Keep Calm Roundtable: Record Store Day 2014 Discussion

Here at Keep Calm and Carry On, we've all taken a more elevated interest in collecting, listening to, and learning more about the apparent resurgence of vinyl records, both within the scene we cover and on a broader scale throughout today’s music landscape. The intimacy of setting up your speakers, player, and actually listening through an entire album can be something we grow too busy or too lazy to do, but when you make the type of investment collectors new and old are making, it can become a very fulfilling and ever-evolving hobby. This resurgence of vinyl has been anchored in the culture of the scene by an event that takes place once a year at independent record stores around the country.

We are, of course, talking about Record Store Day. Held on the third Saturday of April (which is coming soon!), Record Store Day began in 2007 as a way to support independent music stores, which have taken significant blow after significant blow after the advent of illegal downloads sent the music sales business back to  square one. This event is highlighted by artists and record labels putting out exclusive releases (for vinyl and CD collectors alike), and only selling them through a network of independent stores. This celebration has only gained momentum in the recent years, and that upward trajectory seems poised to continue long into the future, thanks to the continued resurgence of vinyl as a way to consume and listen to music. (If you’d like to learn more about record store day, follow this link.)

With artists like Bayside, Chiodos, Circa Survive, and many others releasing rare collectible vinyl for this year’s event, and due to the group’s heightened interest and awareness of the festivities, Keep Calm is celebrating this year’s Record Store Day by holding our second-ever roundtable to highlight what we’re looking for, and other releases that you should definitely check out!

Donald Wagenblast: Hello, Craig and Madison! Spring has finally sprung, and in the blink of an eye, we’re mere days away from Record Store Day. It’s time to get stoked. There’s a ton of great releases people should be looking for at this year’s RSD (and a full list of releases can be found here), but in terms of the music we typically cover for the show, what release are you hunting for the hardest on Saturday?

Craig Ismaili: I think it’s fair to say the most obvious answer to this question is the Sunny Day Real Estate/Circa Survive split 7”. The split will contain the first new recording from the beloved Sunny Day Real Estate in 14 years (since The Rising Tide in 2000). The song, called “Lipton Witch,” is definitely the track that has me most intrigued this year. Also underrated in all of this is that we are also getting a new, exclusive Circa Survive track on the split as well- a track that could be a precursor of things to come when Circa releases their new album later in 2014.

Madison Ouellette: I completely agree with Craig. The Sunny Day Real Estate/ Circa Survive split 7” is definitely my most anticipated Record Store Day release.  I mean, come on, Sunny Day and Circa? You can’t beat it. It’s one of the coolest releases we are going to have this year.

Donald: I want to make this a clean sweep for the Sunny Day/Circa split, but in the spirit of highlighting more releases, I’m going to go with Bayside’s Time Has Come 7”. Featuring one of the best tracks (and a personal favorite of mine) from their new full-length CULT and a new track called “Indiana,” Bayside continue to have a very productive 2014, and any time I can get some new Bayside tunes, I’m all about it.

Craig: Each year Record Store Day releases put nearly as much work into the packaging and pressing creativity as they do on the records themselves. This is part of the effort to make RSD an exciting experience for all collectors, not just hardcore vinyl purists. With that said, what is your favorite packaging or pressing of this year’s Record Store Day?

Donald: There are so many picture discs being released for Record Store Day, but the one that I like the most is from a band that I’ve fallen in love with over these past few months: Bastille. They’re releasing an 10” focused around their successful mash-up/cover “Of the Night,” which will feature the track itself (which didn’t end up on Bad Blood or the special edition) and a few remixes. I’m not sure why, but I have a soft spot in my collection for picture discs, so I’ll be making every effort to pick this one up.

Craig: I personally would have to give this one to Paramore and their Ain’t It Fun single. Besides being one of the best songs of last year, it also has a inventive and fitting pressing here as well. It is a 7” single that is cut in such a way to make it look like a 12” record that has been snapped in half. This is of course a call-back to the music video for the track in which the band tries to beat the records for most vinyl records broken in a minute. It’s a jarring looking record, but kudos to the band for distinguishing themselves with this pressing.

Craig: Some of my favorite pieces in my vinyl collection are the under-the-radar, “I’m surprised you have this” records that I have? What’s one underrated release that you think people may be surprised to find out you’re targeting?

Donald: Slipknot have been one of the most influential rock bands of our lifetime, and they’re pressing their monster album Vol. 3: The Subliminal Verses. I've always been a huge headbang enthusiast (as we all are), so if I miss out on a few of the other releases we've mentioned, I’ll be turning my attention to this album from metal’s masked men, and blasting “Before I Forget” until the foundation of my house crumbles.

Craig: I’m a little ashamed to say this, but if I saw Linkin Park/Jay Z’s Collision Course in the store as I was browsing through RSD releases, I would consider buying it. That record was a really big record for me back when it came out (10 years ago now!) and I think it would be a cool piece to own; as far as I know, it’s never been pressed before.

Craig: To close this out, I guess we’ll end with this: obviously, one of the highlights of Record Store Day is supporting your local record store and helping to keep independent music thriving, but I ask you guys, what’s your favorite thing about Record Store Day?

Donald: This is a really tough question for me to answer, considering that this will be the first time I've ever gone shopping for records on Record Store Day. For now, I’m kind of equating it to my experience shopping on Black Friday: there’s going to be a lot of people, we’re all going to be looking for the same stuff, and there’s going to be a huge “chaos factor” at first. And that’s kind of why I’m so intrigued by it. It’s one thing to be looking for cheap electronics or the latest and greatest action figure, but we’re all going to be looking for music. Think about that for a second. Record Store Day has become this really interesting day where people actually get excited about buying music again. I know there have been a few reports here and there questioning the legitimacy of the event, and where the money really goes, and all that, but I’d rather just appreciate the sentiment and the intention of it all. We’re at a point  where people are excited about buying music again, and that’s something that hasn't really been happening since the birth of Napster and all of these other download sites. So I guess I’d have to say is that my favorite thing about Record Store Day is the whole experience. I’m really excited to get out and see it for myself this year.

Craig: This will be my fourth Record Store Day since I started collecting vinyl (my third where I actually was able to attend.) My favorite thing about Record Store Day is the connections fostered, not just between the consumer and the music they consume, but between consumers-the people who have made Record Store Day into the gigantic, all-encompassing monster of industry that it is. Last year, my mother and I (one of my other favorite things about Record Store Day is that I get to spend the day with her going from record store to record store) went down to Asbury Park to some of the locals stores there, and we struck up a conversation with some of the other people waiting in line with us. It’s that simple display of love for music that brings people together and has allowed Record Store Day to become the biggest day all year for independent record stores (according to some estimates, bigger than the entire week before Christmas combined). It’s something that I hope continues into the future for many more years, regardless of whether some of the ridiculous “cash grab” reissues, and unnecessary double LPs carry into the next few years with it. It’s that spirit of finding a connection to music and a connection to other music listeners that will keep Record Store Day thriving.

Keep Calm would like to extend its warmest wishes to everyone going out to their local record store on Saturday, but reminds you to please do so responsibly. We're all doing this for the same reason (to support the music we love), so don't get too caught up in a competitive mindset about it. Let's have some fun. Happy hunting, everyone!