A gentle reminder...

Record Store Day is almost here! In case you haven't been paying attention to that counter on the righthand side of the website, it's on Saturday. This Saturday. This Saturday, April 21, 2012. Holy cow, we better get ready! But while we go do that, you should peruse the full list of RSD12 releases. It's mighty, so maybe grab a beer before you dig in. Say, speaking of beer, we're gonna have a whole bunch of Sierra Nevada to celebrate with on Saturday. Yum, right? Also, here's our official RSD store page, if you wanna give it a gander. Record Store Day, Record Store Day, Record Store Day...

Record Store Day 2012: Save the Date!

You had a blast last year. Picked up some rare vinyl. Watched Young Eliot's lightning-fast pen hand jot down orders at the speed of light. Chatted with music loving pals. Listened to Warren wax philosophic about the record industry. Drank a cold beer. Witnessed Austin pulling his beard hairs out. It was a great time, right? Well, mark your calendars, fun lovers. Saturday, April 21 is the big RSD this year. There are something like eleventy quillion releases coming, many from artists you know and love (more on that in the coming weeks), and we plan to participate fully. Who knows? We may even have a surprise or two up our sleeve. For now, save the date and stay tuned!

You Still Buy Records

It's true. We know this because you're reading this. And we appreciate it. But not everyone gets it, so why not spread the word? Here's one way to do it. We've got these sweet Record Store Day t-shirts for sale. They're $15, which isn't a bad price for a tee, but wait, there's more! With your purchase, you also get a downloadable sampler featuring music from Nick Lowe, Battles, Liam Finn, The Church, Boris, the Get Up Kids and many more. These shirts fit nicely into stockings as well. Just sayin'...

Black Friday Cometh! Save the Date: 11/25

We mentioned it in our last email as well, but Black Friday is coming up fast. We'll have all kinds of interesting Record Store Day-sanctioned releases that day, releases that, don't forget, you can only get by shopping at your local record store. The RSD folks have made a handy .pdf list of everything that's on the way. That list includes names like Ryan Adams, The Civil Wars, The Black Keys, Justin Townes Earle, Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Dr. Dog, Sharon Jones, Matisyahu, Iron & Wine, Wilco, Phish and far, far too many more to mention here. Take a look at the list, and start saving now! This is gonna be one crazy day.

Record Store Day Info

Here's what we're up to today...stop by and see us!

* There are more than 300 Record Store Day exclusive releases coming out on Saturday, which is an unwieldy number to say the least. We're working our way through the stuff we got, and there is a TON. So, here's a cursory glance at some of the highlights. Please know there will be much more... Mumford & Sons 10", Fleet Foxes 12" single, Beady Eye 7-inch box set, Numero group compilation LP/CD/cassette, Civil Wars 7", My Morning Jacket vinyl reissues, Grinderman 12" single, Akron/Family LP, The Seeds 10", Tom Petty vinyl reissues, Guided By Voices tribute LP/CD, Franz Ferdinand covers LP, Vivian Girls 7", Jimi Hendrix tribute CD, Wild Flag 7", Bad Brains vinyl reissue, Crowded House vinyl reissue, Dio picture disc, Beach Boys 10", Of Montreal 12" single, Neurosis LP reissue, Sacred Bones LP compilation, Television live LP, Hank III vinyl reissues, Mississippi John Hurt LP reissue, James Blake LP, Lady Gaga picture disc, Foo Fighters rarities LP, etc. etc. etc. It's an intense batch of awesome stuff, and some of it is very limited.
* A special one-day-only 40% off sale on select non-RSD vinyl. Now, this is hand-selected stuff, which we will mark with stickers, and NOT all the other non-RSD vinyl. That's an important distinction to make, but we'll make it very clear and keep this stuff all together in the same spot. This special sale section will include titles from the likes of The Hold Steady, Cocorosie, Jonathan Richman, The Gossip, Metallica, Butch Walker, The Sadies, Josh Ritter, Tom Petty, Cold War Kids, Midlake, Ted Leo, Devo, Eric Clapton, Band of Horses and much more. We figure people are going to have vinyl fever on Saturday and the only prescription is a more vinyl!
* Starting at noon, we'll have Community BBQ sliders. What kind of sliders? Our man Stuart elaborates: "smoked brisket braised slowly with onions, garlic and Kansas City-style bbq sauce." Sounds good to us. Stuart will also be bringing a side to go with the sliders. We're getting hungry just thinking about it. Speaking of Community, were you aware they did catering? It's true! Check our their website for more details.
* Free beer all day (21+ only, of course), from our friends at Magic Hat Brewing. They've dropped off a veritable buttload of their spring seasonal, Vinyl lager, a drink we've featured here in the store at events past, and which the brewery describes thusly: "a beer with a deep amber hue, sweet malt taste and a slight balancing hop touch." Yum! Frankly, we couldn't think of a more aptly-named brew to drink while celebrating Record Store Day.
* The one and only King of Pops will be brandishing his chilled-out treats in front of the store starting around 2 p.m. This will be weather permitting, of course, so put in a good word with Mother Nature for us! If you've had a pop or two in the past, either the last time the King stopped by DCD or at any of his myriad other spots around the city, you know these things are the real deal and sooo tasty.
* Tickets giveaways from our friends at Ticket Alternative! We'll have a box for first names and phone numbers on this one, and while we're still confirming the full show list, it will include the likes of Phosphorescent, Wintersleep, Sleigh Bells, Mogwai, The Daylights and Sleigh Bells. Pretty sweet lineup, if we say so ourselves. Thanks, Ticket Alternative!

