Today (April 19th) is Record Store Day – the annual celebration of those independent record outlets where many of us life-long audiophiles gather when the work-day ends. Long before I moved to Toronto, I would daydream about how great their record stores are. The selection and size of their downtown HMV and Sunrise were lifetimes better than the suburban outlets of the same name that I had been accustomed to. Thankfully, by the time I’d moved here I’d discovered far better places to find my music; independent retailers who hire employees who know what they’re talking about, play great new music, and pride themselves on earning loyal customers. Soundscapes, Newbury Comics (in New England), and Sonic Boom are each fantastic places to seek out new records and come across people who somehow make you feel normal. The idea of walking into a sterile HMV full of cheap Aerosmith CDs and overpriced indie CDs while hearing the latest Big Shiny Tunes mix blaring over the speakers is no longer something I consider to be expected.
These homes away from home are more important than ever now, and for that reason – matched with the fact that I’d somehow never heard of Record Store Day before yesterday – SCQ has prepared a quick selection of items you can only hope to find in the small, dusty confines of your favourite record shoppe. Today’s going to be a beautiful day; take advantage of it and visit your local music community.
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