'huge, queer and tawdry' but 'much admired by the public'

Don't generalise too hastily the other way - I have known some gems (albeit usually more secondhand). And indie record shops can be incredibly supercilious - Selectadisc's singles shop in Nottingham, say, was the best indie singles retailer in the midlands, while being staffed entirely by dance types who'd look down their noses at you.