Let’s be honest, streaming is just about bearable, but nothing beats the ritual and artifact of a big bit of plastic and a gatefold sleeve, preferably imported from Japan on green vinyl and rarer than an undercooked steak. The Americans have given us some right shit over the years which quite correctly we’re now charging a tariff of 1 billion percent on. Record Store Day, which started in the States in 2007, is one import we’ll gladly endorse faster than you can say ‘limited-edition Elephant 6 outtakes compilation’.
For us music nerds, Record Store Day (12th April) is Christmas, mother’s day, halloween and pagan-deathcult-appreciation-day wrapped up in one sweet package. We’re fortunate in Sussex to still have so many fabulous physical record stores and the best independent record stores in the county are getting involved as usual.
Here’s a round up of the best stores and the acts and DJs they’ve got performing the weekend of 12th/13th April:
Vinyl Frontier, Grove Road, Eastbourne
On Saturday, Liz Overs-fresh from rave reviews for her solo album “Nightjar” in The Observer and Mojo- is playing live. Jon Slade from Born Bad and Huggy Bear is among the DJs playing during the day. On Sunday, Simon Charterton from The Higsons/Near Jazz Experience will be performing live as part of Simon & The Pope.
Union Music, Lansdowne Place, Lewes
Lewes’ finest opens at 8am on Saturday. Rising singer-songwriter Liza Lo is playing at 12pm playing tracks from her debut album on Gearbox Records, ‘Familiar’. At 1pm local Americana/southern-gothic legends Salter Cane will be performing old favourites and songs from their new mini-album.
Musics Not Dead, De La Warr, Bexhill
MND is in the foyer of the fabulous De La Warr Pavilion. They have 100s of exclusive vinyl releases plus live music from Hayley Savage playing songs from her eponymous new album. Hayley plays evocative folk, americana and indie. After a quick hop, skip and a jump from Eastbourne, Liz Overs also plays during the afternoon.
Resident, Kensington Gardens, Brighton
If you’re in the big metropolis, Resident in Brighton always has something good for RSD. There’s a ton of vinyl exclusives, plus in-store performances from Gwenifer Raymond (Saturday), Liza Lo, Big Long Sun and Maximilian (Sunday) plus DJ sets and their annual charity raffle. Open from 8am on Saturday.