Long before the shop opens, a line begins to form. Some camp out for hours, waiting for the appointed hour. They are not waiting for the latest tech gadget or even front row concert tickets. They have to be there when the doors open if they want to get that coveted title from their favorite artist — often limited in number.
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“People here start lining up at midnight for an eight o’clock in the morning opening,” said Steven Warrenfeltz, owner of Kiss the Sky in Batavia. “We get here about 6 o’clock in the morning and start handing out numbers to people so that we can maintain some sort of semblance of order during the first several hours because it can be chaotic and if we weren’t to do that, it’d be nuts.”
Welcome to Record Store Day.
Created in 2007 as a “way to celebrate and spread the word about the unique culture” of independently owned record stores around the world, the annual event falls on the third Saturday of April.
“It’s like Christmas in April,” Warrenfeltz said. “It’s bigger than any day we’ve ever had in the history of the store.”
According to Record Store Day, there are nearly 1,400 independently owned, brick and mortar record stores in the United States. Celebrated internationally, the day is marked with special product releases such as limited edition vinyl and CDs. Some stores, like Kiss the Sky, also host musical performances.
“We find that people come out not only for that, but also just to show their support for the independent record store and there’s lots of other things that get purchased that day,” Warrenfeltz said. “Not just the special, limited things that come out that day.”
Will it work?
When Record Store Day was first introduced, Steve Kessler wasn’t quite sure.
For 25 years he owned a CD store in Highland Park, he said, that at one time did quite well.
“Then as Napster and iTunes came about, (and we) did worse and worse and worse,” Kessler said.
At first, Record Store Day was not that beneficial, he said.
“It was no life saver. The first couple of years I thought, ‘this is not going to work, nobody cares anymore,'” Kessler said. “But I was wrong, and it did get more popular each year.”
In the meantime his business was also branching out to include clothing.
“I was doing OK, but a lot of people just didn’t want to go to a record store to buy their clothes,” he said. “So I reopened under the name Rock N Rags a couple blocks away in downtown Highland Park. We kept the music section.”
That was in 2013. Since then, the amount of traffic his store sees on Record Day has increased considerably.
“The last couple of years, Record Store Day has been ginormous for me,” Kessler said. “It gets better each year. There’s a line.”
While the line doesn’t go around the block like it does at some stores in Chicago, there is a crowd.
“What we usually do is set up a table with coffee, and my wife bakes cookies and brownies and we serve the people,” Kessler said. “Just kind of make it a celebratory day.”
At Kiss the Sky in Batavia, store “founding fathers” Warrenfeltz and Mike Messerschmidt handed out more than 200 numbers to people waiting for the store to open last year.
“When I got here at six in the morning, there were close 50 or 60 people already lined up outside. Then from six until eight, it grew to 200,” Warrenfeltz said. “One of those moments that creates goose bumps. It’s really exciting and we wish that every day was like that, but that’s not the case. It’s certainly is a very nice shot in the arm, and a great day to connect with people and promote the store. And sell some music.”
Limited Editions
Each year there is a list of titles across a variety of music genres that are available on Record Store Day. The albums could be special pressings or early releases by a band, limited in number.
And every year there are some titles that generate more interest than others. Among those this year is a release by the White Stripes, along with a Metallica cassette, Warrenfeltz said. Anytime the Grateful Dead and Phish have an item on the list, it is popular, both he and Kessler said.
Last year, it was the “Guardians of the Galaxy” soundtrack on cassette that generated much of the buzz, with both stores fielding calls and finding people clamoring for it on Record Store Day.
“I don’t know if I ordered zero or one. I could have sold 100 of them. Every year there’s always a title that I never would have anticipated being so popular and I end up blowing it,” Kessler said. “It’s a very difficult thing to do. We see the list way before the consumers do, and we have to turn in our orders before we can get any feedback from our customers. So I have to try to guess what’s going to be popular. I’m a pretty good buyer. I’ve been doing this my whole life. Most of the time people get what they’re looking for. But there’s always that title where I’m like ‘oh my gosh, I should have ordered cases of them,’ and I don’t have it.”
