Record store day

 
Making my way through the hordes of people at Hum records... not so much.

Sydney suffered a mini rain apocalypse this morning but that didn't stop the annual international vinyl nerd day. My nerd foil and I drove to Newtown and I camped outside of Hum Records (a queue of 10) while my buddy lined up outside Repressed Records (a queue of 7 - word is everyone went to Redeye in the city). The whole challenge with Record Store Day is that there is no guarantee of what exclusives the stores get so the things I was particularly after (Built to Spill Live vinyl, No Alternative lp or the Elliott Smith outtakes) were nowhere to be found (nor the disturbingly and shamefully sexy Neko Case poster they were giving away free in the US). I know that's part of the joy of it but when you look at the list of things which were available in the states (hello Hüsker Dü re-issue - I'd been tipped off there were none in Australia), it can be frustrating. I consoled with the re-issue of the first Nick Drake record, a couple of seven inches and the At the Drive-In album that sounds like Fugazi. Ryzard did slightly better than me but there was a slight deflation as we headed to the Glebe Record Fair.

 
 The Sydney rain apocalypse.

   
Nerdvana.
 
Ahh, record fairs: the sights, the weirdness and the smells (mainly of the record nerds). I'd already lucked out as a friend of mine had a stall and let me peruse his stock before the fair. A friend had just dug up two crates of prime 90's indie vinyl (most still sealed) so I got in early with a lot of Superchunk, Helmet and Guided By Voices. I was particularly happy with a copy of Girls Against Boys House of GVSB which sounds fucking great - I'd forgotten how dark and sexy that record is. I got a couple of cheap deals (Gram Parsons, Hound Dog Taylor) but with a hall full of records (mostly badly ordered) and a rabid nerd swarm, I beat a hasty retreat. However, a shitty day is the perfect excuse to curl up with a cup of tea and new tunes.


Score! Record store day - viva la nerds.

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