This Saturday marks the return of Record Store Day, the day-long celebration of indie record stores across the world, complete with special signings, performances, limited edition releases, and deluxe swag.
Among participating record shops in the neighborhood, there's a whole host of stuff you might expect to run into, including (and especially) small-run LPs and EPs by dozens of artists, from Patti Smith to CHVRCHES , Hüsker Dü to Thelonious Monk.
Up and down Haight Street, our own local indie record stores will be celebrating the day in a typically varied, diverse fashion. Here's what to expect along the way. (If you're planning a Haight Street record store crawl, don't forget to spice it up with some bar stops along the way.)
Rooky Ricardo's Records, 448 and 419 Haight St.
Rooky Ricardo's is in the midst of a move across the street due to earthquake retrofitting, which means that they'll have two locations open this year. You can find owner Dick at the new shop at 419 Haight, with a batch of freshly-curated records for flipping through.
Deals for the day include all $5 LPs offered at three for $10, all $10 LPs selling for three for $20, and all $20 LPs for two for $30.
Vinyl Dreams, 593 Haight St.
Drinks and DJs will accompany great record deals at this Lower Haight mainstay this Saturday. "We'll have a group of exclusive releases as well as lots of other new titles, and some killer merchandise for sale," the shop said.
Groove Merchant Records, 687 Haight St.
Longtime spot Groove Merchant will be rolling out the records throughout the day; as gaps are made in inventory, more vinyl will be brought out. This used-only shop is unpacking boxes and reaching deep into its storage to bring the best quality records out to the crowds. Plus, they'll have cold beer on tap all day long.
Recycled Records, 1377 Haight St.
One of the Upper Haight's longstanding mostly-used record shops, Recycled keeps things pretty quiet on Record Store Day. They will, however, be giving away free jazz box sets with every purchase.
Dr. Martens, 1621 Haight St.
Wait, isn't this a shoe store? It is, but at the moment they have about 1,000 records for sale—most for $1—thanks to Dick from Rooky Ricardo's (see above). Space is limited in his new locale down the hill, so Dr. Martens is picking up the slack. Swing in to get a copy of Rubber Soul to go with your rubber soles.
Rasputin Music, 1672 Haight St.
In addition to the full panoply of swag and limited-edition releases, Rasputin will be opening its doors an hour early (at 11am) and giving away free goodies, including sample records and other assorted surprises.
A word to the rabid fan: Rasputin's mother store, across the water in Berkeley, will also be hosting—yes—Metallica.
Amoeba Records, 1855 Haight St.
Maybe not surprisingly, Amoeba will be the granddaddy of Record Day festivities on Haight; if you're working the street we recommend either starting or ending with Amoeba, but be forewarned that special merch is available only while supplies last.
Amoeba's festivities, detailed in the event listing below, will include a signing by Pete Yorn, live silk screening of special Record Store Day images onto tote bags and t-shirts, no fewer than six guest DJ sets, a daylong Twitter ticket giveaway for Fillmore shows (@AmoebaSF), and gift bags of free goodies with RSD purchases.
And with that, we leave you to plan your record store outing as you see fit. Go get your groove.
