{Sigh} What's Your Record Store Day Plan?

I am not about to begin to shill for RSD.  This is not what this post is about.  I am also not going to dwell too long on why I am not a huge fan of it anymore, but, I kinda have to defend myself a bit before I begin to talk about why I am still going out for it.

In a nutshell, years ago RSD was a cool idea.  It spotlighted independent music stores at the beginning of the vinyl resurgence, and drove people into the stores often for the first time.  The idea, like many good ideas obviously expanded to encompass independent artists and many different types of media.  At some point however, it became more about the money and a lot less about music.   That is my issue.  I am all for getting in line to make a purchase for something I really, really want. 15-20 years ago, it was concert tickets at Jones Beach, 10-11 years ago, it was records.  It was awesome to follow your favorite artists that a lot of people have never heard of and find out that they were releasing a new album just for you on a special day that non vinyl witch folk would even know about.  Getting caught up with other fans of music while waiting for the store to open and hearing the stories and anecdotes of what brought them here and why one store is better or worse than another and how many different record stores you were going to try to get to on that day...  All if it!  It was a great time.  Even over time as the day became less indie and more commercial it was kind of tolerable.  You were getting larger artists releasing or reissuing their work on that 1 day giving more fans reasons to come out to more stores to make the day more successful.

At some point, probably within the last 5/6 years or so, that came to a grinding halt.  Now, RSD is lost in a myriad of gimmicky releases and reissues that only a handful of stores, might carry at premium prices for the truly hardcore that need the heart shaped, liquid and or blood filled, glow in the dark album inside of a scratch and sniff jacket with a lenticular cover.  (Ok, that does sound a little dope.) It is completely unnecessary, and not at all representative of the culture of music or vinyl.  It is more of a yearly expo in how artists and stores can out do themselves and much less about what fans want and expect.  

Then you have the rules that the stores need to abide by.  A list gets made annually and from that list, people get hyped, stores order "X" amount of an album that they think their customers would want, receive half of that order and then one of the following is true;

• They are unable to sell a chunk of what they received because demand for an already over pressed album just is not there and it was too expensive anyway.
• They sell out almost immediately because of flippers*

This is not only frustrating for fans and customers, but it breads a measure of distrust from the store right up through the ranks of the RSD organizers.  So, to that I say, do not believe the hype.  This is the first year in a while where I cannot find 1 album on "The List" that I'm even a little excited about.  (Okay, Maybe the Weezer Teal album, cause, reasons....) Really though, I generally have a better time going out later in the afternoon or the following week seeing what was overlooked and maybe getting it at a discount.  That said...

I have got a whole day to kill on Saturday, and I fully plan on being in at least 1 record store at some point, mostly the truly independent stores that really are not doing too much around RSD.  Also, I am not aiming to discourage you from supporting your local record store. If you're in the Northeast region of the United States, I have a few suggestions of places you should check out if you can.

Red Scroll Records Wallingford, CT

Above all, this is consistently my most favorite record store in the Northeast by.  They had their big annual sale a week ago ahead of RSD to clear out space this year and it was, as usual, awesome.  This year I am assuming as per usual, you line up out back, go through the tent of all the RSD offerings and if none of that does it for you, they store is open for general shopping.  They have live music; giveaways and they generally make a part out of it.  Why are they getting top mention? Well, they are pretty much the ONLY record store I have seen around that somehow manages to get the European RSD exclusives in addition to the domestics.  I snagged a dope Hooverphonic UK release here on RDS a couple of years ago.  In general, you never know what you are going to find in Red Scroll, but you'll never leave without something.  Get here if you can.

Village Vinyl Brookline, MA

I love this store.  Jonathan, the owner, just within the past week moved from the smaller more cramped store in Brookline Village Massachusetts to a much roomier location at Coolidge Corner about 1/2 mile up the street.  The biggest draw here is, in addition to him being an awesome person, of all the used vinyl in the store, literally none if it is in bad shape.  The problem with a lot of record stores is conditioning.  It is my biggest knock against the local Boston favorite In Your Ear.  What's the point of having a decent selection of records if the condition is pure shit?  At Village Vinyl, most if not all the records are in plastic sleeves, the media is in VG+ and higher.  The organization is on point, it is easy to shop, it is bright and it is roomy.  I cannot wait to hit this store weekly once he gets up and running at full speed.  He'll be open on RSD and I believe he hinted at doing something cool.  Bonus about this shop, I have never seen so many sealed records in a used shop before.  (Not in the states anyway.)  If you are in Boston, you need to go here above all else.

