SATURDAY, APRIL 16TH IS RECORD STORE DAY 2016! PARTICIPATING INDIE RECORD STORES WILL HOST HUNDREDS OF IN-STORE ARTIST APPEARANCES

On April 16, record stores across the country will take part in the ninth annual party known as Record Store Day. The celebration of the culture of the independent record store goes on all day and includes music, food, artist appearances and all kinds of fun, no matter which record store you plan to celebrate with.

Event information by store can be found on www.recordstoreday.com but here are a few examples:

"I believe that everyone involved in the music industry is an important link between the musicians and their audience; that includes your local mom and pop stores. They need support just like the rest of us do. I look forward to seeing you on Record Store Day in Bull Moose in Portland, Maine."  That’s the legendary Graham Nash, who will indeed be making an appearance at Bull Moose, meeting fans and signing copies of his brand new record, This Path Tonight.

People in both Berkeley, CA and St. Louis, MO will have a day to remember if they’re among the very lucky record store supporters to check out special performances by RSD 2016 Ambassadors Metallica (in concert at Rasputin Music, Berkeley) and Mumford and Sons (live at Vintage Vinyl in St. Louis). Fans of both artists across the country can still celebrate by picking up their special Record Store Day releases.

Bonnie Raitt, who has been very vocal about her support of independent retail, will be visiting with Music Millennium in Portland, OR, while Kacey Musgraves will make a stop at Lunchbox Records in Charlotte, NC. The Mavericks will be hitting the stage at Vinyl Renaissance in Kansas City, and Reverend Horton Heat will be heating up Homer’s in Omaha, signing records that are sure to include lots of copies of their  “Hardscrabble Woman” 7”, released on Record Store Day. Florida record stores are having a day-long dance party with Shabazz Palaces at Miami’s Sweat Records, and Daniel Ash stopping in at Radio-active Records in Ft. Lauderdale.

A day of music is also planned at Brooklyn’s Rough Trade, including live sets from Mr Lif, Jesca Hoop, Nothing and The Fleshtones, (sure to do tracks from their RSD 2016 single) and starting with a DJ set from Eli “Paperboy” Reed, who may or may not slip his own RSD 7” into the mix.  Merge Records spreads out across their homestate of North Carolina with Eric Bachmann of Archers of Loaf at Schoolkids Records in Durham and label founder Mac McCaughan bringing his Superchunk bandmate Jim Wilbur to Harvest Records in Asheville for an acoustic performance. (Superchunk’s Tossing Seeds sees a vinyl re-release on Record Store Day). North Carolina’s Dexter Romweber is also on the bill at Schoolkids, his Flat Duo Jets have a double 7” single on the RSD Official Releases List.

Record Store Day’s list of official releases and the stores who celebrate are diverse and fans of both the quietest acoustic and the heaviest rock can find something to love. Events on RSD 2016 run that gamut too, with acoustic performances from Firekid (Seasick Records in Birmingham AL), Wild Feathers (Strictly Discs, Madison WI) and Paul Nelson (Johnny’s Records in Darien CT) sharing the day with appearances from OTEP (signing their RSD 2016 picture disc at Silver Platters in Seattle WA), Al Jorgensen at Fingerprints in Long Beach CA. and Killswitch Engage, who can be found engaging at Newbury Comics in Leominster MA. Comedians get into the RSD game too, and Jim Breuer will be representing with a Q&A session at Looney Tunes in Long Island NY.

A few folks will be making multiple record store stops on 4/16, including the subjects of the Official Film of Record Store Day 2016, Butch Vig and Steve Walker. Their studio is at the heart of the documentary The Smart Studios Story, which will show at the Chicago International Movies & Music Festival on April 13, and the two will be on hand at both Reckless Records in Chicago and their hometown Mad City Music Exchange on Record Store Day.  Dylan Gardner, a young musician with a beyond-his-years musical knowledge (and vinyl collection—check out the first installment of Dylan’s Favorite Records on www.recordstoreday.com) has his own LA-area mini-tour that Saturday, making stops at Freakbeat Records, Canterbury Records, High Fidelity, Permanent Records and Resistor Records in support of his RSD 2016 7” single.

This is just a brief look at what’s going on around the United States on April 16 to celebrate the culture of the independent record store. Literally hundreds of bands will take the stage moving thousands of people to head-nod, dance, sing and clap along-- like a party—a party at a record store. 

About Record Store Day: 

Record Store Day, the organization, is managed by the Department of Record Stores and is organized in partnership with the Alliance of Independent Media Stores (AIMS), the Coalition of Independent Music Stores (CIMS) and promotes independent record stores year-round with events, special releases and other fun things.

Record Store Day, the global celebration of the culture of the record store, takes place annually in April.