Spring has sprung

Two things really mark the start of spring for me: there is an exponential increase in the possibility that my car and low-flying birds will collide and bird death will occur AND Record Store Day arrives. I have yet to experience any car-bird collisions as of today. Spring is still very young.

Happy Record Store Day 2014! I hope that everyone got out and supported their local record store even if it wasn't participating in the official day. You support music, your local economy, and get to enjoy a beautiful spring day. That's three wins for RSD. This is my fifth RSD (and it's the seventh RSD ever). I didn't start going to RSD because of the special releases (although I have picked up a few over the years) or the in store events. Both of those aspects of the day are awesome and I think they bring people to the event that might not other wise participate. I started going because I like to be around people who like music as much as I do. With the exception of one incident two years ago, I have never once felt judged by a fellow browser or record store clerk. Not every record store clerk is a jerk like Barry in High Fidelity:

Anyway, it's nice to see other people talking about music and shopping for music. These are people who respect liner notes and album art and collecting things. They understand that record stores special and safe. It's a way to feel connected in an otherwise disconnected universe (as I discussed last year). RSD is sort of like a con; people with a shared interest assemble in the same location to enjoy that shared interest free of the judgement of others. At RSD, I don't have to defend my choice to purchase albums and CDs. Yes, there are a lot of hipsters out there who act like they discovered vinyl and cassette tapes but I choose to ignore them and go about my business. And that business is looking for items to fill the gaps in my collection.

There were two options for the day: enjoy the records stores of Northern VA or head to Baltimore to stalk a member of Metallica. We opted to stay in the Commonwealth. Our adventures took us to the suburbs to two stores, Record & Tape Exchange and CD Cellar (Falls Church location). The day ended with tots and beer at Spacebar. This year, my brother, Scott, and my friend, Anita joined me in RSD-ing. It was a much more laid back RSD this year and I liked it a lot. While I didn't buy any vinyl today (I almost went back to get the Johnny Cash Live at San Quentin but I refrained), I did add some CDs to the collection (a little Nick Cave, some Replacements, and some things I didn't even really know I needed but I did). Scott even found something - an Iron Maiden CD that included a listing of all of the equipment the band used on while on their epic 1984-85 tour and a daily schedule. None of us have ever seen liner notes like that before.

I think what I enjoyed today that I missed last year was people watching. Neither store was particularly crowded by the time we got there. Most of the diehards were there when the stores opened so we could browse without having to elbow anyone and I never felt rushed to get out of the store. That's probably why I ended up with a DVD of Pump Up the Volume at CD Cellar. While neither store was crowded there were enough people around to make it interesting. My favorite interaction of the day was between a dad (in his late 40s) and his teenage son (about 16 or 17). They were standing next to me (I was browsing soundtracks, they were in the W-X-Y-Z section of the rock section).

Here is the exchange:

Dad: Do you really want this?
Son: I really want it.
Dad: If I buy this for you, you have to fishing.
Son: (Silence)
Dad: Is that a deal?
Son: (Pause. Sigh.) It's a deal.

I smiled after overhearing this conversation. After the son made the deal, the dad added a copy of The Who's Tommy to their pile (I couldn't see what album was tied to the fishing trip) but I hope it was as good as Tommy. There were a lot of parents out with their kids; I think this is a good thing. Get your kids into buying vinyl and used CDs. It's a good hobby to share with your them. If I have children, I hope (no, I pray) they will have good taste in music. Scratch that - I hope they will come out of the womb knowing all of the lyrics to my top five songs. 

Another successful Record Store Day. I ended my day by reorganizing my CD collection and watching the documentary Some Kind of Monster. Not too shabby.

Coming Soon to the Island: Neek Confessional and I will participate in a conversation about dating and provide some updates to horrible advice columns from the past and I will re-purpose my post about Metallica since it's not all RSD related and my brother will enjoy it. It's possible that I compare the two of us to members of the band.