We had great fun with rock Viking
metal band Viking Galaxy who launched their album First Contact at a packed out
Independent Record store day at Love Music Record shop Glasgow. Indie bands performing were -Young Aviators, Viking
galaxy, French Wives, Fake Major, Wooden Box, Three Blind Wolves, Washington
Irvine, Glasvagas,
‘Record Store Day’ was started in the States in 2007 by record store employee Chris Brown as a backlash to the cheap and low quality sound sent out over the internet. The compression of MP3s only carry percent of the music. Online is a good means of discovery these days but – as with those hardback books - the hard copy vinyl or CD has that something collectable and to treasure. They also offer the artist’s artwork, lyrics and more. Some of us can remember the booths with the headsets in the record shops in town where we could check out new albums. The joy of discovering new music.
This yearly event celebrated physical records, counter-culture, grassroots labels and local community. The record shops offered special limited editions and exclusives. This year's Scottish Record Store Day highlights included vinyl, tapes and treats from Orange Juice, Biffy Clyro, King Creosote, Admiral Fallow, Adam Stafford, Randolph's Leap, Frightened Rabbit, Mogwai/Aidan Moffat and Bill Wells, The Twilight Sad and more.
Scottish Independent Record Store Day
Up North - Groucho's in Dundee (Nethergate) had performances from Silent Nothing, Colour Coded and General Judgement. Inverness's fab Imperial (Academy Street) from Sara Bills and the Hasbeens and Willie and Tabs Macaskill. Stirling, Europa Music (Friars Street) houses Scotland's largest vinyl collection and they hosted live in-store appearances including local indie tearaways FRANK and Miniature Dinosaurs along with James Grant of Love and Money.
GLASGOW. Love Music (Dundas Street, Glasgow) had live sets from Glasvegas, Woodenbox, French Wives, Three Blind Wolves, Washington Irving, Fake Major, Viking Galaxy and Young Aviators, and also a tea stall, classic rock cake and a pinball AC/DC pinball machine. Monorail (King's Court, Glasgow) hosted Subway Sect's punk renegade Vic Godard with Davey Henderson's art-pop firebrands The Sexual Objects. Other live highlights include Ela Orleans and alt-rock radicals World Peace.
Oxfam Music (Byres Road, Glasgow) held a Record Store Day party helmed by pop collective TYCI. Rubadub (Howard Street, Glasgow) stocked danceable exclusives and deals on vinyl, while guest DJs and live acts included electronic diviner Dam Mantle, Trevino and Silk Cut.
EDINBURGH. Underground Solu'shn (Cockburn Street, Edinburgh), had dance and electronic action with a day-long vinyl DJ sets from Fryer, House of Traps, Colvin Cruikshank, Fudge Fingas, G-Mac and EH1. Folk wonderland Coda (The Mound) held live in-stores from songstress Karine Polwart and Jenna Reid, Elvis Shakespeare (Leith Walk) welcomed Saint Max and the Fanatics and Oi Polloi, and Avalanche (Grassmarket) had in-stores from Glasvegas and Admiral Fallow. The Bow Bar (West Bow, Edinburgh) had special cask ale, Sid 'n' Nancy IPA.
VoxBox Music and Last Word Saloon (St Stephen Street, Edinburgh) celebrated Auld Reekie's thriving grassroots community and teamed up with local labels Gerry Loves Records and Song, By Toad that featured Magic Eye, Mike Heron Band, Rob St John, Adam Stafford and Honeyblood, and Fence Records alt-pop Kid Canaveral (aka Kid Canaverowl).
There was also Song By Toad's inspired Beer vs Records – ‘Why do we resent paying £12 for a record, when we'll happily fork that out for a round of drinks?’
Support your local artists and record shops/ We all pay far too much to the giant Apple Empire, who give nothing back to the artists!