Record Exchange Salem, MA

This place is one of the, if not the oldest record store in Massachusetts.  When you get off the train in downtown Salem and look to the hill, you can kind of see it like a beacon.  As you make the trek through downtown Salem past Harrisons Comics, up through the highway and climb just a little higher to that wooden nirvana of vinyl, you get filled with all the history the town has to offer just before you open the door to this shop.  Then you get slapped with so much more.  The wall displays alone are awe inspiring.  Almost floor to ceiling records front facing from an era where rock was king.  Some of the most rare and hard to find bits of music are just around you.  Then you start digging and flying through the racks.  Thousands, and thousands more records in all kids of conditions that you've been looking for have somehow all ended up here through the years.  As you get a stack of music that you plan on buying you strike up a conversation with the guys that work there an realize that they're only there for the same reason.  They love it and cannot picture themselves doing anything else.  You ask if they can hold that Black Sabbath Vertigo pressing of Black Sabbath, you look back and it is gone.  I love this store.  

Bull Moose Various Spots Through ME and NH

I'm not a fan for commercial chains if I can help it, but these guys somehow managed to retain their identity.  Unlike Newbury Comics, which is full on the Bull Moose dark twin as it were, Bull Moose as a company is run very much like and reminds me a lot of Tower Records.  The people that work there proves this.  They are passionate about the music, the movies the games, all of it.  Depending on which store you head into, you'll see a completely different selection of vinyl depending on where you are at great non screw you prices.  The selection is also generally always fresh.  I have never seen much the same stuff lingering in the used and new sections twice.  The biggest bonus about Bull Moose?  This is where Record Store Day began and it shows.  They still maintain the founding beliefs of what it should be.  All about the music and the support.  Get to one if you are anywhere north of Massachusetts.

Rough Trade Brooklyn, NY

Best new vinyl store in all of New York!  I cannot go back home without stopping in there at least once.  It makes me need to the original in the UK.  This place has it all from UK releases to domestic indie.  I mean, everything.  It is a living repository for all genres of music.  It is to new what Red Scroll is to used.  You'll never go in here without coming out with something.  Sure, it is a little out of the way, but where better to get turned on to something new that you cannot get from an average record store in the Unite States that isn't Amoeba?  When I head down in a couple of weeks for the WFMU Record Show, you best believe I'm hitting this place like I'm mad at it.  Right after....

Academy Records Annex Brooklyn, NY

Remember that scene in Pulp Fiction where Mia Wallace does a line of coke in the bathroom, jerks her head up and says, "I said GODDAMN!  GODDAMN, GODDMAMN!"  Yeah, that's the reaction you get when you walk into the Brooklyn location.  It’s bigger than the home location on the Lower East side, and for that you see a lot cooler stuff.  I mean, you can go into any record store and see great things on the wall that are rare and necessary for your collection, but, here, you want it all.  Most used records stores tend to be left with a lot of "filler" albums to the point where you get the feeling that it's been "picked."  Here, that just does not happen. The quality and curated availability of the vinyl here is so far above average, you almost do not need to shop anywhere else for anything ever.  It's a crime that they'll be right around the corner from the WFMU show.  I have a feeling that if anyone stops here first, they'll go broke before they get to the show.  

Woah, 2 posts in 24 hours?  I just tied my posting record for all of 2018!  Maybe I'm serious this time.  Have fun out there this weekend.



* Mother Fuck Flippers.   

They are more than 50% of the reason that RSD has become a raging joke.  Please don't buy anything from these ass-hat profiteering price-gouging dicks.  Visit /r/vinyl and try to see if anyone is willing to grab something for you if you're not in an area or not around a store that has what you're looking for this RSD. I'm sure someone there will be more than willing to grab you a copy at a reasonable price, whatever the fuck that is for RSD, and ship it to you without you having to get it inflated on eBay or something similiar.

"Damn The Man! Save The Empire!" Happy Rex Manning Day!

Damn the man! Save the empire!

Holy hell!  I honestly started off reposting last year with every intention of regular updates once again.  Clearly, I didn't uphold my end of the deal.  To be honest, life happened.  I know it's not an excuse, but, I also know that I am not exactly an internet destination spot for music and culture.  It's always been about the music and the vinyl.  It still is.  Since my last update back in June, I have increased my vinyl collection by about 1/3.  I mean, you can only work for so much.  It would be silly to believe that I wasn't out in all of my favorite record stores and attending all of the shows from Maine to Long Island over the past 10 months not collecting. The fact that I keep hitting that wonky IRStoGO app daily waiting for my tax return so I can buy what I'm considering my holy grail of records speaks volumes of my commitment.

