UK | Record Store Day takes a turn for the better this year: It may only be February but Record Store Day fever has already taken hold with the announcement of this year’s releases available from independent record shops on Saturday April 12. When I was asked what the biggest possible release could be I had said a seven-inch single of Taylor Swift covering Chappell Roan’s Good Luck, Babe! Unsurprisingly that hasn’t happened, but Taylor will issue an exclusive seven-inch white vinyl of her Post Malone collaboration Fortnight, which is the first time that the Fortnight [BLOND:ISH Remix] will appear on vinyl. …As a founder member of Record Store Day in the UK I’ve not been a big fan of the way things have developed over the years and certainly record companies have been scraping the barrel looking for things to release for some years now, but this year’s list is a big improvement on previous years, though I’m afraid the cynic in me sees the involvement of many of the current artists as more to do with their career choices than supporting independent record shops.
Chicago, IL | Artifact Records Opens In Logan Square With Rare Vinyl, VHS And Cassette Tapes: The record store carries items largely pulled from owner Jonathan Rakstang’s personal collection, plus a listening station shoppers can use to preview vinyl before buying. Music lover Jonathan Rakstang considers each record in his collection to be an artifact — “a man-made object with cultural or historical significance.” “The music contained on every record tells a story that reflects the culture at any given time,” he said. That belief helped inspire the name of Rakstang’s new store, Artifact Records, which opens Saturday at 3423 W. Fullerton Ave. with hundreds of new, used and rare vinyl records, cassettes and VHS tapes. The shop features a listening station for customers to test out an album before purchasing and Bluetooth headphones for customers to enjoy music on a Hi-Fi audio system while they browse. About 60 percent of Artifact’s records are from Rakstang’s personal collection, which he’s been growing over the past 30 years.
Kildare, IE | Kildare business is ‘not just a record shop.’ This Naas record shop has a different approach to retail: Vinyl fanatic and store owner Rob Garvey opened The Record Rack on Main Street, Naas more than a year ago with the intention of making it both a shop and a social hub. The shop is one of the most unique and wonderful recent additions to Naas town, bringing together people of all ages who want to buy and sell records, often expanding into chats about vinyl and music in general. Rob wanted to create a laid-back and sociable atmosphere with The Record Rack, noticing that people tend to relax more in the store when they realise that he is “not going to jump on them to sell them something.” He said: “I like the idea of bringing people together. It’s not just a record shop, but also people come here and meet people and get chatting.” Rob believes that having public spaces such as The Record Rack is important for connecting the local community. “It creates more interest than it just being a shop.”
Washington, DC | Meet the magic of ‘Love and Vinyl’ right inside Byrdland Records: James J. Johnson and Rachel Manteuffel talk about acting in Bob Bartlet’s immersive ‘backstage pass into the love of records.’ As playwright Bob Bartlett’s Love and Vinyl makes its DC premiere, this play about finding love in a record store in a digital age will perform at a record store, Union Market’s Byrdland Records. It’s about best friends Bogie (James J. Johnson) and Zane (Carlos Saldaña, who also directs), who visit a local record store and meet the “magic” of store owner Sage (Rachel Manteuffel). DC Theater Arts caught up with Johnson and Manteuffel about the process, their relationships to record stores, and the community-building that comes with site-specific work. Manteuffel originated Sage in Love and Vinyl at KA-CHUNK! Records in Annapolis, Maryland; Johnson portrays Bogie for the first time.
Chicago, IL | Wax Trax! Records Building A Step Closer To Landmark Status: The Commission on Chicago Landmarks voted unanimously in favor of the designation for the Lincoln Park building. It now moves to the City Council for final approval. The former Wax Trax! Records building in Lincoln Park is one step closer to official landmark status after the Commission on Chicago Landmarks unanimously approved the designation at a hearing Thursday. …“We’ve taken on the responsibility of making sure Wax Trax has its rightful place in music history,” Mark Skillicorn, co-owner of the label, previously told Block Club. “This building represents so much to so many people — not just in Chicago, but around the world.” With the unanimous commission vote on Thursday, the Wax Trax team now needs final approval from the full City Council before the landmark status is official.
Dallas, TX | DJs Spinderella and Daughter Christy Ray Tell How They Got in the Groove With Vinyl. Their advice to new collectors: Just keep digging. People collect vinyl for a variety of reasons. There’s a certain nostalgia about the touch, the sound and the look of a 12-inch record. Some records can be quite valuable because of their rarity and subject matter. This attracts collectors hoping to make money off coveted albums. But vinyl means something different to a DJ. The art form was born before digital music files were a thing. To get a party started, a DJ had to have access to all the best songs, mixing and mingling those beats into an energetic set. Christy Ray and her mother, Deidra Roper, better known as Spinderella of Salt-N-Pepa fame, have made more than a few parties get wild. For Spinderella, her love of vinyl started at an early age as she grew up in The Bronx. “I just remember [my father] laying his records out, and it was fun. It was an activity,” she said. “When he would play records, he was happy.” Ray was born into collecting vinyl. “I’d always been around records and turntables since as far back I could remember…”
New Haven, CT | Little Lion Collective offers co-op wine and vinyl pop-up bar events in New Haven: At CitySeed, New Haven’s food system economic development organization, entrepreneurs are supported by changemakers like Cara Santino, director of food business development. In turn, those same entrepreneurs have been a key inspiration for Santino’s own journey. “Meeting and building relationships with emerging food entrepreneurs showed me I wasn’t alone in my challenges or ambitions,” said Santino, who uses they/she pronouns. Employing CitySeed’s tutelage on the value of failure as a learning opportunity — starting small, piloting ideas and growing sustainably — has been a cornerstone of Santino’s approach as founder and beverage director of Little Lion Collective, a hip New Haven wine and vinyl bar. For now, it’s a pop-up, but Little Lion hopes to grow into a brick and mortar when the time is right. “I’m intentionally playing the long game,” Santino explained.
Shelved US Version of Public Image Ltd.’s First Issue to Be Released on Record Store Day: The US release of Public Image Ltd.’s debut album was scrapped by Warner Bros. in 1979. Back in 1979, Warner Bros. scrapped the release of Public Image Ltd.’s debut album, First Issue, in the United States—even after John Lydon’s band re-recorded parts of it for that expressed purpose. Now, that version of the album is finally getting a US release exclusively for Record Store Day 2025. Coming from Rhino, this special edition is limited to 5,500 copies at participating retailers and features alternate artwork from the original UK release. Public Image Ltd.’s most recent album, End of World, was released in 2023. They’ll be touring the UK and parts of Europe this spring and summer
The Charlatans to release ‘The Only One I Know’ vinyl picture disc for Record Store Day 2025: It’ll also feature ‘Imperial 109’ and ‘Everything Changed.’ The Charlatans will be taking part in Record Store Day 2025 – sharing a vinyl picture disc of ‘The Only One I Know.’ The upcoming release will see Tim Burgess and co. collaborate with the Beggars Arkive to put out a new version of the track. It was their second-ever single, and came as the lead track from their debut album ‘Some Friendly’ back in 1990. For the new RSD version, the audio has been remastered by Frank Arkwright at Abbey Road Studios, and two other tracks are also featured: ‘Imperial 109’ and ‘Everything Changed’. It will be released via Beggars Banquet imprint Situation Two. According to a new press release, this is one of two upcoming special releases to mark Record Store Day 2025. Details of the second are set to arrive at a later date.
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