Record Store Day Cometh!

Just in case you had somehow forgotten, despite our insistent reminders in recent months, Record Store Day is this very Saturday, April 16! We'll have an email with more information about everything we have planned in the next couple days, but for now, hang tight and plan to be here this weekend! We can't wait.

Black Friday!

Hey, kids! Did you hear what's going down this Friday? In honor of the dreaded shopping day that falls after Thanksgiving, the good folks behind Record Store Day have arranged for a bunch of awesome releases that fall on Black Friday. Have a look at the sampling below and remember that this stuff is limited, so be sure to show up early to ensure you get what you want!

Cee Lo (12” single), Grinderman (12” single), U2 (live 12”), George Harrison (3LP All Things), Tom Petty (7”), Bob Dylan (7”), Bruce Springsteen (7”), Rocky Erickson (DVD), Sharon Jones (7” box set), Soundgarden (7”), Dr. Dog (7”), Killing Joke (2CD deluxe), Black Crowes (live 10”), Drive-By Truckers (10”), Black Keys (2LP), Iron & Wine (12”/CD single), Gaslight Anthem (7”), Frank Sinatra (Christmas LP), KT Tunstall (CD EP), MGMT (7”), Cage the Elephant (7”), The Doors (180 gram 12”), Pantera (LP reissue), The Sword (12”), Monster Magnet (CD)

Record Store Day Photos

Better late than never, right? We could blame the slowness of getting these Record Store Day on any number of things, but for now, we're going to blame it on the food coma we just got from the newly opened Farm Burger. Speaking of that place, y'all, go. It's delicious. But that's a rant for another day. For now, RSD2010 photos! Enjoy...

Record Store Day is Saturday, April 17!

Astute readers may have already noticed from that banner on the right side of the page that Record Store Day 2010 is very quickly approaching. We hope you'll join us. Join us for what? Why, all of the below, which is straight from the latest Decatur CD newsletter...

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Record Store Day? Record Store Day! You'll have to forgive us, but we've got a wee bit of tunnel vision (Which is almost as awesome as double vision. Almost.) at the moment. But you would too if you knew all the awesome stuff we have going down this very Saturday, April 17. It's such a special day, that we'll open our doors at 10 a.m.But there really are a lot of details, so let's get to it, shall we?

First of all, much like when we raised a truckload of cash for PAWS Atlanta during our Meat Puppets in-store, we'd like to use RSD2010 as an opportunity to help someone else. Which is to say, while we certainly agree with the folks behind RSD in their thinking that the independent record store deserves a holiday all its own, we also realize that there are those who are far more in need than us. Fittingly, Variety Playhouse is hosting a very special contemporary jazz concert on Monday, April 26. Some of the artists performing are Earl Klugh, Mindi Abair and Boney James, and special guests include Joey Sommerville, Yonrico Scott, Jonathan D. Glass, MD of Emory University.

