I am not about to begin to shill for
RSD. This is not what this post is about. I am also not going to
dwell too long on why I am not a huge fan of it anymore, but, I kinda have to
defend myself a bit before I begin to talk about why I am still going out for
it.
In a nutshell, years ago RSD was a cool
idea. It spotlighted independent music stores at the beginning of the
vinyl resurgence, and drove people into the stores often for the first
time. The idea, like many good ideas obviously expanded to encompass independent
artists and many different types of media. At some point however, it became
more about the money and a lot less about music. That is my
issue. I am all for getting in line to make a purchase for something I
really, really want. 15-20 years ago, it was concert tickets at Jones Beach,
10-11 years ago, it was records. It was awesome to follow your favorite
artists that a lot of people have never heard of and find out that they were
releasing a new album just for you on a special day that non vinyl witch folk
would even know about. Getting caught up with other fans of music while
waiting for the store to open and hearing the stories and anecdotes of what
brought them here and why one store is better or worse than another and how
many different record stores you were going to try to get to on that
day... All if it! It was a great time. Even over time as the
day became less indie and more commercial it was kind of tolerable. You
were getting larger artists releasing or reissuing their work on that 1 day
giving more fans reasons to come out to more stores to make the day more
successful.
At some point, probably within the
last 5/6 years or so, that came to a grinding halt. Now, RSD is lost in a
myriad of gimmicky releases and reissues that only a handful of stores, might
carry at premium prices for the truly hardcore that need the heart shaped,
liquid and or blood filled, glow in the dark album inside of a scratch and
sniff jacket with a lenticular cover. (Ok, that does sound a little
dope.) It is completely unnecessary, and not at all representative of the
culture of music or vinyl. It is more of a yearly expo in how artists and
stores can out do themselves and much less about what fans want and
expect.
Then you have the rules that the
stores need to abide by. A list gets made annually and from that list,
people get hyped, stores order "X" amount of an album that they think
their customers would want, receive half of that order and then one of the following
is true;
- They are unable to sell a chunk of what they received because demand for an already over pressed album just is not there and it was too expensive anyway.
- They sell out almost immediately because of flippers*
This is not only frustrating for
fans and customers, but it breads a measure of distrust from the store right up
through the ranks of the RSD organizers. So, to that I say, do not
believe the hype. This is the first year in a while where I cannot find 1
album on "The List" that I'm even a little excited about.
(Okay, Maybe the Weezer Teal album, cause, reasons....) Really though, I
generally have a better time going out later in the afternoon or the following
week seeing what was overlooked and maybe getting it at a discount. That
said...
I have got a whole day to kill on
Saturday, and I fully plan on being in at least 1 record store at some point,
mostly the truly independent stores that really are not doing too much around
RSD. Also, I am not aiming to discourage you from supporting your local
record store. If you're in the Northeast region of the United States, I have a
few suggestions of places you should check out if you can.
Red Scroll Records Wallingford, CT
Above all, this is consistently my
most favorite record store in the Northeast by. They had their big annual
sale a week ago ahead of RSD to clear out space this year and it was, as usual,
awesome. This year I am assuming as per usual, you line up out back, go
through the tent of all the RSD offerings and if none of that does it for you,
they store is open for general shopping. They have live music; giveaways
and they generally make a part out of it. Why are they getting top
mention? Well, they are pretty much the ONLY record store I have seen around
that somehow manages to get the European RSD exclusives in addition to the
domestics. I snagged a dope Hooverphonic UK release here on RDS a couple
of years ago. In general, you never know what you are going to find in
Red Scroll, but you'll never leave without something. Get here if you
can.
Village Vinyl Brookline, MA
I love this store. Jonathan,
the owner, just within the past week moved from the smaller more cramped store
in Brookline Village Massachusetts to a much roomier location at Coolidge
Corner about 1/2 mile up the street. The biggest draw here is, in
addition to him being an awesome person, of all the used vinyl in the store,
literally none if it is in bad shape. The problem with a lot of record
stores is conditioning. It is my biggest knock against the local Boston
favorite In Your Ear. What's the point of having a decent selection of
records if the condition is pure shit? At Village Vinyl, most if not all
the records are in plastic sleeves, the media is in VG+ and higher. The
organization is on point, it is easy to shop, it is bright and it is
roomy. I cannot wait to hit this store weekly once he gets up and running
at full speed. He'll be open on RSD and I believe he hinted at doing
something cool. Bonus about this shop, I have never seen so many sealed
records in a used shop before. (Not in the states anyway.) If you
are in Boston, you need to go here above all else.
