The Unknown: Record Store Day April 18th

On April 18th, Record Stores across the country will be celebrating the greatness that is the Record store. I always felt that part of loving music...was loving to shop for music. Getting to sift through music online and listening to snippets is fun in its own way but nothing beats cruising through wooden crates of discarded music and discovering a lost treasure. Some of my favorite albums were unearthed after sifting through a mountain of CDs in a $1.00 bin. Soon gone are the days of taking a chance on an album just because it had a cool looking cover or the band name sounded cool. Soon gone are the days of standing at a listening station and getting to puruse an album at your own pace and not being forced to listen to a pre-determined 30-second chunk. Do you know how many times I've listened to a song on itunes and heard nothing but intro? Great...that helped me a lot. Soon gone will be the days when you're looking at an album and you can turn to the person next to you and ask their advice. Not that it's always good...but it was nice to have the option at hand. Soon gone are the days of ordering a hard to find album. Instant gratification has its advantages...but the anticipation of waiting for the album was always the best part.

In honor of the record store, many bands are putting out exclusive items to buyers that will only be available at the record store on that day. From exclusive 7 inches, to full length CDs, and t-shirts. There's a massive list on the Record Store Day Website...so I hope you all go take a look, find a record store near you, and re-experience a lost piece of what made music so great.

Here are the 11 Best Record Store Day Exclusives:

1. Pavement - Live in Germany 1988 - full unreleased concert (LP)
2. My Morning Jacket - La Celebracion De La Cuidad Natal - Live concert from Louisville (LP)
3. CSNY - Live Deja Vu - double LP
4. Rivers Cuomo - Live at Fingerprints
5. Iron & Wine - Norfolk 6-20-05 - Live 18 track CD
6. Queen - Queen's First Ep (first time ever on CD)
7. Wilco - Ashes of American Flags - Pre-release DVD - if you buy on RSD you get a free full length concert as a bonus.
8. Oasis - Falling Down - Remix LP
9. Bad Religion - 1981 EP - Re-issue
10. Original 7-inch re-issues from MC5, Stooges, The Smiths, Jane's Addiction, Radiohead
11. Exclusive 7-inches galore featured unreleased tracks from Modest Mouse, Sonic Youth, Beck, Whiskeytown, New Order, Magnolia Electric Co., Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan

Go visit a record store on Record Store Day! On April 18th.