Evan's Gate

On Saturday April 13 the annual event Record Store Day (RSD) that promotes indie record shops will take place. Pearl Jam are the ambassadors of the event this year.

If you still doubt the resurgence of this once dominant format look at this week’s Billboard music chart. Motley Crue have released “The Dirt”, the soundtrack to their biopic, which has landed them a top ten seller with 30,000 units sold, half of them were vinyl records!

Each year in the weeks before RSD a list is posted on the web at http://www.recordstoreday.com containing every title that will be issued.

There are regional specific items that may not be available in your local shop. Some titles are limited to a specific number of pressings. If you love records there is always something of interest.

Last year I attended my first RSD. I found a re-issue of the Rolling Stones’ “On Their Satanic Majesties Request” pressed on vinyl with a cool psychedelic splatter pattern. Every detail of the original was recreated down to the holographic cover. David Bowie’s self-titled debut was issued on colored vinyl as a double album. You got the mono version and the stereo version on red and blue vinyl. The gatefold featured historic liner notes. These were two treasures I got at my local shop.

This year’s bounty has a lot to offer listeners. Over 400 titles appear on this year’s list. First-time RSD issues, 7 inch and 10 inch records, picture discs, and historic live recordings plus some alternative takes on all-time classics. And limited pressings galore.

Here are some of my picks for RSD 2019. If you love records visit the website. Whether it’s unreleased concerts from an artist’s heyday or new versions of classic releases; picture discs or indie artists you will probably find a title or two you want in your collection.

I have found many record lovers dislike picture discs. The grooves are not as deep as a traditional black vinyl surface. I have not experienced the inferior playback that many others claim. This offering from Ace Frehley was his recent solo Lp, “Spaceman”. This is a first time issue too!

Those are some of the highlights for this year’s RSD. Explore to find record shops in your region. Many of the albums that will come out remain available unless they are numbered editions like some of the concert recordings and box sets. The point in the end is to remind people that listening is fun. Holding a record is far more enjoyable than a digital copy any day. As long as you keep them clean the format lasts forever.