Record Exchange Salem, MA
This place is one of the, if not the
oldest record store in Massachusetts. When you get off the train in
downtown Salem and look to the hill, you can kind of see it like a
beacon. As you make the trek through downtown Salem past Harrisons
Comics, up through the highway and climb just a little higher to that wooden
nirvana of vinyl, you get filled with all the history the town has to offer
just before you open the door to this shop. Then you get slapped with so
much more. The wall displays alone are awe inspiring. Almost floor
to ceiling records front facing from an era where rock was king. Some of
the most rare and hard to find bits of music are just around you. Then
you start digging and flying through the racks. Thousands, and thousands
more records in all kids of conditions that you've been looking for have
somehow all ended up here through the years. As you get a stack of music
that you plan on buying you strike up a conversation with the guys that work
there an realize that they're only there for the same reason. They love
it and cannot picture themselves doing anything else. You ask if they can
hold that Black Sabbath Vertigo pressing of Black Sabbath, you look back and it
is gone. I love this store.
Bull Moose Various Spots Through ME and NH
I'm not a fan for commercial chains
if I can help it, but these guys somehow managed to retain their
identity. Unlike Newbury Comics, which is full on the Bull Moose dark
twin as it were, Bull Moose as a company is run very much like and reminds me a
lot of Tower Records. The people that work there proves this. They
are passionate about the music, the movies the games, all of it.
Depending on which store you head into, you'll see a completely different
selection of vinyl depending on where you are at great non screw you
prices. The selection is also generally always fresh. I have never
seen much the same stuff lingering in the used and new sections twice.
The biggest bonus about Bull Moose? This is where Record Store Day began
and it shows. They still maintain the founding beliefs of what it should
be. All about the music and the support. Get to one if you are
anywhere north of Massachusetts.
Rough Trade Brooklyn, NY
Best new vinyl store in all of New
York! I cannot go back home without stopping in there at least
once. It makes me need to the original in the UK. This place has it
all from UK releases to domestic indie. I mean, everything. It is a
living repository for all genres of music. It is to new what Red Scroll
is to used. You'll never go in here without coming out with
something. Sure, it is a little out of the way, but where better to get
turned on to something new that you cannot get from an average record store in
the Unite States that isn't Amoeba? When I head down in a couple of weeks
for the WFMU Record Show, you best believe I'm hitting this place like I'm mad
at it. Right after....
Academy Records Annex Brooklyn, NY
Remember that scene in Pulp
Fiction where Mia Wallace does a line of coke in the bathroom, jerks her head
up and says, "I said GODDAMN! GODDAMN, GODDMAMN!" Yeah,
that's the reaction you get when you walk into the Brooklyn location. It’s
bigger than the home location on the Lower East side, and for that you see a
lot cooler stuff. I mean, you can go into any record store and see great things
on the wall that are rare and necessary for your collection, but, here, you
want it all. Most used records stores tend to be left with a lot of
"filler" albums to the point where you get the feeling that it's been
"picked." Here, that just does not happen. The quality and curated
availability of the vinyl here is so far above average, you almost do not need
to shop anywhere else for anything ever. It's a crime that they'll be
right around the corner from the WFMU show. I have a feeling that if anyone
stops here first, they'll go broke before they get to the show.
* Mother Fuck Flippers.
They are more than 50% of the reason that RSD has become a raging joke. Please don't buy anything from these ass-hat profiteering price-gouging dicks. Visit /r/vinyl and try to see if anyone is willing to grab something for you if you're not in an area or not around a store that has what you're looking for this RSD. I'm sure someone there will be more than willing to grab you a copy at a reasonable price, whatever the fuck that is for RSD, and ship it to you without you having to get it inflated on eBay or something similiar.
