Music lovers everywhere support their local independent record retailers on Record Store Day this Saturday. In recognition of the pivotal role played by record shops in the music industry, many labels release special limited edition recordings and merchandise, attracting throngs of shoppers to their neighborhood stores.
The Pacific Northwest chapter of the Recording Academy teams with Georgetown Records and Fantagraphics Bookstore to commemorate Record Store Day with Grammy Breakout Sessions: Vinyl Vault. This fascinating program features two of Seattle's most prominent musician/producers, Jack Endino and Steve Fisk, playing records and discussing their creative process. Endino is widely credited with engineering the "Seattle Sound" that influenced generations of musicians. In addition to performing with countless bands, he has produced records by groups like Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, Tad, and The Sonics. Fisk has worked with eclectic acts like Nirvana, Soundgarden, Screaming Trees, Joan Osborne, Beat Happening, Low, Reggie Watts, Tangerine Dream, and many more, as well as playing keyboards with Pigeonhed and Peter Bagge's Can You Imagine? Both of these artists have been closely affiliated with Seattle's storied Sub Pop Records, so it's fitting they will be joined by label founder Bruce Pavitt spinning records throughout the evening.
The festivities begin at 6:30 PM on April 19 at Georgetown Records and Fantagraphics Bookstore, located at 1201 S. Vale Street in the heart of Seattle's historic Georgetown arts community. Arrive early to peruse the record bins, and maybe pick up a signed copy of Pavitt's wonderful memoir Experiencing Nirvana: Grunge in Europe, 1989. Wherever you are, go out and support your local record store on Saturday.