Record Store Day 2010

Next month marks April Fool’s Day, Easter, Earth Day, Take Our Daughters & Sons To Work Day, Administrative Professional’s Day, and the most important holiday of all – Record Store Day.

Celebrating Record Store Day is simple. You don’t have to purchase cheesy cards or overpriced flowers, you simply have to go out and support your local independently owned record store. In return, musicians are sharing their love for fans, music and record store supporters with special Record Store Day performances and vinyl and CD releases across the U.S. and in various countries around the globe.

This year, Record Store Day takes place April 17. The holiday was founded in 2007 and launched the following year. The annual event now takes place the third Saturday of April.

Photo: Rod Tanaka

Fans looking to get their hands on a physical copy of the new tunes Billy Corgan and co. have been posting online will have the chance to preorder the Smashing Pumpkins’ new, limited edition EP, Teargarden by Kaleidyscope Vol.1: Songs For A Sailor, on April 17. Customers that pre-order the EP will receive a collector’s edition Smashing Pumpkins black light poster, while supplies last. The pre-order is exclusive to independent record stores.

The collectors EP will be packaged in a collector’s silk-screened wooden box and include a 4-song CD, a vinyl 7” and a hand-carved obelisk. The package is set for release May 25.

The first 250 fans that pre-order the EP on April 17 from Amoeba Records in Los Angeles will receive the black light poster and also get a wristband to see an exclusive performance from the rock band later that day.

“I used to work in an indie record shop so I’ll always have a soft spot for the places where I still go to find the most vital music, whether new or still hidden,” Corgan said.

Photo: Andy Martin
Fox Theatre, Boulder, Colo.

Paolo Nutini is celebrating Record Store Day by releasing a physical limited edition of his EP Paolo Nutini – Recorded Live At Preservation Hall April 17. The four-track EP, which includes tunes from the Scottish singer/songwriter’s 2009 sophomore album, Sunny Side Up, was released digitally March 2.

EMI Music is joining in on the fun by releasing limited edition John Lennon and Sex Pistols vinyl packages on April 17. John Lennon Singles Bag and Sex Pistols: The Great Rock ‘N’ Roll Swindle will be sold exclusively at participating independent music retailers across the U.S.

The Lennon release includes three 45 RPM vinyl singles with replicated original artwork as well as a 24” X 36” poster and three postcards. The Sex Pistols release features a 24-track 180g double LP.

Photo: John Davisson
Ultra Music Festival, Miami, Fla.

Infected Mushroom is releasing the Killing Time Remix EP, a 5-song exclusive import from the electronica band’s native Israel, at numerous independent record stores April 17. The EP features brand new versions of the track “Killing Time” from the band’s latest album, 2009’s Legend Of The Black Shawarma.

For a full list of artists and record stores participating in this year’s edition of Record Store Day, click here for the event’s Web site.

Click here to read quotes from artists describing what local record stores mean to them.