I really wanted to update a lot.  Literally every time I bought a new record home. Then the prospect of deciding which one to listen to and write up first hit.  Then the superficial issues like lighting for pictures, the exhausting time it takes to get my draft(s) back from my friend the editor and so on.  As if that wasn't enough, and it wasn't, the sheer will to commit the time after pulling a 10-15+ plus day in a job I wasn't terribly fond of didn't leave me with a lot of creativity to write about much.  What it did leave me with was a lot of alone time to listen to all of my music.  Over the past 10 months, I had a spot where it was just me, my system, hundreds of records with a bunch of new ones in queue, in my Poang, with a dimly lit diffused purple smart bulb on and that's it.  (Ok, sometimes a drink.)

Over the past 10 months, I've picked up everything from an original Pink Floyd Dark Side of The Moon, (Sounds too fucking incredible), to a Japanese pressing of Klaus Nomi's masterpiece.  I've stumbled on ridiculously undervalued gems such as Zappa's Joe's Garage Acts 1-3, and music I've overpaid for but needed like Disintegration from the Cure.  (How have I knot owned that!?)  Now, all that and more is neatly cataloged and shelved just waiting for me to show it off to whoever is willing to sit there and listen to them or to me obsess over them.  I can't wait to talk about a lot of them right here.

At some point, I will.  This weekend may be a perfect time. It's Record Store Day Weekend!  Frankly, it doesn't mean much to me, not anymore.   My personal bias aside, it is a great day for those that appreciate the sounds of analog.  It gives me a great excuse to get out and support a local record store or two, (or 3 or 4!).  I don't need a special day though to go out and shop.  It may be fun to watch people go insane over some over the top repress of something no one asked for though.  (I'm still waiting for Cake to reissue Fashion Nugget, guys WTAF already!?)

All that said, I'm going to get back into this fully committed.  While I may not guarantee Vinyl "Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", and so on...  I will promise more entries.  It may be once a week, or once a month.  Hell in my mind I can think of at least 3 entries I can write between now and Saturday!  I really don't know how professional bloggers do it daily.  Oh, wait...  It's their job.

This is truly a site born of my hobby.  I don't get paid for it, nor do I want to.  Ok, there are ad's on this page, and I suppose that means it's monetized.  It's not.  With the amount of volume I generate, minus the ad-blockers, and the fact that people don't click on them, I don't get anything, so let's ignore that, but please tell me if they get annoying. I'm simply doing this because no one will listen to me IRL about my records or the music I like, so I'll just leave it here and perhaps someone will.  You're not getting Rolling Stone or Pitchfork quality here, but, I sincerely thank all of you who do read this.  I'm glad that someone enjoys the musings of a guy with a lot of wax on his mind.

Happy Rex Manning Day!

Word Up! New From Eric Clapton, Mari And Other News.

I had tweeted this earlier, but it's worth noting and even adding a little more to it.  Eric Clapton was profiled in the Wall Street Journal for a new single that he kinda released ahead of his 23rd studio album due out later this month.  The crazy thing about this single, Spiral, he improvised the whole damn thing.  Check it out when you can.  It's the WORD!  Obviously, I'll be buying the hell out of this album when it hits the street Friday, May 20th.

Listen to Eric Clapton's 'Spontaneous' new song 'Spiral' (exclusive) https://t.co/q1sDkqVwmq via @WSJ

—  (@WMVCulture) May 3, 2016

In other news, I just wanted to post another apology for the lack of updates.  Simply put, I've been really preoccupied with everything except enjoying my free time.  You should know however, that what little free time I do have, I've been spending it inside of a bunch of record stores.  Since my RJD2 post back on April 9th, I've managed to increase my vinyl collection by about 33%.  I bought a new Pioneer turntable from the awesome folks at In Your Ear Records.  I acquired new speakers from a good buddy and augmented them this past weekend.  Why I have a 7.1 surround sound system in a room that's roughly 150/sq is anybody's guess, but damn.  It's fantastic!   Try listening to Tame Impala's Currents on a 7.1 surround system and tell me that doesn't make you hot.  All of that has contributed to me settling into a newer space and getting more comfortable with my surroundings which are things I haven't been able to do since the holidays.  