The concert is a benefit for Deborah Lewow, who was a co-worker of Warren's at Warner Brothers for many years. Deborah was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease) last fall. She is one of the most respected and loved promotion people in the contemporary jazz world. In addition to Deborah, the concert benefits ALS of Georgia and The Emory ALS Center. Part of the money raised will pay some bills, part will be given to the sorely-needed research of this terrible disease.

Bottom line: If you love contemporary jazz, Decatur CD urges you to attend this show. Let's raise some money for Deborah and ALS research, people! DCD will be donating 10% of our gross sales on Record Store Day as well as giving away a pair of tickets to the show. No matter what kind of music moves you, every purchase on Saturday will raise money for the cause.

Additionally, as we are wont to do, we're going to have some beer for the drinking on Saturday. What would be a Record Store Day without some tasty brew, right? We'll have the usual array of interesting microbrew bottles, and our friends at Twain's will also be providing something delicious. You know Twain's. You love Twain's. And if you don't, well, we have a website you should visit. Good people, good beer. There will be a tip bucket next to the beer, again benefiting Deborah Lewow and ALS. Now, we can't legally demand that you put money in the bucket in order to have a beer, because that would be selling alcohol without a license. But let's just say that nice people will drop a little something into the bucket before having a drink, all right? Don't make us get tough on you!

Speaking of treats, our friends at Ticket Alternativehave hooked us up with something sweet. By now, you should be pretty familiar with TA, if only for our regular blog posts about their new and notable shows. We sell TA tickets here in the store for shows at The EARL, Drunken Unicorn, Smith's Olde Bar, Vinyl, Laughing Skull Comedy Lounge, The Loft, Piedmont Park, 529 and many more. Well, all day Saturday, Ticket Alternative has granted us NO SERVICE FEES on their shows. We suggest you stock up on upcoming shows like Titus Andronicus at 529, the Atlanta Mess Around at The EARL, Charlie Louvin at Star Bar, 500 Songs for Kids at Smith's, the Dalai Lama at Emory (!!!) and countless more. Think of it this way: Buying a Ticket Alternative ticket from us on Saturday will be just like getting it at the door, but you won't have to worry about the show selling out. What a deal. Magic really does happen on Record Store Day.

Now, if you were here last yearor the year before that, you know that RSD is quite the spectacle. It's as busy as Christmastime and that same generous spirit is in the air. This year, the exclusive goods are at an all-time high. Check out just a sampling of what we'll have on our shelves below, and do note that if you looked in the last e-mail, we have added a good bit of new stuff:

Joy Divison (LP box set)
David Bazan (live CD)
Sharon Jones/Budos Band (split 7")
Deerhoof (reissued LPs)
Jamie Lidell (7")
The Thermals/The Cribs (split 7")
Grace Potter (live CD)
Elvis Costello (live 7")
Bonobo (LP)
Built to Spill (7")
Pavement (LP)
Drive-By Truckers (7")
Mastodon (LP)
White Rabbits/Antlers (split 7")
Dan Zanes (7")
Weezer (CD)
Ted Leo (7")
R.E.M. (LP)
Trouble in Mind 7" (Cococoma, Ty Segall, more)
Devo (LP)
Tegan & Sara (7")
Nirvana (colored LPs)
The Soft Pack (7" box set)
Badly Drawn Boy (CD)
Bruce Springsteen (10" LP)
MGMT (LP)
Dum Dum Girls (7")
The Magnetic Fields (ltd. edition LP box set)
Manchester Orchestra (live CD EP)
The Hold Steady (LP)
Dave Matthews (7")
Jakob Dylan (7")
Great Lake Swimmers (CD)
Beach House (7")
Modest Mouse (LP)
John Fahey (double LP)
John Lennon (7" set)
Wilco (4LP box)
The Soft Pack (7" box set)
Neko Case (LP)
Velvet Underground (live LPs)
Sonic Youth (LP reissues)
Josh Ritter (LP)
Of Montreal (7")
Omar Rodriguez Lopez (colored LP)
Apples in Stereo (CD/LP)
Tom Waits (LPs)
Happy Birthday (7")
Jeff Beck (LP)
Superchunk (7" picture disc)
Roky Erickson/Okkervil River (LP)
Sub Pop Anniversary Sampler (CD)
The Ramones (2LP)

Meanwhile, there is a lot more. Too much to type up here. You'll just have to come in on Saturday, have a beer with us and check it all out. We realize that, between basketball, baseball, myriad conferences and festivals and the like, it's a very busy weekend for Atlanta. We appreciate any moments you can spare for a little music shopping and good times.