The releases, he said, are supposed to be spread around to all of the record shops. There are times when he orders 10 copies of a title, and only gets two. Kessler said he has no way of knowing what stock he will get for Record Store Day until it arrives. Often, people call asking record shops to hold a particular item, but that Is not allowed.
“They’re asking me to reserve things, which I explained to them is against the Record Store Day rules, so I can’t do that,” Kessler said. “But I encourage them to arrive early in the day, and most of the time, people do get at least some of the things they are looking for when they come to my store on Record Store Day.”
To ensure the most people get what they are looking for, Kiss the Sky limits the number of pieces of any particular title a customer can purchase to one, Warrenfeltz said.
“We will not let people buy multiple copies of things, because we would like to spread the love around here and give as many people a chance to get that coveted title as possible,” he said.
When the doors open, it is a mix of regulars as well as some “that we hardly ever see. There are collectors that try to get in here early and get in line, of course.
“It has created a collectors market and of course, the opportunity for people to buy things and resell them on the Internet. And that’s the part of it that is a little unpleasant,” Warrenfeltz said. “We don’t like that, but I’m not sure there’s a whole heck of a lot we can do about that. It’s just kind of the way it is. So our little rule of you can only buy one, we’re doing what we can to minimize that effect. And we’re certainly encouraging all of our regular customers to get here early, to get in ahead of what I would call all the scalpers and eBayers.”
Employees even wait until the following day to purchase what they are looking for, if there is some stuff left over.
“We leave everything for the fans and customers,” Warrenfeltz said. “We always hope our regulars snag whatever it is they’re looking for. That’s our bread and butter, and that’s who supports us day in and day out, and who we want to see rewarded for their support.”
At Rock N Rags, Kessler said it is his “desire that everybody gets as much as they want of everything they can.” He allows customers to buy more than one copy of a title, within reason.
“If I got 10, 15 copies of something, I would never allow someone to buy all the copies. If they want to buy an extra one for their friend, I’m OK with that,” Kessler said. “But I can tell if somebody is doing something undesirable, and then I would say, ‘no, you may not.'”
While he is sure there are some people that are looking to resell the items, he sees most of the people at his store are there to own and enjoy the music, he said. He knows of some stores where Record Store Day releases are kept behind a counter. Customers say what they are looking for, and it is handed to them.
“But they don’t get a chance to look at the other 80 titles they may not have thought about,” Kessler said. “I’m not about to take away the fun of looking through and seeing all the things. You might need to have body armor the first hour… we certainly make it available to everyone. In fact I need to set up a entire extra shelving unit for Record Store Day to hold all the product.”
“It’s very exciting,” Kessler said. “It’s very satisfying to make people happy when they find the ones they’re looking for.”
Lasting Impressions
Kiss the Sky has been open for 19 years. Warrenfeltz said the store owners are thankful it has had the support to be around that long.
He attributes customers’ loyalty to several factors.
“First and foremost, we provide some things some of those big boxes and the Amazons — the online stores — can’t do and that’s personal service. We’re people that you can come in and talk to and kibitz with and discuss music. It’s kind of a little bit like the ‘Cheers’ bar. You come in and hang out here, we talk music, maybe you buy something, maybe you don’t.” Warrenfeltz said.
“But you certainly leave with a smile on your face because you’ve had engaging conversation. Also too, we can find things that maybe certain people can’t find. And there’s a convenience to us that the Internet doesn’t provide. You can come in here and grab it, touch it, feel it. And I think a lot of people like to support Ma and Pa operations — independent businesses.”
The store is also very involved in the community, promoting and supporting music in the Fox Valley area.