Over the next few weeks up through late June:

• I have a lot coming up and going on.  I'll be traveling in, around, through, and back and fourth about CT for a while, so look out, I'm going to Red Scroll Records to do some damage!  I'll also be in and out of Exile On Main Street to soak up something new.  
• My birthday is coming up and there's no better way to celebrate than buying myself that new Clapton record.  
• I have a few concerts in June down in NYC and my long awaited vacation whereupon I'll definitely get some writing going on. 

All that said, this time last year it looked as if I would be blowing through all of the vinyl that I owned posting once a week, now, if I actually were to stop collecting, I could run this blog weekly for another 2 years and you'll never see the same record twice!  


Of course, I missed a lot by not posting, and that's not because I couldn't, it's because I made a conscious decision not to.  I purposefully didn't post for Record Store day because the original post that I made, I did so out of anger.  I actually condemned RSD because of its effects on music, record stores, indie artists, and the lack of quality releases.  I still have a draft of it, and perhaps I'll revisit it, until then I choose to stay positive.  Besides, I did end up supporting a few local record stores, and that's what's really important.

I also didn't post regarding the death of Prince mainly because what I had written devolved into an angry post about vinyl flippers and how they were seizing the moment and profiting off of the genius that was Prince.  Frankly, owning 2 of the greatest albums that he ever made, (IMHO), knowing that I'll never sell them nor be tempted to makes me happy.  I think that there are quite a few people out there that just don't give a fuck about music and too many fucks about money to appreciate music and vinyl.  So to that end, when I clean up that post, if I clean up that post,  and make it 98% about the artist and his music, I'll post it.  

I also had 2 other posts that I had started and subsequently shelved because I wasn't happy with the pictures that I took!  Needless to say now that I have a better sound system in place, with really bad lighting, I'll do a little more work and get those posts in the cannon over the next few weeks.

Finally, I do need to answer one of the comments that I had received over the past few months.  Someone had messaged me glowing over the success of my RJD2 post.  Which again, thank you all for the love.  It was by far the biggest post in this blog's history.  The indictment was that I spend too much time focusing on bands that nobody's heard of hence why those other posts don't get anywhere near the views and reactions that this one did.  Ouch.

In response, that's kinda the point.  I would get on my own nerves if I wrote about music that everybody's heard on the radio or a passing car.  There's a trove of outstanding music out there that many have never heard of.  it just happens to sound great on vinyl, and that's why I'm here.  The whole point of what I'm doing is in celebration vinyl culture.  Which in itself is an indie hobby.  If I didn't love indie music and bands that weren't widely known, I wouldn't be doing this.  So to all the indie groups, and those following me on Twitter, play on !  Let me know about your vinyl drops and I'll keep spinning.  That said, when you get some time, check out Mari who's released a flurry of music and remixes recently.  If you are a fan of Mozez, and by extension Zero 7, and yes, even Sia, you may enjoy Mari immensely. 

Mari - Free

Lastly, this post unofficially begins the countdown to #100.  The 100th post needs to be something special while I have an idea or two in the works, you just need to know that it'll be something kinda cool.  Like the 50th post, it'll also usher in a format change.  I'll be jumping to Wordpress and refreshing things a bit.  That project begins today.

That's all for now.  I'll be back Wednesday, where I'm going to get my immolation on.

Sublime - Jah Won't Pay The Bills - 2016 (1991) RSD2016

The year was 1991, I was in junior high, gas was cheap, and music subcultures were trying giving rise to all kinds of new heights and identities.    The 80's ended on a really high note compared to the way it soared throughout that decade.  A lot of that had to do with the strength of film during that decade transition, and to an even larger degree subculture.  With pop music beginning to become annoying having been consumed by R&B and  "Boy Bands", hip-hop becoming regional, and rock bands becoming less hair and more power ballading, music in the 90's was set up to become really strange.  All the while there was an awful lot of music that had been considered underground or alternative to whatever was popular.  That was starting to take shape amidst the changes.  One of these "underground" genres, Ska, really came into its own with some awesome hero's and gained astronomic popularity with a set of fans that still wanted their music happy, but not necessarily defined.

Enter Sublime.  Sublime in 1991 certainly wasn't new, they just release a demo tape that launched them into a wider audience.  From their inception in 1988, they were relegated to playing small venues and clubs like a lot of local indie bands.  At some point in 1990, they were fortunate enough to be invited to literally break into a recording studio, record a collection of songs overnight and create one of the most popular demo tapes in the history of music that night.

