Northants shops get ready for Record Store Day

The event sees artists and labels issuing limited releases to champion the importance of independent retailers.

In Northamptonshire, Spun Out and Vinyl Underground will be stocking a selection of the official Record Store Day releases.

Also getting in on the act is Spiral Archive which is holding a half-price sale while the Lamplighter will be hosting a record fair from midday.

Spun Out owner Chris Kent said: “Record Store Day is a massive day for us.

“There’s a genuine case to be made for the impact it has had on the revitalisation of the vinyl industry in general and your local record shop especially. When RSD came to the UK, a lot of record shops were struggling and now there’s shops opening which is a total reversal of what was happening.

“Slowly but surely, we get new regulars coming and getting introduced to us by RSD and then using us as their main store. That’s the key factor for us. We love the fun and madness of it all but it’s an introduction to new customers.”

Alternative quartet Fox Chapel will be playing at Spun Out as part of RSD, with Kent saying the band will be giving their sound a stripped back acoustic edge for the set.

There will also be DJs playing throughout the day.

There are hundreds of records being released as part of RSD, including records by Cabbage, Manic Street Preachers, Bowie, Prince and Super Furry Animals.

Mr Kent added: “The Cocteau Twins releases I think are really interesting pieces of music and highlight a lost point in time and music.

“It shows British experimental music at its best and is a good reissue for them to pull out of the bag.

“We’ve a building customer base for new and reissued shoegaze which I think was a sound which got lost in time thanks to the grunge movement which during the early and mid 1990s killed off every other genre of rock.

“The new Chemical Brothers track is great and something I’ll be playing for years to come and the Bladerunner soundtrack looks amazing on picture disc.”

Spun Out in Gold Street and Vinyl Underground in Abington Street both open at 8am. Spiral Archie is open from 11am to 4pm.

In the evening, Alex D’Arcy and Vinyl Underground colleagues will be playing records at The Lamplighter in Overstone Road from 6pm to 1am.