Ignore the title of this post, I just thought it sounded cool. I am going to ramble here – just a heads up…
Honestly , this year’s Record Store Day (RSD) did not exactly go to plan but it worked out entirely in my favor by the end of the day yesterday.
Record Poachers
A term my pal Eugene texted me when neither of us could find any of the wax we were looking for in retail stores on Saturday.
A record poacher is one of those folk out there who fancy a profit of mass proportions. They snag up all the good RSD vinyl and throw it on eBay where people like me will pay outrageous amounts of money for items that normally cost $10-$20. Some of these record poachers are actually shady store owners too who know damn well that they are cheating the purpose of RSD.
Knowing this, I still refuse to be defeated and try my luck on eBay. I am not the only one either.
Why do we do it? Because we are the reason RSD exists, we are the the vinyl collectors and sometimes we need to bite the bullet and pay a little more to get something we really want.
Example. I really wanted the Deftones Covers LP. It was sold out almost instantly across America. Coincidentally it was also all over eBay going for $40 to $70. Mind you there were only 3000 made.
I bid on it and was outbid immediately. I knew that I should just forget about it. I was bummed, but honestly, it is a record, I will live…
Right?
Lucky for me I have some amazing ass friends out there across the states and once they heard I was looking for that, as well as a couple other LPs, they made every effort they could to search for them.
There is a Deftones LP waiting for me now. I did not spend $452.87 on it either. There are also a couple other RSD releases I had my eye on that will be accompanying that LP too.
I have some damn good friends out there. I feel the need to emphasize that.
I am done rambling now.
Beyond my battle to get some of the RSD releases I wanted, I have to say that RSD 2011 was enjoyable.
How about a recap of RSD? Ok…
There were about 100 people lined up in the rain outside of Music Saves waiting to get first dibs on the goods when I arrived around 11:30am. That is dedication right there.
I sat in my car and chose to wait for my friends – and stay dry.
Come noon, my friends and I all perused Blue Arrow Records for a while, snagged up a couple things here and there, and just enjoyed the excitement that surrounded us. I picked up the Rome 7″ I was looking for as well as some used records that caught my eye.
Once the line at Music Saves calmed down, we all took a peek in there to see if any scraps were left over. I knew in advance of the Music Saves offerings and this year around there was not anything that got me too excited so I was ok with just grabbing a couple little things and saying hi to the owners and their special in-house phone answerer guy.
The Beachland opened their hallway to a couple of vendors who had some good finds. I walked out with a Pagans cover 7″ as well as a Germs cover 7″ both totaling a whopping $4. Not too shabby.
After kicking it on Waterloo we did the next best thing – went to Chili Peppers on 185th to feast. Best burritos ever.
It’s actually become a tradition for me to do RSD and then pound a burrito at Chili Peppers with friends. I did it last year, and I am pretty sure I will do it again next year.
I love me some RSD. It’s the one day a year where I can just geek out on vinyl with friends and complete strangers. Blue Arrow and Music Saves always do an amazing job with setting up for the big day and evening.
I skipped out on the free shows again this year in favor of hangouts with good peoples.
Good music was being spun and played at all the shops and everyone was in a good mood. If only every holiday were like this.
Today while earning my keep at the paying gig I realized that I still had not received my original order that included a copy of Explosivo! LP.
I decided to hit up the website and try and find out what was going on as it has been a couple of weeks since I handed over my money for the goods.
The moment I got onto the Dead Broke Rekerds website I see a post:
YOUR ORDERS ARE SHIPPING!!!Sorry for the delays but Paypal multi-order shipping was being an asshole, but rest assured all Explosivo Kickstarter orders, Pre-orders and every other order is shipping tomorrow and all through this week. Thanks you for your patience.
I did not need to send 1000 emails to find out what the heck was going on…yet. I just thought it was cool the moment I hit up the site I found exactly what I was looking for.
I am sure the LPs will be at my doorstep in no time and I know I will continue to hand over my cash to this awesome online punk rock music store.
So as many of you know last weekend I took Friday off of work and headed down to Cincinnati/Covington, KY with my pals to take in a NOFX show. My previous post obviously is the review of the show itself but sometimes I feel the need to review my weekend for everyone’s entertainment. After having an interesting yet busy week I was stoked to just get away even if it was for just one night.
After dropping of my dogs at my folks I headed to Columbus with my pal Kolb to pick up Pete and Mary Alice aka The Electric Grandmother and from there the trip would be in full effect. Weeks earlier we agreed that it would be awesome to take a road trip to see NOFX, Tony Sly, and Teenage Bottlerocket. Hang out with old friends and see one of my favorite punk bands? Yes please. To make matters even better I had just found out a couple days prior to the show that a band I recently became an instant fan of, The Menzingers, were opening! I was just thrilled and could not wait for Friday night at the Madison Theater.
