Record Store Day releases

Record Store Day lands on Saturday, April 18, with hundreds of limited vinyl releases headed to participating independent shops instead of major online retailers. (recordstoreday.com) The official Record Store Day site says stores order titles directly from distributors, choose their own stock, and do not offer pre-orders for the special releases. If shoppers miss out on Saturday, some stores may sell leftover stock online starting Sunday, April 19. (recordstoreday.com) This year’s list mixes catalog reissues, anniversary editions and new singles. Official listings include Pavement’s first-ever repress of the 1991 EP *Perfect Sound Forever* on white 10-inch vinyl, limited to 2,000 copies, and Sleep Token’s liquid-filled 12-inch single *Caramel*, listed as an “RSD First” run of 3,000. (recordstoreday.com 1) (recordstoreday.com 2) Other headline titles come from Public Service Broadcasting, Suede-adjacent project The Tears, Taylor Swift and The Cure. Record Store Day listings show Public Service Broadcasting’s *Bright Magic*, a first vinyl issue of The Tears’ *Here Come The Tears*, Swift’s 7-inch *Elizabeth Taylor*, and The Cure’s 25th-anniversary edition of *Greatest Hits* remastered by Robert Smith. (recordstoreday.com 1) (recordstoreday.com 2) (recordstoreday.com 3) (recordstoreday.com 4) The event works like a one-day scramble because Record Store Day splits releases into categories with different scarcity. The official rules define “RSD Exclusive” titles as indie-store-only physical releases, “RSD First” titles as records that may reach other retailers later, and “Small Run/Regional” titles as local or sub-1,000-copy pressings. (recordstoreday.com) That structure keeps the focus on brick-and-mortar shops, which Record Store Day says has been the point since the event was created in 2007 and first held on April 19, 2008. The organization says there are nearly 1,400 independently owned participating stores in the United States and thousands more internationally. (recordstoreday.com 1) (recordstoreday.com 2) The celebrity push is part of the draw this year too. Record Store Day named Bruno Mars its 2026 ambassador, and the official site is also promoting a Bruno Mars compilation LP, *The Collaborations*, as an April 18 exclusive release. (recordstoreday.com) (recordstoreday.com) Local planning is as important as the release list because no store is required to stock every title. Nashville Scene’s local guide says shoppers in Nashville can check participating stores including Vinyl Tap, Third Man Records and Grimey’s for store-specific details and day-of events. (nashvillescene.com) The practical advice from Record Store Day is simple: find a participating store with a pledge badge, check what that shop actually ordered, and line up early on April 18. The records may be national releases, but the hunt still happens one storefront at a time. (recordstoreday.com)