California Lane CD & Record Fair — Fortitude Valley - BIGSOUND 2026
Glitter Records and California Lane's CD & Record Fair returns for BIGSOUND 2026. The fair is a two‑day, community‑driven celebration of Brisbane’s music culture in the heart of Fortitude Valley. Browse thousands of CDs, vinyl and cassettes, discover rare and archival stock, meet local sellers, and enjoy the laneway atmosphere during BIGSOUND week. A free, open‑to‑everyone event presented by Glitter Records and California Lane.
Officially recognised by BIGSOUND, the market runs alongside Australia’s leading music industry festival and is free to attend, with no delegate pass required.
Event Details — September 2026
💿 Wednesday 2 September – Thursday 3 September 2026
🌟 9:30am–3:30pm
📍 California Lane, 22 McLachlan Street, Fortitude Valley, Brisbane
🎟️ Free entry
Browse Vinyl Records, CDs and Music Collectables
Explore a curated selection of vinyl records, CDs and music collectables from some of Brisbane’s favourite independent vinyl vendors:
- Glitter Records
- Sacred Crates
- Beat Market
Whether you're searching for rare pressings, classic albums, Australian releases, jazz, punk, indie, metal, pop, soul or bargain finds, there will be thousands of recordings available across the two-day market.
Glitter Records CD Fest
As part of the event, Glitter Records will transform part of California Lane into CD Fest—a massive rummage sale featuring more than 4,000 CDs.
Expect everything from rock, pop and jazz to classical, electronic, world music, film soundtracks, Australian artists and hard-to-find collectables, with fresh stock appearing both days.
Vinyl DJs All Day
A lineup of guest DJs will be announced soon. Expect vinyl‑only sets, curated by people who genuinely love the craft of collecting, playing, and sharing music
Fortitude Valley Music History Walking Tours
Visitors can also join Robert Allen's Fortitude Valley Music History Walking Tours, departing from Fortitude Music Hall on both Wednesday 2 September and Thursday 3 September.
Tour times:
- 12:30pm–2:00pm
- 4:30pm–6:00pm
The tours explore the rich musical history of Fortitude Valley and the venues, artists and stories that helped shape Brisbane's music scene.
Visit 4ZZZ
On Thursday 3 September, community radio station 4ZZZ will also be holding its annual Radiothon Open Day. Visitors to the California Lane CD & Record Fair are encouraged to walk up the hill and explore one of Australia's longest-running independent radio stations.
Explore California Lane
While you're visiting, make time to explore California Lane's independent businesses, including:
- What's Poppin
- Tell Me How It Ends Bookstore
- Emergent Gallery
- Reverends Coffee
- Fat Dumpling
- Honey & Yolko
From Glitter Records
“This market grew from conversations with the Apostolos family in California Lane and our shared desire to bring people together through music. Glitter Records has been part of the Fortitude Valley community for five years, and I’m passionate about building deeper local connections. Brisbane has a unique music culture — this event is about shining a light on what makes it special.” — Riley Fitzgerald, Founder of Glitter Records
Supported By:
- 4ZZZ Community Radio — Brisbane’s independent music and community station
- No.7 Print House — a Brisbane screen‑printing studio specialising in bespoke prints for record covers, posters, cassette tapes, apparel, and creative projects
- The Lanes Fortitude Valley — the vibrant laneway precinct that brings together food, culture, music, and community events
- BIGSOUND — Australia's leading music industry festival and conference. The California Lane CD & Record Fair is an officially recognised BIGSOUND-supported event, taking place during BIGSOUND Festival week.
📰Our November 2025 Fair Was Featured On
Record Store Day Australia Events Page – Thanks to the Record Store Australia team, our California Lane Record & CD Market has been featured on the official Record Store Day Australia website. We’re grateful for the support and proud to be included among other music-loving events.
Our fair has also featured in the November 25 2025 issue of The Village Voice (Brisbane), New Farm Peninsula edition — in a special article titled: “Come Celebrate 100 Years, 100 Stories in The Valley.”
Scenestr Magazine – November 7, 2025 – we were featured in “Building Fortitude Valley’s Legacy: 100 Years, 100 Stories,” a heartfelt piece by Matt Innes that explores the Valley’s rich musical heritage, the centennial of its iconic buildings, and the vibrant energy of the community day we’re proud to be part of.
The Weekend Edition – November 11 – our first fair was mentioned in “A Century of History Will Be Celebrated with a Full-Day Party in California Lane.” The article highlights the larger centennial celebration of Carroll’s Corner and the Rollinson Buildings.
Cosmic Magazine published a dedicated news feature titled “Glitter Records Launches a New Brisbane Record Fair in California Lane,” spotlighting the launch of the new CD & Record Market in Fortitude Valley.
Culture blog The Glitter & Gold ran a news piece announcing the first fair, highlighting it as a celebration of music’s physical beauty and the joy of community events.
Mentioned on ABC Radio Brisbane — Mornings (November 21, 2025): Riley, owner of Glitter Records, spoke with presenter Kelly Higgins-Devine about the fair and the 100 Years, 100 Stories centennial celebration.
📰Our May 2026 Fair Was Featured On
Featured in The Village Voice – April 2026: Our fair was also highlighted in the April 2026 issue of The Village Voice (Brisbane) in an article titled “Turn It Up! For Music Heritage,” which noted the involvement of 4ZZZ and Glitter Records, and explored Fortitude Valley’s unique contribution to Australian punk, protest, gay, grunge, and indie music — and the cultural legacy that continues to shape the area today.
In April 2026, The Glitter & Gold published a news feature announcing the second California Lane CD & Record Fair, highlighting its expanded cultural program for 2026. The article covers the event’s retro‑inspired poster by No.7 Print House, 4ZZZ’s first‑ever merch‑archive pop‑up, vinyl‑only DJ sets led by Judy Jetson, and new music‑history walking tours with historian Robert Allen. It also spotlights a special guest talk by John Willsteed of The Go‑Betweens, exploring Brisbane’s punk and post‑punk legacy.
Our record fair was also reported in a digital news article by Scenester on April 16, 2026,, with a follow‑up feature in the May print edition.
The Village Voice reported on the market in its May 2026 New Farm Peninsula edition.
On May 15, our CD and Record Fair was featured on ABC Radio Brisbane – 612 ABC Mornings with Steve Austin. During the segment, John Wilsteed described playing music in Fortitude Valley in the 1970s and 1980s. He noted Fortitude Valley as an important place for music and a space where people can be “as creative as possible.” Glitter Records was also mentioned, along with California Lane and Robert Allen’s history tours.
On Saturday, May 16, the California Lane CD & Record Fair and Fortitude Valley music history tours were featured on 612 ABC Brisbane during Sally Rope’s “Sound Foundations” segment. The program took listeners on a virtual walking tour through Fortitude Valley’s musical history with John Willsteed, Robert Allen and 4ZZZ, while also exploring the story and cultural significance of California Lane with Arthur Apostolos.
Our event was photographed and reviewed in Scenestr magazine, who described it as “a gathering of Brisbane music lifers, collectors, punters and curious wanderers,” and “Brisbane music and art culture actively showing up for itself.” The review noted the event’s informal atmosphere, the continued interest in physical media across generations, and the significance of the Valley’s music history as a setting. It also highlighted that the fair brings together people who still believe music should be held, discussed and experienced together.