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See you on Saturday!

Record Store Day photos

Record Store Day was simply great, but you know that if you stopped by or followed our updates all day via Twitter. Great customers, great music, great deals, great beer, great food, great day. We had a great time, if you can't tell. As such, this is the largest photo onslaught in the history of this blog. Have a look; you might just see yourself somewhere below. Click to enlarge if you need the gorgeous, fully-realized beauty of high resolution. Or, you know, if you want Young Eliot's face as your new desktop wallpaper. Enjoy...

Record Store Day is on Saturday!

See you then! Details from the trusty DCD newsletter:

It all goes down this Saturday, April 18th. What is this "it," you ask? Good question. In case you missed out, last year was a giant success, and we're hoping to follow it up in proper style. The idea being that we love independent retail, you love independent retail, and we'd like to take one day out of the year to share that love. It's Record Store Day, but we're here to celebrate you. You, the discriminating customers that choose to visit us. After all, if you don't get out there and vote with your dollar by buying from local/indie folks, we'll one day wake up to a world ruled by McDonald's and Wal-Mart. Nobody wants that, right?

But hey, don't take our word. Take Jack White's:

"I think it's high time the mentors, big brothers, big sisters, parents, guardians, and neighborhood ne'er do wells, start taking younger people that look up to them to a real record store and show them what an important part of life music really is. I trust no one who hasn't time for music. What a shame to leave a child, or worse, a generation, orphaned from one of life's great beauties. And to the record stores, artists, labels, dj's, and journalists: We're all in this together. Show respect for the tangible music that you've dedicated your careers and lives to, and help it from becoming nothing more than disposable digital data."

Or Paul McCartney's:

"There's nothing as glamorous to me as a record store. When I recently played Amoeba in L.A., I realized what fantastic memories such a collection of music brings back when you see it all in one place. This is why I'm more than happy to support Record Store Day and I hope that these kinds of stores will be there for us all for many years to come. Cheers!"

We could go on all day, but we won't. Instead, stop by on Saturday and have a look around. We'll be here, as usual, from 11 a.m. to however late y'all want to hang around. On that note, here's how we're celebrating this year:

Sale!
First and foremost, 10% off EVERYTHING. Compact discs, slabs of vinyls, books, box sets, anything that can't be tied down. If you can purchase it at Decatur CD, you can purchase it on Record Store Day for 10% off the usual price.

Beer!
We'll have some. Probably a lot. You know the drill. Nice stuff, in bottles, on ice, in that good old trusty giant white cooler. We hope you'll drink it and that it'll convince you to hang around and chat with us about music and independent/local business and drinking and Saturdays and good times.

Exclusives!
Honestly, there are too many Record Store Day exclusives to list here, but we'll highlight some of the notables. Remember, these can all be found only at indie shops. Best Buy and Target don't get all the deals, y'all! Please note: Some of these will exist in VERY limited quantity. Once they're gone, they're gone. But seriously! Feast your eyes on this list, folks.

Vinyl 7", 10", 12" and CDs from the following:
Sonic Youth/Jay Reatard, Bob Dylan, Guided by Voices, Blitzen Trapper, Tom Waits, Whiskeytown, Leonard Cohen, Flaming Lips, Iron & Wine, Camera Obscura, The Smiths, Brandi Carlile, The Decemberists, Bruce Springsteen, Fat Possum (Thomas Function, Wavves and Crocodiles), The Jesus Lizard, Grizzly Bear, Leonard Cohen, Andrew Bird, Gomez, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Black Kids, Jane's Addiction, Derek Trucks, Cold War Kids, My Morning Jacket, Dave Barnes, Tift Merritt and so many more!

