• News

• All

Apr 29, 2020 By Christopher Roberts Record Store Day

In March Record Store Day was postponed from April 18 to June 20 due to COVID-19. But as the pandemic seems like it will be an ongoing concern this summer, the annual event has shifted yet again, but this time to three different dates. The releases will be spread out to August 29, September 26, and October 24. A revised list of Record Store Day releases, including which of the three dates each album will drop, will come out on June 1. It is promised that all the albums announced in March will still come out one of the three dates.

Record Store Day had this to say about the change in an Instagram post:

“2020 is different. So what we’re doing this year is going to be different too. No one knows what kind of party we’ll all be in the mood for, or able to hold safely, at any time this year, in any part of the world. So we’re focusing this year not on the party aspect of Record Store Day, but on getting the great releases on the RSD 2020 List into your local record store, and then into your collection.”

A press release announcing the change also had this to say:

“Prior events have been as much about the gatherings, parties, concerts and ‘group hang’ element of a celebration as the special releases, but in this unprecedented global situation, the focus of these RSD Drops dates is on bringing revenue to the stores, as well as to the artists, labels, distribution and every other business behind the scenes making record stores work.

“The good news for customers and fans of record stores is that this financial relief comes in the form of exciting exclusive releases. Organizers are working with artists, labels and distribution companies to determine the new release schedule and make sure that each RSD Drop date has an exciting mix of artists and genres.”

As with every year, the basic idea is to get music fans out to their local independent record store to buy a bunch of exclusive limited edition releases before they end up on eBay. They include reissues that haven’t been on vinyl for years (or ever before), as well as brand new releases.

Some of the highlights of this year’s Record Store Day offerings include releases from David Bowie, Beck, Suede (a reissue of their debut), Air (The Virgin Suicides), Mac DeMarco, Tegan and Sara, Iggy Pop, The Cure, Charli XCX, Billie Eilish (Live at Third Man Records), Philip Glass, Galaxie 500, Glass Animals, Miles Davis, New Order (a John Peel session from 1982), Pale Saints, the soundtrack to The X-Files, Surfer Blood, Gorillaz, and much more, including the one you’ve been waiting for…the soundtrack to Batman & Robin.

Check out the extensive full list of releases here.

www.recordstoreday.com

Support Under the Radar on Patreon.