With Record Store Day on the horizon we got in touch with a select few record stores along the east coast of the country to get a bit of an idea as to what they have planned for the big to just talk shit about records in general.

Here's what they had to say!

You can check out what we want to buy on Saturday right here. Or read interviews about Record Store Day with You Am I's Russell Hopkinson and the great Russell Morris.

VICTORIA

Obese Records

Name and position of person answering: Frank, retail manager

Contact details and operating hours:

4a Izett Street Prahran, 9529 1577, Mon–Sat 10.30am–5.30pm, Sun 12–5pm, obeserecords.com.

What does your store specialise in?

Imported and local hip hop since 1995.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

Dialectrix's Satellite EP. Also still bumping Oddisee's People Hear What They See; this album is flawless and always sets the mood for the day.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

We have a selection of DJs repping various local crews including Discourse (Crate Cartel), Heata (Hired Goons), Must (Pang Productions), Ronan (PBS FM), Slap618 (Myspherical) and Jase (Beathedz) spinning vinyl all day. 

What is the holy grail of vinyl, that everyone wants to buy, but nobody can get their hands on?

Hilltop Hoods's Back Once Again EP and Trem's For The Term Of His Natural Life 2LP.  They occasionally turn up on eBay and sell at elevated prices.

Who is the most famous customer that has come in to the store and what did they buy?

Flavor Flav, who was more interested in our clothing.

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

We're the only Melbourne store selling the Elefant Traks RSD releases. Hermitude's Parallel Paradise remix vinyl EP featuring Flume and Urthboy's Smokey's Homies Remix EP CD featuring Trials and Drapht will be sold as a pack with a free Elefant Traks t-shirt. 

What is your favourite concept album and why?

Gangreene's (The Alchemist and Oh No) Vodka And Ayahuasca is definitely on the list.

We walk into your shop with $150 to spend – what do you recommend we buy?

Dialectrix's Satellite; Mata & Must's Low Life's Gospel; Gangreene's Odditorium picture disc vinyl; and Urthboy's Smokey's Haunt limited edition 2LP green vinyl.

The demise of physical product in the music industry has been exaggerated – discuss.

There's definitely been a decline in CD sales, especially import titles, but local release hip hop has maintained steady sales in our store. We've also noticed a slight increase in vinyl sales with a new generation of collectors buying wax.

Dixons Recycled Records

Name and position of person answering: Group effort

Contact details and operating hours:

100 Railway Road Blackburn; 736 Burke Road Camberwell; 414 Brunswick Street Fitzroy. All shops open seven days, see dixons.com.au for opening hours.

What does your store specialise in?

Quality second-hand LPs, CDs, DVDs.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

Blackburn has been playing Hawkwind in anticipation of the upcoming Warrior On The Edge Of Time reissue.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

A massive 20% off sale, live music at some of the stores, a new canvas bag giveaway.

What is the holy grail of vinyl, that everyone wants to buy, but nobody can get their hands on?

Apart from the Beatles' Butcher Sleeve? Good Aussie prog, original pressings of Krautrock, obscure '70s funk and mint/original '50s and '60s pressings… there are never enough.

Who is the most famous customer that has come in to the store and what did they buy?

Locally, have spotted Geoffrey Rush and Burt Newton – don't remember their purchases.

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

We do not have any exclusive releases – but we are working on next year.

What is your favourite concept album and why?

The Gong Flying Teapot Trilogy has a story that is both playful and philosophical while being accompanied by some amazing music.

The demise of physical product in the music industry has been exaggerated – discuss.

While the demand for owning music on CDs seems to be decreasing, the interest in vinyl definitely seems to be increasing, as more people look to the vinyl format as the way forward for serious music fans. It's been a long time since CDs were cool, but vinyl's back, baby!

Eureka Rebellion Trading

Name and position of person answering: Anthony Allayialis, Co-owner/Director

Contact details and operating hours:

454 Smith Street Collingwood, Tuesday–Thursday 11am–7pm, Friday–Saturday 11am–8pm, Sunday 12pm–5pm, facebook.com/eurekarebelliontrading.

What does your store specialise in?

Our store is a combination of a tattoo studio, barber shop and “general store”, which consists of a large collection of rare heavy metal vinyl; horror DVDs and Blu-Ray; men's apparel, accessories and personal care products; a wall of hot sauce and other condiments; and limited edition art prints from around the world.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

Killswitch's killer new album Disarm The Descent. Opus Eponymous from Ghost is an awesome album that only came out this week. Skid Row's Slave To The Grind is an old favourite and probably the best album ever recorded… Sebastian Bach rules.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

Fuck promo codes! Fuck sales! We're offering the best and rarest heavy metal vinyl in Australia.

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

We have some great new titles for this year's RSD but you will also find some hard to get titles from previous years such as (one of our faves) King Diamond's No Presents For Christmas picture disc from 2012.

We walk in to your shop with $150 to spend – what do you recommend we buy?

I would personally recommend a deposit on a tattoo with one of our awesome artists ($50); Van Halen's 5150 first pressing edition ($30); Thrillseeker Threads “Thrill Skull” shirt ($35); and a decent mix of our hot sauces because that's how much we love it! ($35).

The demise of physical product in the music industry has been exaggerated – discuss.