If there's a particular RSD item you're looking for that we didn't list above, reach out via phone/e-mail/MySpace/Twitter/carrier pigeon and ask. We'll let you know.

In addition to these, of course, we carry hundreds of regular titles that are exclusive to independent stores. Those will be here as well, hanging out with their Record Store Day cousins.

Ticket Alternative giveaways!
We've partnered with our friends at Ticket Alternative and they've generously offered up half a dozen shows. We'll have a pair of tickets to each of the following. All you have to do is sign up in the giveaway box on the counter:

Electric Six on April 25th @ Lenny's
Richard Lloyd on April 26th @ The EARL
Tommy Keene/Magnapop on April 27th @ The EARL
The Kills/The Horrors on April 27th @ Lenny's
The Felice Brothers on April 29th @ Smith's Olde Bar
The Dexateens on May 9th @ The EARL

That's about it. It's gonna be a blast. Come visit us on Record Store Day and make a toast to the future!

Record Store Day photos

It was a long day, and a longer week cleaning up and reorganizing after it, but we're not complaining in the least. Record Store Day was a blast! Check out our photos:

Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Swing Set himself, Alex Brenner.

Straight outta Decatur...Warm in the Wake.

Blake Guthrie and Nicole Chillemi make their world premiere on stage together...covering Tom Waits, no less! We were honored to witness their first collaborative performance.

One beard to rule them all, one beard to find them, one beard to bring them all and in the darkness bind them: Richard Parsons.

That's a nice rifle you're sporting, but it sure don't beat our Pistolero.

And then there's Warren. After a full day of Record Storing, he likes to dress up in receipt tape and dance around all by his lonesome. This time we caught it on camera.

Record Store Day is TOMORROW!

We've been warning you for a couple months now, but it's actually almost here. Here is the rundown, straight from our weekly newsletter:

Sale: Pay attention, because this is how it'll work. Our entire vinyl, DVD and box set selection will all be marked down a whopping 20%! You vinyl nuts will appreciate this, we're sure, especially on the pricier items, but the DVDs and box sets are a big score too. To give you an idea, Perception, the massive box set we stock from The Doors and normally retails at $140 will cost $112 on Saturday. Rockin' Bones, meanwhile, the excellent collection of 1950s punk and rockabilly that is normally priced at $65 will cost you $52 on Saturday. You get the idea. It would be a smart, smart move to ask us for the box set binder (yes, we keep a [fairly] organized, alphabetical list of them all) and have a perusal on Record Store Day.

Additionally, we'll be putting a bunch of select CD titles on sale. These will include excellent new releases from R.E.M., The Black Keys, Gnarls Barkley, The B-52s, Daft Punk, Van Morrison, Sun Kilm Moon, The Whigs, Stephen Malkmus, Levon Helm, Shawn Mullins,The Everybodyfields and more. They'll be displayed on their own, separate from other stock and the price slash will be rather immense, so keep an eye out for it. Additionally, several other CDs will be marked down to $5. Deals galore, people!

Refreshments: As we told you once already, There Will Be Beer. Unfortunately, we couldn't secure Daniel Day-Lewis to work the cash register. However, in keeping with the line of thinking that Record Store Day promotes, much like we're glad you choose us over the generic, big-box counterparts, we hope you choose to patronize other excellent local businesses like Watershed, Cakes and Ale, Brick Store, Twain's, Little Shop of Stories and so on.

We also think life is too short to drink bad beer. As such, we're celebrating the first annual RSD with Allagash, Dogfish Head, Victory and Duck-Rabbit brews. Y'all are better than the cheap stuff, and we're proud to celebrate the finer things with you. From store open until store close (or until we run out), we'll do just that. 21+ only, of course.

We'll also be pulling out a variety of Girl Scout cookie boxes for your afternoon snack needs. There will be some of every kind. Yum!

