The April retail holiday that’s now a springboard into the black for indie record shops across the country is back for its ninth annual edition: Record Store Day 2016. All of the Bay area’s biggies will be carrying limited RSD vinyl but that’s the only guarantee; none of the proprietors know exactly what they’ll be getting in until a day or two before the sales event happens, keeping fingers crossed about what will arrive from the orders they placed weeks ago. Hence, you can’t reserve anything in advance or call and find out if something will be available. You just have to show up, which is why there’s traditionally long lines of people waiting to get into these shops for upwards of an hour or more before they open on Record Store Day. But showing up early to get first pick of whatever’s hit the shelves is part of the fun, and true enthusiasts make a point of stopping at all RSD-carrying spots because each tends to offer different titles.
Since Record Store Day was created to celebrate the indie record shops that continue to exist in a not-so-hospitable music marketplace, you don’t really have to be a vinyl collector to enjoy the holiday. Just come out and show your love and appreciation for any (or all) of the local shops taking part, and be treated to sales stretching beyond RSD titles into general merch, live music, food and libations. Here’s a breakdown of what’s happening at each stop this Sat., April 16, 2016.
Bananas Music Shoppers get a 15 percent discount on all used merch at both the retail and warehouse locations, though the action takes place (and RSD titles are available) at the former. The rather intriguing live music lineup kicks off with The Vultures at 10 a.m., touches on a few groups featuring ex- and current CL staffers (Zerobabies and Cóctel del Diablo at 11 a.m. and noon, respectively), and concludes with Reality Asylum (the project of Holiday and Teacher Teacher) at 1 p.m. Fork In The Road Mobile Eatery provides noshes into the afternoon and six local breweries are repped in a RSD-driven raffle. 9 a.m., 2887 22nd Ave. N., St. Petersburg.
Daddy Kool The usual glut of exclusive RSD titles, store-wide sales and various other offerings happen at DK, with special highlights in the RSD-spurred release of the new recording from local rock outfit Rising Down (which throws a record release party later this night at Crowbar), a sidewalk sale that includes a massive (room-filling) collection of books, DVDs and CDs from former Tampa Bay Times music critic Sean Daly, and a post-RSD party next door at Local 662 that comprises sets by Reality Asylum, Jackson Davis and the Jackettes, Empire Cinema and Dawns followed by karaoke. 8 a.m., 666 Central Ave., St. Petersburg.
Microgroove There’s at least one confirmed title amid the unknown RSD releases at Microgroove, though it’s mega-limited: a clear hand-cut 10” vinyl EP from Orange/Pinellas County group Living Decent (Awkward Age’s Vic Alvarez with hubbie-wife duo Jeff and Katrina Snyder), recorded this past December in New York while the trio was on tour and offered by New Granada Records. Twenty copies will be split between Park Ave CDs in Orlando and NG-owned Tampa-based Microgroove. Commune + Co. serves nitro-tapped coffee in the morning, PBR pours beers at noon with the launch of in-store sets by Empire Cinema, Ninehorn, Fistful, Sentries, DieAlps! and Hello Joyce, Cappys opens early and serves pizza by the slice, and patrons with an RSD Microgroove receipt get 10 percent off their tabs at The Independent Bar and Café. 9 a.m., 906 N. Florida Ave., Tampa.
Mojo Books & Records Usually boasting some of the most expansive title offerings (they order pretty much everything they can get access to, and this year in greater quantities than ever), Mojo also unveils a several-hundred-titles-large original-pressing preowned LPs collection put aside for the event. Lots of freebies (coffee, beer, goodie bags with purchase), specials (bogo’s on budget vinyl, and buy two, get one frees on all CDs and DVDs), a prize drawing for all the folks in line before the doors open, the traditional vegan bake sale for charity (to help homeless animals), and the usual high quality in-store performances. DJ Suspiria doles out RSD-fueled spins and more from morning until afternoon, and then from 4 p.m. to the store’s later-than-usual close, a full slate of genre-spanning artists hit the standing room stage: Empire Cinema, Wet Nurse, Poster, Gullwing, Rahim Samad, Jensen Serf Co, Koji, Sinai Vessel, Poultry, Egos, Drug, Eliot Mayo and Tim????. 8 a.m., 2540 E. Fowler Ave., Tampa.
Planet Retro Planet Retro blows it out in 2016, touting its biggest-ever assortment of RSD releases plus an extra boatload of use vinyl acquired just for this occasion, a sidewalk sale encompassing thousands of $1 LPs, tapes and CDs, raffles throughout the day (for tee-shirts, gift certificates, store swag and a custom PBR guitar), and a jam-packed billing of bands that play a stage set up in the nearby Urban Provisions parking lot and kick off at 11 a.m.: Moon Flag, Kevin K Band, Low Season, Gino and the Goons, Fevers, Old Vices and Jason Guy Smiley. 8 a.m., 2414 Central Ave., St. Petersburg.
Sound Exchange All three Sound Exchange stores in Tampa Bay offer RSD giveaways (totes, lithographs, buttons, music samplers, etc.), drawings with prize bags, and the expected RSD limited merchandise. Unlike the other stores, Sound Exchange claims that by late Friday night, you should be able to search its LP inventory page to see exactly what titles are in stock at the Sound Exchange store of your choice. Here’s a link; happy hunting. 10 a.m.: 14246 N. Nebraska Ave., Tampa; 805 W. Bloomingdale Ave., Brandon; 7688 49th St. N., Pinellas Park.
Interested in checking out the full list of possible titles you could be seeing at any of these shops this weekend? Click here.
This article appears in Apr 14-20, 2016.