A Fine Line
Don’t you hate those people who tell you about something great, but it’s too late to enjoy it? (Sorry).
Early Saturday morning I was taking a walk through Carytown and noticed a line of people waiting for Plan 9 Music to open. Quite the mix was there, young and old, kids with parents, Westenders and VCU art students. The rest of the walk was spent appreciating the iconic line-in-front-of-the-music **cough, record**-store events that have been going on for decades, and how it’s nice that some things don’t change.
Over the next day or two I tried to guess which album release or concert would attract such a diverse crowd, and finally curiosity got the better of me and I called the store. Turns out Saturday was Record Store Day and it’s the equivalent of the Black Friday for independent music stores. Groups from all genres release new music, special titles and original runs just for independent music stores.
For example, Taylor Swift dropped a special release 7” record with the original and a new version of “The Lakes”, a song from her Grammy Album of the Year, Folklore. It’s never been released on vinyl, and there is a limited run of 10,000 copies worldwide that are only available from independent stores. If you’re really into Taylor Swift, that’s a great reason to grab a coffee and stand in line on a lovely morning.
If “Frankie and the Witch Fingers” is more of your vibe, rejoice in their reissue of Brain Telephone. Or not, but the list of specialty music released on Record Store Day is pretty impressive. New bands, old bands, there really is something for everybody who loves music. Apologies for bringing you the news after the fact, but put it on your calendar for next year. It happens on one Saturday every April, and in some areas again on Black Friday. Lesson learned for me, next time I see a line of happy, excited people, I’m going to get in it.
Enjoy!