Record Store Day
A brief break from the musical content to plug something that is certainly near and dear to our hearts: tomorrow, Saturday April 19th is Record Store Day (formerly defined in these parts as “every Tuesday”).
It’s no secret that the record store is an endangered species. You don’t need a blog to tell you that fewer and fewer people are buying actual LP’s and compact discs. MP3’s have their good and bad qualities, but there are still those of us who remain happily stuck in the middle ages. Our computers will never replace our stereos and those digital files will never take the place of a beautiful slab of vinyl. I’m veering into soapbox territory here, so maybe I should stop.
At any rate, should you wish to participate in this special event and you live in the DC area, listed below are some of the fine establishments, all locally owned, that deserve and appreciate your custom.
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The following stores comprise what I affectionately call “The Circuit”; they are all easily accessible from each other by foot and each offer their own unique reasons for visitng. For vinyl lovers, nothing beats a lazy Saturday afternoon stroll/pillage through The Circuit.
Som Records :: www.somrecordsdc.com
1843 14th Street, NW, WDC
Red Onion Records & Books:: www.redonionrecordsandbooks.com
1901 18th Street, NW, WDC
(10% discount on sales this Saturday)
Crooked Beat :: www.crookedbeat.com
2318 18th Street, NW, WDC
(free grab bags for the first 50 paying customers; one grab bag will contain a $20 gift certificate)
Smash! :: www.smashrecords.com
2314 18th Street, NW, WDC
(10% off all music sales this Saturday)
DJ Hut :: www.djhut.com
2010 P Street, NW, WDC
(10% of all vinyl & cd’s and a raffle to win a Numark portable turntable)
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Vinyl freaks looking for treasures that are off the beaten path are advised to find their way to the following:
Orpheus Records :: www.orpheusrecords.com
3173 Wilson Blvd, Arlington, VA
(currently in the midst of a going-out-of-business sale, with deep discounts of up to 50% )
Joe’s Record Paradise :: http://www.joesrecordparadise.com
1300 East Gude Drive, Rockville, MD
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Still buying cd’s? Me too. You don’t have to give your dollars to Best Buy, Barnes and Noble or Borders. The following stores all continue to offer great selections:
Melody Records :: http://www.melodyrecords.com
1623 Connecticut Ave, NW, WDC
Olssons Books & Records :: www.olssons.com
1307 19th Street, NW, WDC
(free swag and live performances from Vandaveer, These United States and Revival)
CD Cellar :: www.cdcellar.net
709 B-West Broad Street, Falls Church, VA
(new Arlington location coming soon!)
CD Warehouse:: www.myspace.com/thinkinground
3001 M Street, NW, WDC
(new Arlington location coming soon!)
April 18th, 2008 at 10:24 am
woo! record store day! you know where I’ll be!
April 18th, 2008 at 10:28 am
Yeah, and I wish I could be there with you! I read David Berman is going to be performing. Should be cool.
I have some fun all day plans tomorrow that *might* keep me out of my favorite stores. Kinda stinks, but I’m hoping to get in a record purchase or two before the day is over.
April 20th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
[...] until very late in the day. Because of this, I wasn’t able to complete a full trip around “The Circuit” like I had hoped, but I was still able to drop into two or three of my favorite shops and perform a [...]