Record Store Day plans

Record Store Day lands on Saturday, April 18, with stores in Nashville, London and Phoenix planning city-by-city release drops, giveaways and live events. (recordstoreday.com) The official Record Store Day site says this year’s special titles will be released only through participating record stores on April 18, and its store finder says the event now spans nearly 1,400 independently owned stores in the United States plus thousands more internationally. (recordstoreday.com 1) (recordstoreday.com 2) In Nashville, the local guide from *Nashville Scene* says shops including Vinyl Tap, Third Man Records and Grimey’s are preparing special releases and in-store happenings for Saturday’s event. A separate Nashville listings guide also names Dead End Records among participating stores. (nashvillescene.com) (nashvilleguru.com) London’s version is leaning hard on events as well as records. *Time Out* says stores across the city are planning everything from free vinyl giveaways to club nights on Saturday, while the United Kingdom’s official Record Store Day site says more than 260 independent shops are taking part nationwide. (timeout.com) (recordstoreday.co.uk) Phoenix shops are building around the same mix of exclusives and in-person traffic. *The Arizona Republic* guide says ZIA, Stinkweeds, Tracks in Wax and Asylum are among the stores preparing for the day, and a local community paper reported Stinkweeds will offer special release titles on April 18. (azcentral.com) (northcentralnews.net) That format is the point of the event. Record Store Day says it was created in 2007 by independent record store owners and employees, and the first one-day celebration was held on April 19, 2008. (recordstoreday.com) The rules also shape the rush. The official store finder warns that a participating shop may not carry every title or join every promotion, so buyers still have to check with individual stores about stock and event plans. (recordstoreday.com) In the United Kingdom, unsold stock does not move online immediately. A London business guide summarizing the official process says online sales of leftover Record Store Day items begin on Monday, April 20, after the in-store launch on Saturday, April 18. (londonbusinessinsider.co.uk) For shoppers, the practical takeaway is simple: the date is fixed, the release list is already live, and the exact experience now depends on which store opens its doors first in your city. (recordstoreday.com)