“I think you take all those factors into consideration and that’s why we’ve been able to survive in the seemingly difficult retail environment amidst tremendous competition. Music is a commodity, and a lot of people will buy it from the person who has the lowest price — download it for 99 cents a song off of Amazon or iTunes or whatever,” he said. “But that’s the masses. But the real, true die-hard music fans will seek out those special places like us that are also into music just like they are and want to support that type of endeavor.”
With 60-70 percent of the people who come to Kiss the Sky on Record Store Day regulars, that leaves a good percentage of those who may be finding the store for the first time.
“It has done what it has intended to do, which is introduce the independent stores to new customers,” Warrenfeltz said.
Kessler said people find his store because it is listed on the Record Store Day website.
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“And there aren’t many of us left. I am the only one in the area for a fair amount of miles where you can get this stuff unless you want to go down to the city,” he said.
Sales at his store last Record Store Day “far surpassed” any of the days leading up to Christmas, he said.
“It was the best day I ever had in 27 years as a retailer,” Kessler said. “And back in the 90s, when CDs were happening, we had some big days. Boy, that last Record Store Day was just incredible.”
Now, he sells more vinyl than he does CDs. In fact, Kessler is selling more vinyl than he has in 20 years, he said.
The annual celebration has also raised awareness of records year-round, he said.
“And there’s a whole new generation, I think, starting to understand the fun of going to a record store and browsing through music as opposed to sitting by yourself in your bedroom listening to one song at a time,” Kessler said. “They’re starting to grasp that perhaps there is something to the concept of an album and there is a reason why one song follows another on ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ or ‘Abbey Road’ and perhaps its not good to pull these songs out of nowhere and isolate them and listen to two minutes 37 seconds and go on to the next artist, which I think iTunes encourages.”
Some of Kessler’s favorite songs, he said, would never been discovered if he was just downloading one track at a time. One of the greatest things, he said, is putting on headphones, opening an album’s gatefold and reading the liner notes while listening to the music.
“There was a great tactile reward to that, which I think people are rediscovering,” Kessler said.
The shop still sells more in clothing than in music, “but that’s not by choice,” he said.
“Although I’m happy to have the clothing business. I’m happy to have any business,” Kessler said. It’s tough for independent businesses to survive in a world of Wal-Mart’s.”
But it’s selling music that he truly loves. That’s why Record Store Day has become “a truly joyous day” for him, making him happy to see customers get the titles they are seeking. And while the first hour the store opens “is absolutely insane,” it stays busy all day.
“And for a couple of days thereafter,” Kessler said. “We try to order enough so that you can still get stuff if you’re not able to get to us that day. And even now I have certain titles that came out for Record Store Day in the past years that I ordered a fair amount of, so if you were to come in here now and look for Record Store Day product, I could show you some pieces, absolutely.”
Now, he’s really looking forward to April 18, he said.
“I couldn’t have been more wrong when I said ‘this is not going to matter, that nothing can save us,'” Kessler said. “It’s a huge deal.”
Kathy Cichon is a freelance writer.
Record Store Day 2015
When: April 18
Where: local independent record stores
Information: recordstoreday.com
Participating stores
The following area independent record stores are among those participating in Record Store Day 2015. Hours vary by location. For a complete list of stores and their contact information, visit .
Track One Vintage Stereo
348 W. North Ave., Antioch
847-838-2346, trackonevintagestereo.com
Rainbow Records
421 N. Northwest Highway, Suite 103, Barrington
847-304-0721
Kiss the Sky
180 W. First St., Batavia
630-406-0086
Music Masters Worldwide
5230 Main St., Downers Grove
630-663-1137
Rediscover Records
9 S. Spring St., Elgin
847-961-8445
Rock N’ Rags /CD City
1821 St. Johns Ave., Highland Park
847-432-4344
Sunshine Daydream
708 S. Rand Road, Lake Zurich
847-550-9999
Audio Consultants
757 N. Milwaukee Ave., Libertyville
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847-362-5594
Purple Dog Records
329 Center St., Naperville
773-682-7725
Mile Long Records
350 W. Front St., Wheaton
630-474-4954