Before continuing our drive we of course had to stop at one of my favorite bars in Columbus to grab a late breakfast. Granted I had only been to The Blue Danube once before I deemed it my favorite place for breakfast in Columbus after trying their vegetarian breakfast burrito. I wish I would have taken a picture of it but my stomach was too quick and I devoured the huge burrito full of eggs, potatoes, and all sorts of veggies and cheese. I took a chance eating that monster of a meal and getting trapped into a food coma but I lucked out and was fine. Once we were all nice and full we hopped in the car and proceeded to Covington, KY to our hotel.
It was about 4pm when we got to our hotel and with time to kill we all decided to chill out for a bit. I took the opportunity to check my email and discovered I was supposed to interview the Menzingers. Although I did not have my gear for an interview I decided to give the band a call anyways and see what we could work out. Man am I glad I called them.
Greg, the guitarist, answered the phone and after a couple of confusing seconds he realized I was not just some random person and we started chatting. He sounded stressed out and I soon found out why when he said he and the band were running late on account of their drumming having what they thought was food poisoning. From what I learned the drummer might have eaten some bad shellfish and was not in good shape causing multiple stops along the highway. Greg did not know if he should take him to the hospital or just let him rest but he did know that he was having a tough time getting in touch with the tour managers and that the band was going to have to sit Friday night out.
Not wanting to take up too much more of their time I wished them luck and told him we could do an interview another time. With all the hell going on Greg was super cool through the phone conversation and even texted me later in the evening letting me know that they were in fact not going to make it and were able to get a hold of Teenage Bottlerocket to let them know. As bummed out as I was to not be able to see the Menzingers that night I was not about to be selfish about it and knew that health is way more important that rocking out.
I am just glad I checked my email when I did.
At around 5:30 we regrouped and headed over to my favorite Irish pub in Covington, Molly Malone’s. Grabbing some dinner and a couple pints we just relaxed for a bit and talked about what we thought we would expect during the night. I can tell you this, if you are ever in Covington, KY go to Molly Malone’s and get a pint of Guinness. They pour it perfectly and even embed a shamrock on the head of the beer. The food is pretty damn delicious too.
Deciding to hoof it to the Madison Theater we made it there in no time. The place was like the Agora but with less isles to access the standing areas. I already wrote about the show so if you missed it click HERE and read away. Sadly I did not take a lot of photos at this venue but the couple I did are enough to remind me of the awesome evening.
Towards the end of the show a girl who sat by us in the balcony invited us to the Mad Hatter for a Loudmouth after party. They were the band that started off the concert that night in case you missed my review of the show. She kept saying NOFX was going there too but honestly I was not sure if that was really going to happen. She was cool as hell to talk to and very nice but after talking with my gang we decided to skip it after we saw people handing fliers out for it. I doubted my self a couple of times throughout the rest of the night but honestly I was happy with our decision to head back to Molly Malone’s for $1 Killians.
As we walked back to Molly Malone’s we kept talking smack to one another and bragged how much Killians we were each going to drink. As we rounded the corner we ran into a sketchy looking fellow who started talking to us about the Mad Hatter. He kept eying up my camera I had in my hand and looked to size up Kolb. For a brief moment I thought that there might have been an incident brewing up but soon realized the kid was just hammered and so was his friend who was pissing in the alley.
Molly Malone’s was packed when we got there. I bought the first round and as we drank our tiny little plastic cupped Killians we realized we would rather just go back to the hotel. Good thing we did because they closed the patio as we were finishing up and I really did not want to listen to the cover band that was playing in the pub.
Me and Pete with special guest Kolb in the back...
Did you know that in Kentucky they stop selling alcohol at 1am at most gas stations and stores? We didn’t. We found that our rather quickly and chose to try and find a bar within walking distance to have a couple more drinks. While doing so we met up with these two guys who said they saw NOFX too. We all thought we found a sports bar but it was closed. The two guys pointed down the street to another bar they said they just came from and told us they would meet us there. After a failed attempt at buying beer at a BP we decided to head over there. The place was called Joy’s and it was DEAD.
For about an hour we sat and had drinks and started talking about 9/11 of all things. Funny what alcohol does to bring back those memories you try and not think of often. Still, it was good conversation with some of my favorite people in the world. Joy finally asked us to leave around 2:30 in the morning so we thanked her for letting us hang out at her bar and were going to call it a night – or so we thought.
