Originally written by Luke Slater · 16 April 2009
This Saturday sees the second international Record Store Day, with all sorts of delights on offer around this isle to celebrate independent music and all it does. Here's a few of the best bits...
It'll come as no great surprise to you that those lovers and champions of independent music, Rough Trade, are putting on a band or ten to celebrate Record Store Day. They'll be releasing C09 for 99p, a limited edition compilation cassette with unreleased cuts from Micachu, Jeff Lewis, Mystery Jets plus a super-special-secret track, which is as yet TBA. It will be awesome, though, for anyone who still owns a cassette playing device.
On top of that, they'll be giving away two free CD compilations on the day featuring all sorts of jolly goodness like The Boy Least Likely To, The Wave Pictures, Casiokids and Telepathe. Only 500 copies, so get there early. Oh God, there's more. A pretty gargantuan lineup will play an instore on the day, too. Feast your eyes on this rabble:
Rough Trade East:
11AM: Betty And The Werewolves 12PM: My Sad Captains 12.30PM: Nat from Sonic Cathedral DJ set 1PM: Wave Machines 1.30PM: Nat from Sonic Cathedral DJ set 2PM: Sunny Day Sets Fire 2.30PM: Caspa DJ set 3PM: Let's Wrestle 4PM: Dutch Uncles 4.30PM: Finders Keepers DJ set 5PM: Ebony Bones 5.30PM: Finders Keepers DJ set 6PM: Loverman 6:30PM: Andrew Weatherall DJ set 7PM: Pete Molinari 7.30PM: Andrew Weatherall DJ set 8PM: Joe Gideon And The Shark
Rough Trade West:
1PM: Sam (Planet Earth) 2PM: Nat Johnson (Monkey Swallows Universe) 3PM: Ian Broudie 3.30: Book reading by Stav Sherez 4PM: Alessi's Ark
Elsewhere in London, Pure Groove has Graham Coxon, Patrick Wolf and Daniel Michaelson and The Coastguards playing in-store, kicking off at noon.
North of the border Avalanche Glasgow plays host to an inviting array to of local bands and artists with Dananananykroyd among them. Also expect an entirely Scot-tastic playlist and tonnes of exclusive products from the guys and gals at Avalanche.
Here's a video of last-year's in-store atAvalanche Recordswith Saint Jude's Infirmary.
DiS' favourite poodle-haired astronomer is giving away a guitar in aid of Record Store Day which you can enter here.
The Coalition of UK Indie Stores was formed last year, with Avalanche's Kevin Buckle at the helm for the first three months, before handing over to Rough Trade East's Spencer Hickman. Stores in the coalition of fifteen include Sister Ray, Manchester's Picadilly, Aberdeen's 1Up and Leeds' Jumbo.
Record Store Day and The Coalition of UK Indie Stores represent and champion the interests of the declining number independent music retailers in the UK. There are only around 300 independent stores left in the UK, compared with over 400 in 2007, and around 1000 a decade ago.
There's really too much going on to list it all in here, so for more info visit the Record Store Day UK website.