A Preview of Record Store Day 2012

The yearly celebration of independent music retailers known as Record Store Day got its start in 2008, at a time when independent record stores were dwindling, one by one slowly falling away from their loyal customer base. Record stores across the country held events featuring live music, special in-store promotions, and of course, the highly limited Record Store Day exclusive releases.

Over the last four years, the events have proved to be rather successful, and while the 2009 departure of Atomic Records has undoubtedly left a void in the Milwaukee music community, the city’s music retail brethren have kept the celebrations alive.

With limited releases and in-store performances to boot, the Exclusive Company‘s East Side location is definitely one of the best stops in town for Saturday’s 2012 Record Store Day celebrations.

“It’s a lot of work, but it’s always a blast. We’ll be stocking the limited releases for sure” said store manager Terry Hackbarth, unpacking boxes of them as we spoke. “We’re going to open at 8 a.m. instead of 10 a.m. for the people looking to get first pick at all of the exclusive releases.”

So what can we expect? In the past, the Exclusive Company has hosted a celebration jam packed with live performances, but this year they’ll be keeping it simple. “With the day already being so busy, we’re definitely scaling down a bit this year” said Hackbarth. Nonetheless, they’ll still be hosting a few in-store performances, including Milwaukee dream pop outfit Brief Candles and Chicago rockers Archie Powell & The Exports.

Record Store Day isn’t just about commerce, it’s also just about celebrating your local independent record store.

“Record Store Day is kind of like Mother’s Day” said Bullseye Records owner Luke Lavin. “Yeah, it was probably created to sell stuff, but at the end of the day you really just love your mom.”

While they may not be hosting live performances, Bullseye will be doing a bit of celebrating as well. “As long as the weather’s nice out, we’ll probably have a small sidewalk sale, maybe a DJ or two,” said Lavin.

Whether you’re looking to get your hands on the exclusive Flaming Lips release, check out some live music, or just go and show some love for your (musical) mom, Saturday is looking pretty good for music lovers in Milwaukee. In addition, to The Exclusive Company and Bullseye, let’s not forget Rush Mor in Bay View. They’re triple-handedly keeping the music fans in our city satisfied, and that’s not always an easy job. Happy Record Store Day everyone!

A complete listing of The Exclusive Company’s Record Store Day plans can be found here.