Record Store Day!

It's 2009 and the exciting process of going into an independent record store to buy that anxiously-awaited new album or a rare import by your favorite artist has somewhat become a thing of the past. I'm incredibly saddened by this. I lived for going to midnight release sales, getting the album on the day of! I loved rummaging through boxes for promo posters and stickers. Buying an album, CD-single, book, or the latest issue of Q, NME, MOJO or the now-defunct Select TOTALLY MADE MY DAY! Obsessively reading the lyrics and the liner notes of said album, I never tired of it. At least we still have concerts. But still, the beauty of purchasing an album you're so incredibly excited about, getting it home and discovering it for the first time, it's an amazing feeling. Or maybe I'm just a dork?

This Saturday (04.18), over 1,000 independently owned record stores across the country (and a slew of shops across the globe) will band together for the second annual Record Store Day. There will be special and exclusive CD and vinyl releases (Radiohead, Dandy Warhols, Bruce Springsteen, Sonic Youth, Iron&Wine ... etc.), in-store artist appearances and other rawk tomfoolery, recognizing the impact of indie music retail. Last year, Metallica got things started at the first-ever Record Store Day at Rasputin Music in San Francisco. And from now on, Record Store Day will be celebrated on the third Saturday every April. WOO HOO!

Artists such as Bob Mould, Franz Ferdinand, Glasvegas, The Gaslight Anthem, The Kills, and Manchester Orchestra are just a few of the hundreds of bands participating in in-store signings and performances.

So check out the Record Store Day website to see what stores in your area are participating in this incredibly awesome event. The Sultan and I will be hitting Generation Records, Other Music and more in the NYC.

I want to give a shout out to my favorite record store on the planet, Flat Black and Circular in East Lansing, Mich., who will be rockin' RSD with Ra Ra Riot.

Record Store Day is organized by the Music Monitor Network, the Coalition of Independent Music Stores (CIMS), Alliance of Independent Media Stores (AIMS) and Newbury and sponsored this year by NARM (National Association of Recording Merchandisers)

He's Got Mojo

I haven't bought MOJO in ages ... well, I haven't bought any of those British music mags in a long, long time. I used to worship Q, Vox, and Select, and NME and Melody Maker when they were still in newspaper format. Anyhow, MOJO still hammers out a slick issue now and then and its latest is a good example: Nick Cave dons the March 2009 cover and here, the original Bad Seed reflects upon his three decades in rock in a 15-page spread.

"I'm dressed up -- cufflinks and all -- for your photo session, but I don't wear a suit in a dandyish way. I wear it as a worker. Someone who prepares himself for the job. It's always been like that."

See? Such class.

There's also a killer interview with Brian Eno and another piece with Johnny Marr, but Paul Trynka's reflective piece on Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton is really stellar -- Iggy Pop, J Mascis and James Williamson pay tribute.. Asheton passed away last month at the age of 60. He lived in my old neighborhood on the west side of Ann Arbor ... a cool as hell musician, but just a regular guy. Still sad about this one. RIP Ron Asheton.