Late night hunger crept up on us all. Kolb decided to go back to BP for snacks and the rest of us were going to try and fight the urge until we saw there was a White Castle right in front of our freaking hotel. We must have waited 10 minutes before we came to our senses and got out of there. During that 10 minutes we made fun of drunks who were passed out at various tables including one guy who was old enough to be my grandfather. We were not that drunk and we sure did not need stomach aches so back to the hotel we went and we grabbed some overpriced snacks at the front desk. Yum…Combos.
Saturday morning came way too soon but as much as I wanted to sleep in I knew I had to get up and start the day. What better way to start the day than an all-you-can-eat breakfast buffet??? Let’s just say there is nothing like a giant Belgian waffle, a made-to-order omelette, and a pot of coffee to get your day started. I did not eat nearly as someone else who’s name I will not mention did but lets just say a dozen eggs may have been used up rather quickly…
Pete and Mary Alice wanted to check out some place called the Creation Museum that was about 20 minutes away. I will be sure to put a link RIGHT HERE once they post something on their blog about this place. From what they told me later on this place believed dinosaurs and humans coexisted and Earth was only 4000 years old. Now I am not that religious but I studied my ass off in science and history classes and spite what my folks think paid attention in Sunday school… I was not having it and did not want to go. Plus I heard they take their beliefs very seriously and if you make a mockery out of them the place will ask you to leave. I am not about to pay money only to be thrown out after three minutes from laughing my ass off.
So I dropped Pete and Mary Alice off at the Creation Museum and headed to Newport, KY with Kolb to catch a movie while they learned about dinosaurs and bibles. Kolb and I caught The Losers (I thought it was great in case you were wondering) on the big screen and then returned to the Creation Museum to pick up the happy couple. I kept my fingers crossed that they would not be in white robes waiting for me outside the establishment. Luckily they were not brainwashed when I picked them up and even bought me a bumper sticker!
Time was speeding by so we canceled our trip to Ikea and Shake-It Records in favor of having dinner with a very close friend of mine and his soon to be new family. We opted to have Thai at some mom and pop place down the street from his house. The place was frigging amazing. That might have been the best pad thai with tofu I had ever had in my life. Their sushi was less than desirable but the main encore was perfect.
I really wish we had more time to kill as we were all enjoying ourselves at dinner but we all had to head home after dinner. We said our goodbyes and headed back to Columbus. We said goodbye to Pete and Mary Alice and continued home.
It was the quickest day in history if you ask me and before I knew it the sun was setting and I was just getting on to I-76 about to get back to reality. It was a great hangout with friends that included a great punk show. I needed that…
I am already thinking about my next road trip. Gaslight Anthem in Detroit or Columbus this July anyone?
In T-minus just under 4 days, vinyl lovers around the world will once again have their day…
Actually music lovers can have that day too as Record Store Day, which falls on the third Saturday of April, will turn a seemingly normal Saturday into a limited edition, independent music store, sales boosting, event with plenty of live music around the states (and even world).
With a ton of releases this year it is going to be an exciting day for many music lovers out there. Check out the full list of limited presses on vinyl from some of your favorite artists. I know there are a few in there I hope to acquire…
Focusing on Cleveland, since that is my city, I thought I would just post a few things going on this Saturday beginning around the noon o’clock hour.
I will mainly be in the Waterloo district in the good ol’ North Collinwood area with friends this year. The day will revolve around indie record stores Music Saves and Blue Arrow Records, two stores I should add I have become very familiar with over the past year, as well as all the other amazing shops that line up Waterloo. At one point I may have to escape with Matt over to E. 185th to grab some grub from Chili Peppers but I will return back to the fun once I am full of their delicious food.
The stores in the area will open at noon and I can only imagine the lines that will be forming before the stores even unlock their doors. With quantities limited, and of course the always awesome eBay resellers who know they can make a profit off of some of the vinyls (thanks for that btw, jerks), it is best to get there early.
Music Saves was kind enough to make a list of the vinyl they hope to have in stock but they will not know until the day of. No holds either in case you were wondering… I am bummed to see a blue line through the Get Up Kids on that list. Oh well. Also if you get there in time there might be some grab bags give out along with other random things to all who partake in the purchasing of goods.
What is even cooler is that Music Saves (MS) and Blue Arrow Records (BA) will be featuring free indoor/outdoors DJ events / shows throughout the day for all to check out.