Jah Won't Pay The Bills, the cassette, was released, or should I say, sold, from the trunk of their car for a while.  It's that kind of self-promotion that gained them some real popularity in southern California and enough to parlay them onto the national stage as leaders of the "Third Wave" of Ska music.  The Third Wave of Ska meaning that Ska wasn't even new.  Jamacia has been pumping out Ska since the 1950's.

DJ's

Wait.  What?  "I though Jamacia had been known for its Reggae and that Ska was an American  copy of that."  Nope.  However if it wasn't for that western influence that America was known for around WWII, there's an above average chance that Ska wouldn't have become what it did.  Simply put, Ska is essentially Reggae music with Blues/Rock influences.  Whereas true Reggae is more Jazz/Blues and less dancehall.  Ska has also changed and evolved over term adding new era-specific ingredients to its sound as the music shifted through the years.  

First Wave Ska, which was defined by Bob Marley & The Wailers and the Skatalites had heavy influences from the 1960's America.  Second Wave Ska was made popular by bands like The Specials and Beshara and had all of the influence from the late 60's with some more Rocksteady vibe built in.  It wasn't until the 1980's when The Third Wave Ska groups like Sublime and No Doubt infused it with Dub and heavy Calypso influences, that it became hugely popular as a genre again.  Sublime's demo album, really showcased these qualities.

Let's Go Get Stoned

As a group, Sublime was one of the early underground success stories of the 90's.  They were emerging during an era that was so crowded with subculture music it literally seemed as if the popular thing was to be unpopular.  1991 gave us everything from Nirvana's Nevermind and Pearl Jam's Ten to Massive Attacks Blue Lines and Prince's Diamonds & Pearls. That's pretty wide ranging.  Who would have thunk that by this time the following year Sublime would be so popular that their official first release, 40oz To Freedom, would go down in history as one of the biggest Reggae/Ska albums of all time?  It all started with this simple demo tape, illegally recorded, and sold from the trunk of a car in Long Beach California.

Badfish

For the first time ever, Jah Won't Pay The Bills was released on vinyl this past Record Store Day,  (A bright spot on an otherwise dreary promotion), and it sounds as good as I remember it back with I was in junior high.  Hell, it sounds a little bit better.  You really appreciate just how strong a singer that Bradley Nowell was.  You can hear how true Sublime was to the sound of Ska and years later you really get the message that they were sending through their music.  

If you were lucky enough to get one of the 420 of these albums that were pressed on green vinyl, you'll have to take a picture for me.  I really wanted one of those.  I am really fortunate enough to own this again in any variation though.  Sometimes I miss my tape collection.  If you were ever into real Ska or amped Reggae, you need to own this one.  Check it out anywhere tapes are sold, or if you can, venture into you local record store and grab this RSD release.  It's more than worth the $20 you'll spend.  

If you really try hard, you might make out a tip-off about the next vinyl pick somewhere in this post.  Hint, it's kinda obvious.

Honest/ly: Steely Dan - Black Friday - 1975

Sure, the song is technically about the financial Black Friday of  September 24th 1869.  You know the one, where 2 ass-hat gold prospectors decided to corner the market's gold supply after the civil war.  They bought and subsequently raised the value of gold about 30% above it's normal values simply by hoarding it.  So, then President Grant said, fine.  I'll just release the governments supply of gold to normalize the market, thus devaluing it completely and of course, cause economics, the market crashed.  Fast forward 106 years later, Steely Dan wrote a song about it!  It was the lead single on their 4th album, Katy Lied, an album which despite having only 2 official singles on an album of 10 songs, went gold.  Like a lot of their albums.  More on them later but, Katy Lied is 1 of 2 Steely Dan albums I don't own.  I'll do a proper post on them later.  Think of it as my own little countdown to ecstasy...

More on that much later.  Let's talk about the matter at hand.  I'm still in the process of setting up the rig here in the new place.  As I said in the last post however, I haven't stopped collecting new stuff to spin when that day comes.  To that end, Record Store Day meets Black Friday for some pretty big exclusive releases.  It's the last time for exclusivity till the major Record Store day this April.  If you live close to an awesome store, hopefully one of the few that I've even highlighted here, please do your self a favor and get into a local record shop for some of this.  Check out all of the releases here, then please check out some local stores.

Personally, I'm shouting out that dope as all fuck Beck single from earlier this year.  I've also got to get my hands on the Garbage 20th anniversary album, and while we're in the 90's, Trent Reznor is releasing Halo I-IV, oh and for good measure The Pharcyde has the single they're known for due out.  So when I'm not catering to the masses tomorrow, I'll be sure to hit up a record store or two, cause at the end of the day, it's all about the vinyl.