Aluminum tunes and dusty vinyl

So, in case anyone missed it, Saturday was Record Store Day around the nation. I had mentioned it in an earlier posting, hoping it would drum up some excitement about an often-overlooked establishment -- and the true music shopping experience.

A quick link to the event website provided a list of participating stores. Our own suburban location was represented by Geneva's very own Kiss the Sky, located on 3rd Street in the downtown district. I was actually surprised that there had actually been a little press written about the event, too. Granted, no giant billboards or planes circling delivering messages in smoke. But, considering the state of the music world, any kind of recognition is a plus.

I managed to get over to the store late in the afternoon, probably close to 4:00 p.m. To my surprise, the place really was hopping. A wonderful mixture of young and old pouring through merchandise: CDs, old and new vinyl (yes, new vinyl is on the rise again...), t-shirts, posters, and other assorted items. There were snacks available like sushi, cookies, pastries, and a few plates that were already quite picked through (my punishment for arriving late). There were drawings for t-shirts, goodie bags with purchases, and sales on vinyl.

I managed to come home with a few goodies myself. I arrived carrying my 3-page long "wish" list and was able to cross a couple of the items off, as well as finding a few new releases.

If I had any complaint at all about the event, it was that ONLY the vinyl purchases were celebrated with discounts. And only when reaching a certain total. Now I do understand that vinyl is an important part of past glory -- and is even starting to find an audience with younger fans again. However, the bulk of the store is CDs. And considering that the CDs are already priced higher than any online source, it would seem to have been a great time to pass some savings down. The vinyl available at the store, while pretty tasty, wasn't extensive enough to satisfy the wish list anyway.

I did find one wonderful 3-record vinyl import release by Stereolab (Aluminum Tunes) in pretty good shape. And I picked up 4 CDs as well. But not the stash I was hoping to return with -- especially after saving my pesos for so long in anticipation of the event. And the record I did buy (not cheap by any means) did not produce any discount.

So, overall, I do feel some satisfaction in helping contribute to the bottom line of a local establishment. And I'm very excited to see that so many people came out to take part in the celebration. But I would like to see more done next year to make it worthwhile. There were a lot of folks there buying CDs for $16-$19 that commented on the cost. I can get a far greater selection and price online. So please make it just a TAD easier for me to justify paying out some bucks. I have a budget. And I crave music.

Also, I really wanted the Record Store Day t-shirt. When I asked, I was told it was only something that could be won with the drawing of names later. Employees were wearing this wonderful shirt and it was hanging up on display by the counter. What better way to advertise for next year's event? Sell me (and others) a shirt!

Better start saving now for next year's event.

Save the date!

Where do you plan to be on April 19th? After reading the news today in the entertainment section of our local newspaper, the answer became more than obvious. The ONLY place you should be is at your local vinyl-and-CD authority. For April 19th is...

RECORD STORE DAY!!

I didn't know there was such a day. And maybe not before this year (although, as a youth, I would proclaim almost ANY day to be Record Store Day). I saw the little blurb in the paper. Local merchant heroes Kiss the Sky were participating! And my eyes lit up when I caught the phrase, "...when Kiss the Sky joins indie stores throughout the country to pay homage to record-store culture via live music, mega sales, and overall "High Fidelity" camaraderie." Geez! Camaraderie, too?!

For grins, I visited the Kiss the Sky site and was surprised to see an actual banner ad for an actual Record Store Day web site (graphics above). When I linked onto the Record Store Day site, there were the words right in front of me:

"On Saturday, April 19th, 2008, hundreds of independently owned music stores across the country will celebrate 'Record Store Day.'"

Additional:

"On this day, all of these stores will simultaneously link and act as one with the purpose of celebrating the culture and unique place that they occupy both in their local communities and nationally."

So do you need any more encouragement to take a journey to your local participating establishment? Not sure if one near you is involved? Just visit the Record Store Day website for a complete list of stores that are sharing in this milestone day. Do your part. Get involved. Share in the fun. Make some purchases. Keep these key members of our community in business for a long, long time.