* 4:30PM – White Hinterland DJs – MS
* 5PM – DJ Will Rigby (drummer for the dB’s and Steve Earle) – BA
* 5:30PM – The Lighthouse and the Whaler – MS
* 6PM – Prisoners – BA
* 6:30PM – The Muttering Retreats – MS
* 7PM – Tasty Cakes – BA
* 7:30PM – Cloud Nothings – MS
* 8PM – Party Sweat – BA
To close the big day the Beachland Ballroom will host a 9PM show featuring Dosh, White Hinterland, and locals The Sleep.
It’s going to be a great day/night so if you have nothing going on head out to Waterloo and have some fun!
Today was like a musical draft for one of the biggest festivals in the US. I speak of the 4 day festival Bonnaroo and today’s announcement has been a day long event as the initial line-up was introduced to all who were curious throughout the day via Twitter and MySpace. This was the first time Bonnaroo has done something like there where they utilize other sites to slowly leak out fetival details.
The way that Bonnaroo chose to dish out the artists was annoying to me. It was a novel idea but if you are like me you want to know everything at once and not have to wait over 12 hours for a line-up. I hope next year they just go back to routine and hand everything out at once.
Having already been to Bonnaroo twice (2006 & 2009) I can tell you that the line-ups are generally full of an array of artists for everyone. This year is without exception and I really am thinking hard about going again. I had a great time last year and really could go for a road trip with friends again. This time though I am going to go and enjoy it and not worry about covering it. I missed out on a few good sets because I made promises of coverage on a site I could barely keep but I still kept to my word and was submitting nightly reviews as the sun was rising the next day.
The artist line-up is listed below and I am sure a few other acts will sneak in over the upcoming weeks. Anyone else interested in attending? I know it will be a good time as always – just look at all the bands and artists!
Artists confirmed for
* Dave Matthews Band
* Kings of Leon
* Stevie Wonder
* Jay-Z
* Tenacious D
* Weezer
* The Dead Weather
* Damian Marley and Nas
* Phoenix
* Norah Jones
* Michael Franti and Spearhead
* John Fogerty
* Regina Spektor
* Jimmy Cliff
* LCD Soundsystem
* The Avett Brothers
* Thievery Corporation
* Rise Against
* Tori Amos
* The National
* Zac Brown Band
* Les Claypool
* John Prine
* The Black Keys
* Steve Martin & the Steep Canyon Rangers
* Jeff Beck
* Dropkick Murphys
* She & Him
* Against Me!
* The Disco Biscuits
* Daryl Hall & Chromeo
* Jamey Johnson
* Clutch
* Bassnectar
* Kid Cudi
* Baaba Maal
* Kris Kristofferson
* Medeski Martin & Wood
* The xx
* GWAR
* Dan Deacon Ensemble
* Tinariwen
* Wale
* Deadmau5
* The Melvins
* The Gaslight Anthem
* Miike Snow
* The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
* Dr. Dog
* They Might Be Giants
* Punch Brothers
* Isis
* Blitzen Trapper
* Blues Traveler
* Miranda Lambert
* Calexico
* OK Go
* Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue
* Martin Sexton
* Lotus
* Dave Rawlings Machine
* Mayer Hawthorne and the County
* Japandroids
* Jay Electronica
* Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
* Ingrid Michaelson
* The Dodos
* Manchester Orchestra
* The Temper Trap
* Cross Canadian Ragweed
* Big Sam’s Funky Nation
* Carolina Chocolate Drops
* NEEDTOBREATHE
* Tokyo Police Club
* The Entrance Band
* Local Natives
* Brandi Carlile
* Mumford & Sons
* Rebelution
* Diane Birch
* Monte Montgomery
* Julia Nunes
* The Postelles
* Lucero
* Here We Go Magic
* Hot Rize
* Neon Indian
* B.O.B
* More Artists to Be Announced! (Subject To Change As Well)
Rumors earlier in the month pointed to Roger Waters possibly playing the festival but I am sure that is a no go now. Also word on the streets was that Mastodon was going to make an appearance as well. One could only hope.
I’ll be posting stuff here and there through out the next few months. Still have not fully committed but highly considering it…
Tickets are on sale now and at this time are $234.50 but that price will not last forever and they will jump to $249.50. They also are going to have the payment plan again this year – 5 payments of $50. Not too shabby!
Example. I really wanted the Deftones Covers LP. It was sold out almost instantly across America. Coincidentally it was also all over eBay going for $40 to $70. Mind you there were only 3000 made. 
It was about 4pm when we got to our hotel and with time to kill we all decided to chill out for a bit. I took the opportunity to check my email and discovered I was supposed to interview the Menzingers. Although I did not have my gear for an interview I decided to give the band a call anyways and see what we could work out. Man am I glad I called them.
Deciding to hoof it to the Madison Theater we made it there in no time. The place was like the 
