New Sound Café Revives Spirit of Long-Vacant Gospel Record Shop in Austin

A long-abandoned former record store in Austin has been reborn as a neighborhood café and gathering space, thanks to a local couple who felt called to put their spin on a rich aspect of West Side culture. 

New Sound Café, 5958 W Lake St., which held its soft opening earlier this month and will celebrate its grand opening on Nov. 22, 8 a.m. to. 3 p.m., occupies a building on Race Avenue that once housed New Sound Gospel Records and Tapes — a gospel shop run in the 1970s by South Side resident Lee Johnson. The building had sat empty for roughly 20 years. 

“You’d never know it used to be a record shop,” said co-owner Andrew Follett, who runs the café with his wife, Hannah. “We wanted to bring some of that history back.”

While Johnson sold or gave away the store’s original vinyl long ago, the New Sound owners sourced vintage albums, signage, and a retro record player to honor the building’s past. Some historic elements — including the original tile floor — remain intact.

A painting of the record shop from decades ago greets visitors at the entrance, and an original New Sound Gospel Records and Tapes sign now hangs on the café’s second floor.

“We wanted to weave as much of the old shop through the space as we could,” Follett said.

The couple lives in Austin with their four children and bought the building about four years ago, initially intending to renovate it for another tenant. When the tenant search stalled, they felt pulled toward opening something themselves.

“We have no background in restaurants or running a shop,” Follett said. “But we kept feeling like maybe God was calling us to do it ourselves.”

They spent two years clearing the property — which included a crumbling garage and an overgrown backyard — before hiring an architect who lives in the neighborhood. Construction began this spring and wrapped up in about six to seven months.

The result is an expansive café designed for people to linger. An upstairs loft, once a separate apartment, now offers additional seating and a rentable room for community meetings or small events. A patio in the back will open in the spring, with string lights and plantings planned.

“We wanted a place where people can connect and create community,” Follett said. “I didn’t even drink coffee until last year. The coffee is really a vehicle for the space.” 

The Folletts are members of Chicago West Bible Church, 5916 W. Lake St., Follett plays bass in the church’s worship band, and the café’s soundtrack leans heavily on classic gospel and contemporary Christian music.

“We’re gospel music fans — it’s part of the vibe,” he said. “Somebody walked in and said it felt like a café in the West Loop. But this neighborhood deserves excellent spaces too.”

New Sound Café uses a countertop micro-roaster that processes beans in three-pound batches. For now, the café sources beans through Bellwether Coffee, with blends from Ethiopia, Brazil, and Peru. Follett said he hopes to eventually import coffee directly from Uganda.

“We’re still figuring out how that will work, but that’s the goal,” he said.

The café is open Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., with extended hours until 7 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays. It is closed on Sundays to give the family time to rest.

The upstairs meeting room is available for neighborhood groups, birthday gatherings, and small events. For $19 a month, customers can join the Gold Record Club, the café’s membership program that offers a range of credits, including one premium drink a month and 10% off each purchase. And the café’s philanthropic arm, New Sound Cares, pours 100% of the café’s profits into local nonprofits.

“People see the building from the bus stop and wander in, wondering what’s happening,” Goodee said. “They’re excited something new is here.”

For the owners, that enthusiasm makes the years of work worth it.

“There have been sweat and tears,” he said. “But we love this neighborhood, and we wanted to build something beautiful for it.”