mail-order by listening to them being played over the telephone.
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For the majority of buyers, streaming made almost all recorded music instantly available, but it also made music feel temporary and interchangeable.
Nostalgia is part of it, but I have to remember that plenty of younger customers have no nostalgia for records. They’re experiencing the format for the first time.
That said, I think the industry has to be careful there—which it won’t be. Records have become expensive, and endless variants and unnecessary deluxe editions can wear people out.
The resurgence will last if records remain connected to listening rather than simply becoming collectibles. I honestly get more excited when I get a stack of a new records in the store that I know customers will love than I do about any “holy grail” record. A grail record can make one customer really happy—a solid new release that I care about can go home with a lot more people.
Photo Via Cosmic Sounds - Facebook
Cosmic Sounds
How did you begin collecting?
I am a collector in a sense, but I’m a strange case. I really cycle through things and go through massive phases with different genres. I also don’t have a huge desire to hold on to things once I’ve tired of them.
There are always things that will stay in the collection, but I’m more interested in the process of discovering something new. I’m much more of a listener than a trophy collector when it comes to records.
My first record was Patti Smith’s Horses [circa 5th grade], based on a recommendation from one of my mom’s friends after I asked for a punk record. I hated it when I first got it because it wasn’t what I was expecting. Two years later, I put it on again and was completely blown away.
The most important early record for me was Cranes’ Wings of Joy [circa 8th grade] I bought it based on a review in the back of some tiny magazine I picked up for free at one of those shops in the early ’90s that sold metal skull rings and tapestries. I was just so fascinated by that record, and it was the first record that felt like truly my own discovery. Cranes then went on to become one of my favorite bands of all time.
Also, Wings of Joy was the only record I owned that would make my mom stop by my room and ask, “You doing all right?” All the music by Decide and Too $hort? No check-ins for that stuff.
Are you from the Milwaukee area?
Was there any reason you picked the location for the store? That area seems like it could be a neighborhood waiting to happen.
I’m not originally from Milwaukee. I’ve moved all over the place over the years, but half of my family is from here. I came out to visit about three times a year over the past decade, and eventually the conversation became that maybe one day I’d move here. My father and brother also ran a jukebox and pinball sales shop on Greenfield Avenue, so West Allis already felt familiar to me.
A big part of the appeal was that West Allis already had such a strong identity. There are longtime residents and businesses, along with a lot of new energy around the farmers market and the newer independent shops and restaurants.
On this street alone, we’ve got Mr. V’s Barberia, Ash & Oak Tattoo, Pete’s Pops and 2BV Vintage—the biggest hidden gem out here, plus a ton of killer food down at the West Allis Cheese & Sausage Shoppe complex. Add to that Pan Asia and ElRey and I’m a happy man. That mix made it feel like the right place for the store.
I had actually considered a space about a block away a year and a half earlier, so I had already imagined doing this on this exact street. When this storefront became available, it felt like another chance to make that happen. There’s enough activity for people to discover the shop, but it still feels personal and grounded.
How did records, pinball and movies end up together?
It sounds like an unusual combination when you list everything, but it never felt unusual to me.
Records have been my working life since 1994. My father and brother ran coin-op routes when I was growing up, so jukeboxes, arcade games and pinball machines were always being unboxed or repaired around me. Horror films, cult movies and physical media have been another longstanding obsession.
I didn’t sit down and invent a theme for the store. I just started bringing together the things that have always been part of my life. That’s probably why it feels curated—all the different pieces come from the same place, even when they aren’t obviously related.
The record-store-dog hoodoo?
Oh, Bobby Bare! He’s my best friend and made the move out here with me, so really, he’s just along for the ride. He’s an overly ecstatic greeter, a horrible security dog, and his filing instincts are terrible.
