If record collecting is your thing, your very own holiday is right around the corner: The 11th annual Record Store Day (RSD) touches down at more than 240 independent music shops all across the globe on Saturday, April 21.
Here in San Diego, there's a great selection of stores to find the myriad wax treasures about to be rained down on the masses from both indie and major record labels alike. Hundreds of new, reissued, or exclusive titles will be offered up -- many in small, limited pressings.
Originally designed to appeal to collectors and support independent stores, RSD now attracts more than its share of resellers looking to make a quick buck. Hot-ticket items are almost always snatched up by savvy scalpers first 'cause let's be honest, resale prices on exclusives (of anything) often fetch a profit.
While the environment surrounding RSD has changed over the years, it still represents one of the biggest days of the year for local shops and it's difficult to criticize an event that helps pay their bills. So, in that spirit, if you're heading out on Saturday around town, make a point to return to those stores with some frequency throughout the year (if you're not in the habit of doing that already).
This year, notable RSD releases include titles by the National, David Bowie, Phoenix, Madonna, Run the Jewels (this year's official "RSD ambassadors"), Led Zeppelin, Car Seat Headrest, Bruce Springsteen, Arcade Fire, Fleet Foxes, the Grateful Dead, Lil Uzi Vert, Flaming Lips, Neil Young -- and many, many more. For a full list of 2018 RSD releases, visit RSD's website.
Keep in mind that not every participating record shop will be carrying everything. Quantities are spread out worldwide and often shops don't know what they'll be receiving until shipments show up at their door.
As in years prior, exclusive vinyl won't be the only thing featured at San Diego brick-and-mortar shops though -- several will be in on the RSD action in a big way with in-store performances, special sales and free food.
Local
Let the crate-digging commence!
Record Store Day 2018: Participating San Diego Shops
Cow Records: Hours: 10 a.m.-9 p.m. 5040 Newport Ave., Ocean Beach.
FeeLit Records: Giveaways, sales, in-store DJ sets, and more. Skratcher San Diego and Bumpboxx SoCal host a portable turntable 'Scratch Session.' Hours: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. 909 E St., East Village.
Folk Arts Rare Records: Hours: 8 a.m.-7 p.m. 3072 El Cajon Blvd., North Park. Note: They'll be posting a list of all their in-stock RSD titles on their website as soon as they have an inventory.
Lou's Records: Will feature a "golden ticket" type sweepstakes from Record Store Crawl by hiding "thousands of fortunes inside select RSD titles with lucky numbers on them." Use those numbers to win prizes. Hours: 10 a.m.-9 p.m. (at 9 a.m. they'll begin handing out numbers to those who have lined up) 434 N. Coast Highway 101, Encinitas.
M-Theory Records: Head over for a Bleeding Gold Records showcase throughout the day featuring live performances by Ariel Levine, Tape Waves, New Me, and Thunderegg. Hours: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. 827 W. Washington St., Mission Hills.
Normal Records: Donuts and coffee up for grabs in the morning; pizza at noon. Hours: 9 a.m.-8 p.m. 4201 30th St., North Park.
Re-Animated Records: 20 percent off storewide (RSD titles excluded), free snacks and drinks, and the first 25 customers in line will receive a free "Re-Animated Puke-Pak" (not sure what that is but I'm sure it's awesome). Hours: 7 a.m.-7 p.m. 8320 La Mesa Blvd., La Mesa Village.
Record City: Free donuts in the morning followed by pizza and soda. Special sale of $2 off any non-RSD title. Hours: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. 3757 Sixth Ave., Hillcrest.
Spin Records: Live performances starting at noon by Trouble in the Wind, Ford Madox Ford, Jesse Lee & His Apologies, Hexa, and the Gift Machine. Free and all ages. Hours: 10 a.m.-10 p.m. 370 Grand Ave., Carlsbad.
Vinyl Junkies Record Shack: Free pizza and drinks from Lefty's Chicago Pizzeria. Live performances by the Schizophonics and Taken By Canadians. DJ sets by Creepy Creeps, Lion Cut, Rob Crow, Swami John Reis, Dani Bell, Jake Najor, and many more. Hours: 9 a.m.-10 p.m. 2235 Fern St., South Park.
Note: The local RSD event info listed above was collected online and if you're a record store and want your RSD event/info included here (or updated), please email me.
Dustin Lothspeich books The Merrow and runs the music equipment-worshipping blog Gear and Loathing in San Diego. Follow his updates on Twitter or contact him directly.
