There seems to be an event or holiday for everything now. From national sibling day to national ice cream day, these celebrations start in America and make their way all around the globe. Another day of celebrating has just occurred and that was Record Store Day. The event was set up in 2007 to help promote vinyl records and record shops both independent and commercial ones.
The rise of vinyl records in the past year is an indication of how we are consuming media. People are now desiring a physical entity with their music. The advent of record store day is something to embrace and enjoy for beginners collecting vinyl and veterans of collecting vinyl. The day itself is fantastic for raising awareness of vinyl. I decided to head into Dublin’s city centre to see what the record shops were doing. The day was sunny and warm so it was a good start.
Photo credit: recordstoreday.com
Someone who has seen both sides of records is Conor Curley, guitarist for the band Fontaines D.C. Speaking to me at Tower Record’s event for record store day the day after his band played a sold out gig in Glasgow, Conor said “The idea of it is great. Anything that puts records into people’s consciousness is great to make people aware. Sometimes you’ll find a song on a record you didn’t know was there and it will become a firm favourite. ” That’s the beauty in listening to music on vinyl. It’s a more immersive experience of listening to and appreciating music rather than just scrolling through playlists on Spotify.
The Fontaines - Photo credit: irishtimes.com
Fontaines D.C. have released all three of their singles on vinyl and Conor was surprised at how easy the process was, considering they’re still an unsigned band. “We used the company my45 and it’s a matter of finishing your recordings, sending them your masters and artwork and they do the rest. It’s crazy how accessible it is” said Conor when asked about the process of releasing your record on vinyl. After the chat, Conor joined his band to play a vinyl DJ set in Tower Records. Radio Nova were there as well, with Teddy’s ice cream handing out free treats that were needed on the sunny day, all you had to do was show them your receipt.
While chatting to Lee Kelly of All City Records of Temple Bar on the phone, he told me they were having a party all day with DJs on the decks streaming live for dublindigitalradio.com and they were throwing an after party in Wigwam on Abbey Street to keep the party going. I ventured over to the shop but was met with a huge crowd enjoy the sounds and browsing the records on offer. It was busy and cramped but people were enjoying themselves.
All City - Photo credit: fourfourmag.com
Tower Records and All City Records weren’t the only record shops having a party for the day. The Record Spot at Rage on Fade Street held a street party in celebration of record day. Bands and DJ took turns entertaining the crowd. The shop were giving free out beer if you asked politely. In the hustle and bustle of it all, the Record Spot manager Dennis, was able to have a quick chat with me and describe the day as “Christmas week all rolled into one.”
One of the most unique things about record store day is the special releases.
Every year artists release special editions of albums or re release of albums to celebrate the day. This year there was special releases of albums by Prince and David Bowie. U2 and Bruce Springsteen also released records especially for the day and they sold well according to Dennis at Record spot. “It’s a stressful day because you’re hoping to get your orders because there is only a certain amount released” he added before he had to return to the madness.
Another release I was interested in was by a band called Daughter. They had many songs of theirs used in the game series Life is Strange and were releasing a vinyl edition of songs that were featured in the game. It was sold out in Tower Records on Saturday and other shops I went to, didn’t order it. A look on amazon on Sunday and the special release was selling for £62 pounds. This record would have been on sale for between €20 and €30. The up-selling of special records is disheartening but is a regular occurrence in the music world, especially concert tickets being sold on secondary sites for obscene amounts.
Photo credit: flickeringmyth.com
In the end I settled for Master of Puppets by Metallica on vinyl which was reduced by five euro. Most records on sale for record store day were reduced, meaning if you couldn’t get your hands on one of the special releases, you could pick something else up.
Photo credit: greenandblackmusic.com
The activities weren’t just in Dublin. Record shops all around Ireland were celebrating the day with parties and special offers in stores. Independent stores in Limerick and Cork and Golden Discs outlets all around the country participated in the events. The day is a global phenomenon for vinyl lovers and musicians and is one that is here to stay. The day itself was because it was a celebration of everything that goes on between the wax and the needle.
Update November 2018
This piece was initially written in April 2018 as part of a college assignment. It has been updated as part of another college assignment.
Record store day 2019 is due to take place on April 20, 2019 and people are already excited with wishes for the new releases.
Wishful thinking.
This is a fantastic idea to be fair.
As there was problem embedding this tweet, I took a screen grab of it. We're fixated on the border, a reunified Ireland and a deal or no deal situation, but what about the records?
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