Next weekend I'm going home to Seattle, I am so excited since it just so happens to be Record Store Day next Saturday!! Perfect timing! It's my favorite holiday, besides Christmas and my birthday obviously. There are a ton of shows going on, usually in store performances by amazing bands for free, plus lots of beer, and of course, the best part, searching for new records to add to your collection. Bonus: a lot of bands will have special pressings that come out just for RSD, this means lots of limited editions to shop for. I've celebrated Record Store Day in two other cities, Las Vegas, and New York. Neither really compared to last years. Not sure if it's because RSD was still pretty new a couple years ago so it hadn't built up to the event it is now, or if it has to do with Seattle's love for music that made it seem more festive. I'm guessing I'll find the answer to that this year.
Last year, I lucked out because Real Estate were in town the night before so I got to see them again. They're actually one of those bands I prefer to see live over their albums. Their sound is more rich and you can hear them clearly, I was impressed! Both times I left in awe after the show, they're definitely worth seeing.
The next day we spent record store hopping all over Seattle, we covered almost all the neighborhoods, starting in Ballard and working our way back to Capitol Hill. I picked up lots of goodies that day, Animal Collective's-Sung Tongs (my most favorite album) The Smiths- The Queen is Dead album, Radio Dept, a bunch of singles from Sufjan Stevens, and Real Estate. I didn't quite get everything off my list, there were a lot of hard decisions to make on what I could and couldn't take home. Typical!
Before continuing our journey to the other stores we of course had to run across the street to Cupcake Roayale for some snacks, shopping for vinyl can leave a gal hungry! I had the most amazing taramisu cupcake that I still, to this day, daydream about. Seriously, everytime I'm home I have pay a visit and feed my cravings.
Seriously it was one of the best weekends I've ever had. We had perfect weather, it was so nice and sunny. We stopped and sun bathed between store hopping, we enjoyed the loud music being played by the near by record stores before venturing on. I can't wait to see what this year brings!! Unfortunately, with all the music stores that have been closing and moving around, I have a feeling it will be a little quiet, but there's hope I will be proven wrong!
See you soon Seattle, can't wait for all your adventures you have in store for me this year.