Back in April of 2008 a day dedicated to celebrating vinyl records and the record stores that carried them officially began. This Saturday, April 16th, Record Store Day will be taking place for it’s 9th year, and it’s still going strong having grown to include participating stores on every continent except Antarctica according to the official Record Store Day website. The original idea came from a group of record store owners and employees back in 2007 as a way to celebrate the unique record store culture and bring awareness to the nearly 1400 independently owned record stores across the United States. The event has grown wildly since its conception and has attracted the attention of music greats such as Jack White, Dave Grohl, and this year Metallica to pass around the title of “Record Store Day Ambassador” while many other artists get in on the action by participating in other local store events. In addition to having exciting limited edition and exclusive releases and box sets, the full list of which can be found here, many of Minnesota’s own unique record stores are hosting some awesome all day events on Saturday. To further encourage you to get out and experience Record Store Day for yourself, we’ve put together a list of what will be going on around the Minneapolis area.
Agharta Records
2512 University Ave W Saint Paul, MN
Agharta will be opening its doors at 9 AM on Saturday and for the early birds they’ll be providing some delicious treats from A Baker’s Wife. They’ll also have blue grass band, Depot Creek, performing at 11 AM and feature multiple DJs through out the entire day. Store owner, Dylan Adams, says he hopes “every single person goes to a record store on Saturday. That it’s THE thing to do.” Whether it’s 80’s music, R&B, Metal, or Country, Agharta records is sure to have something that fits your musical tastes. They’ve recently doubled their space and it’s one of Dylan’s goals for anyone that comes into the store with any budget to be able to find something unique and cool.
Staff Pick – Favorite Record: Egyptian Lover 4 LP Box Set because “it’s great funk music from the 80’s.”
Hymie’s Vintage Records
3820 E Lake St Minneapolis, MN
Hymie’s is celebrating Record Store Day in a big way! They close down 39th Avenue, the street next to their store, put a stage in the street, and throw a block party! One of the store owners, Dave Hoenack, says “this is the sixth year and for the last two years we’ve collaborated with the restaurant across the street, Peppers & Fries, which has been awesome. People can listen to live music they can do food and drinks and have a fun time.” The event kicks off at 11 AM with Charlie Parr opening the show and other big name artists taking the stage through out the day (full line up here). Besides the live music, Hymie’s is also putting out their own special release for Record Store Day, Live At Hymie’s which is, “an album plus a DVD of local artists and performances on the stage in the shop.” Whether you’re a live music fan, a vinyl record fan, or a fan of supporting the local community, Hymie’s has it all for their Record Store Day celebration.
Staff Pick – Favorite Record: Running Jumping Standing Still – Spider John Koerner and Willie Murphy because “it’s a Minnesota masterpiece. I don’t think any other city could have created characters like John and Willie.”
Electric Fetus
2000 4th Ave S Minneapolis, MN
Live music, food trucks, a special area for kid’s AND two locations to choose from is what you’ll find at the Electric Fetus for Record Store Day. Whether you check out the Minneapolis or Duluth location you’ll be sure to have a great time. They will also be having hourly giveways, free goodie bags, and a limited edition Electric Fetus Record Store Day poster designed by Josh Krohn as a free gift with $50 purchase while supplies last. For full details on the live music schedule as well as a list of which Record Store Day Exclusives they have received check out their homepage.
Treehouse Records
2557 Lyndale Ave S Minneapolis MN
Treehouse is keeping their plans for record store day a surprise. They will have a huge selection of used records for consumers to peruse and a few surprises up their sleeves. You’ll just have to stop in to see what those surprises are.
Staff Pick – Favorite Record: Astral Weeks – Van Morrison “is simply the most holy and biblically profound rock LP of all time” says Mark Trehus.
Flashlight Vinyl
1519 Central Ave NE Minneapolis MN
Flashlight Vinyl is turning Record Store Day into Record Store Weekend! Their store is staying open for 36 hours straight starting at 8 AM on Saturday with free Bogart’s Donuts and coffee for the early birds. Plus a 20% discount on all used vinyl for everyone. They’ll also be having in-store performances starting at 2 PM on Saturday and continuing in to Sunday.
Staff Pick – Favorite Record: 12 Songs – Randy Newman “I play this record once a week” says Flashlight Vinyl owner Raoul Benavides. “It’s an announcement of the full emergence of an innovator. Randy Newman’s songwriting is witty, sensual and timeless.”
As you can see from this brief list of Minnesota record stores, there are plenty of choices for you to get out and support local stores and music this Saturday for Record Store Day. If you do make it out to explore let us know which stores you visited and what great finds you stumbled upon while browsing their selections. Happy Record Store Day!
Written by Jackie Ebnet for MinnesotaCountry.com.