Live music: We've got a good bit of acts lined up. They will begin at 4pm. Have a look at the schedule with descriptions and MySpace links for your listening pleasure:

4pm - Swing Set (Alex Brenner, formerly of Soda Jerk. He's played in the store once before, and we're glad to have him back.)
5pm - Warm in the Wake (These Decaturites are making their first appearance at DCD. Go team!)
6pm - Blake Guthrie and Friends (If you came to his first performance at DCD or visit Twain's, then you already know this guy. If not, then Record Store Day is a good time to meet him. He may bring along his girlfriend, Nicole Chillemi, as well. Bonus!)
7pm - Richard Parsons/Pistolero (The former songwriter will make his return to the store and the latter band will make its DCD debut sometime during this hour. We're still working out the exact timing, but hey, you can show up and wait it out with a beer or two, right? Listen to the MySpace and then see them in the flesh on Saturday.)
8pm - Sweet-Tooth Simpleton (This Athens, Ga. native reached out to us about playing here, and we enjoyed the folk-inflected tunes on his MySpace page. He counts Tom Waits, Neutral Milk Hotel, Outkast, Townes Van Zandt and John Coltrane amongst his many influences.)

Giveaways: There are a couple here that you should take note of. We've got a pair of big giveaways that you can ONLY SIGN UP FOR ON RECORD STORE DAY. First up, the good folks at Tompkins Square are offering up an copy of the Grammy-nominated box set, People Take Warning: Murder Ballads and Disaster Songs, 1913-1938, autographed by the one and only Tom Waits! Cool, right? We'll have a box where you can enter your e-mail address for a chance to win. Next up, we have a framed an autographed litograph of the cover of Feist's The Reminder. It's a beaut, and just like the disaster set, we'll have a box where you can sign up. Don't miss out on these, folks. They are only available on Saturday, and we want you to win, so stop by and enter!

Additionally, there is a bunch of other random stuff that we'll have scattered about the store, free for the taking. Buttons from the Deluxe Edition folks, random posters, samplers (from the likes of Vice, Daptone, Atlantic, Fontana, Sub Pop, Koch, Red), stickers, 3-D glasses, signed posters, free vinyl comps with vinyl purchases and much more. The generous folks at Paste have chipped in as well, with around 50 free copies of the Gnarls Barkley issue. However, the catch is that not only is the issue free, but it comes with a "Pay What You Want" subscription coupon. That's right, you get a free issue and then decide how much you want to pay ($1 or more) for a full year's worth of Paste. Quite a deal, no? But the magazines, just like everything else, are while supplies last. Get 'em while the gettin's good!

Exclusive items: We have a handful of special items for sale starting on Saturday that are exclusive to Record Store Day. These 7" vinyl 45s come via our friends at Warner Brothers, and they conveniently fall under that 20% sale mentioned above:

R.E.M. - Supernatural Superserious/Airliner
Panic at the Disco - Nine in the Afternoon/Pas De Cheval
The Black Keys - Strange Times/Something On Your Mind
Death Cab for Cutie - I Will Possess Your Heart 10" mix/7" mix
Built to Spill - Don't Try/The Source

Now, these are all limited edition (which means they will be out of print soon), and we only have a certain amount of each, AND they were made specifically for Record Store Day. This means you should show up early and buy them up. They will be collector's items someday, folks. Good stuff all around, and you won't find them anywhere else except official Record Store Day stores.

That's about it. We can't stress this enough: Come out on Saturday and show your love for independent retail. We love it, you love it, let's share the love.

Hope to see you tomorrow!

Record Store Day is getting closer...

As we previously mentioned, the curious beast known as Record Store Day grows nearer by the day. Honestly, we couldn't be more excited. When you run an indie-retail music store, no one is going to make a holiday in honor of you, so you have to make it yourself. That's what the folks behind Record Store Day did, and there starting to get a little attention for it. Paste recently wrote a news piece on the upcoming day, and countless musical artists, from Adam Duritz to Ziggy Marley, have written testimonials to the importance of brick and mortar hometown shops.

We're still in the planning stages as to what, exactly, we have in store for the big day, but we can say this...There Will Be Beer. We can't make any promises just yet, but hopefully Daniel Day-Lewis will be free to work the cash register, Warren and Austin will be willing to wear fedoras, and Paul Thomas Anderson doesn't mind handling special orders and stocking shelves. But trust us on this one: There Will Be Beer.

That's all we can say for now, but know we'll have tons of giveaways and all kinds of special nonsense. Save the date! April 19 is going to be heaps and piles and loads of fun.

SAVE THE DATE: Record Store Day

You've been warned, people. More coming soon...