The demise of physical product comes down to convenience. These days it's more convenient to jump onto iTunes as opposed to buying a standard CD. The beauty of vinyl is that not only does it have its own unique sound quality but the convenience of having an MP3 card is also included with most new releases so you can upload the album to your computer. I also think the appeal of things like the cover art, limited edition picture disc releases and the inserts that accompany the vinyl itself appeal to collectors because it puts the excitement and fun back into buying music.

Readings Books Music Film

Name and position of person answering: Dave Clarke, Music Buyer

Contact details and operating hours:

309 Lygon Street Carlton; 701 Glenferrie Road Hawthorn; 112 Acland Street St Kilda. All shops open seven days, see readings.com.au for opening hours.

What does your store specialise in?

All types of music from classical to indie, jazz to folk and world music. We specialise in imports and vinyl, plus we also have a very good range of DVDs.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

Lord Huron's Lonesome Dreams, Billy Bragg's Tooth & Nail and the new Steve Earle album Low Highway.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

By offering 20% off all vinyl for the entire month of April – including an amazing price on the complete Beatles vinyl box set of $439.95.

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

Absolutely! But we can't reveal what until RSD so come down to check it out on Saturday 20 April. 

We walk in to your shop with $150 to spend – what do you recommend we buy?

Lord Huron's Lonesome Dreams, Billy Bragg's Tooth & Nail deluxe editon, David Bowie's Next Day, Love For Levon (amazing DVD and CD tribute to Levon Helm), the fabulous new Iron & Wine album Ghost On Ghost and Deborah Conway and Willy Zygier's new CD, Stories Of Ghosts.

Who is the most famous customer that has come in to the store and what did they buy?

Nick Cave and Paul Kelly frequent our St Kilda shop when they're in town and we were delighted to host an event with Patti Smith at Readings Carlton – and yes, she did buy a few obscure titles on the way out.

The demise of physical product in the music industry has been exaggerated – discuss.

The physical market is down from its peak of around a decade ago, but despite widespread media coverage saying the CD is dead it remains the mainstay of our (and loads of other stores') business. What is certainly true is buying music has never been cheaper; most new release CDs are now around the $20-22 price. We sell more CDs now than a few years ago; they just sell for less, so the dollar amount for the industry is down, but sales are actually holding their own. And of course vinyl is making a huge comeback.

Record Paradise

Name and position of person answering: Renae and Paul, co-owners

Contact details and operating hours:

15 Union Street Brunswick, Wednesday–Saturday 12–6pm, recordparadise.com.

What does your store specialise in?

New and recycled vinyl, focusing on local, indie/alternative releases and reissues. We also house an amazing archive with over 33,000 records from all genres. Hours of fun.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

This Is PIL, The Next Day by David Bowie, Push The Sky Away by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. Touring artists and new release and artists in the “news” end up surrounding the decks at our house.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

Live music in store from Fraser A Gorman, Courtney Barnett, Sacha & Martin (MAG), Deborah Conway & Willy Zygier and guest DJs. Plus there will be a Paradise Bar and Taco Truck, amazing recycled records, limited local and RSD releases and a 7” lucky dip.

What is the holy grail of vinyl, that everyone wants to buy, but nobody can get their hands on?

Rowland S Howard's Teenage Snuff Film or Pop Crimes (first press vinyl) and Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds' Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus.

Who is the most famous customer that has come in to the store and what did they buy?

Jello Biafra purchased Davy Graham's Folk, Blues And Beyond and local 7” records including Tram Pig by Urgent! Blood!.

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

We have ordered BJTM, Wire, The Fall, House Of Love, Captain Beefheart, Wedding Present, Pulp, The xx, Orange Juice and Miles Davis to name a few. Who knows if they will arrive in time.

What is your favourite concept album and why?

Paul: Magnetic Fields' 69 Love Songs is a bold exploration of different aspects of love. Renae: Arcade Fire's The Suburbs, because I cried watching the Google Earth video and it captures why I love the indie scene so much.

We walk in to your shop with $150 to spend – what do you recommend we buy?

Can's Cannibalism (Spoon), Dick Diver's Calendar Days, Joy Division's Closer (reissue), Marianne Faithful's Broken English (original vinyl or tape) and a local 7” from either Twerps, The Stevens, Courtney Barnett or The Rebelles...

The demise of physical product in the music industry has been exaggerated – discuss.

Physical sales are dropping, online sales increasing and illegal downloading is out of control! Vinyl sales continue to increase and many indie releases don't register on official charts suggesting the true figures are even higher. Vinyl has always been for a niche market of music lovers and it is not going anywhere.

Polyester Records

Name and position of person answering: Nate Nott, co-owner

Contact details and operating hours:

387 Brunswick Street Fitzroy, 9419 5137, 10am–late; 288 Flinders Lane City. 9663 8696, 10am–6pm most days, polyesterrecords.com.

What does your store specialise in?

Quality local and international releases, preferably on vinyl but CDs are cool too.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why? Dick Diver's Calendar Days, one of the best albums to come out in all the years I've worked in music retail.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day? 
It's essentially a party day – DJs in both stores, Spite House and Constant Mongrel playing in the city store, plus exclusive RSD releases and a 15% off all vinyl, cds and books.

What is the holy grail of vinyl, that everyone wants to buy, but nobody can get their hands on?

Well they've both been in stock in recent years but both the Rowland S Howard albums. If only there was a record label smart enough to keep them in print.

Who is the most famous customer that has come in to the store and what did they buy?

In my time here it's probably been Tim Robbins. I think he bought a Xavier Rudd CD but apart from that he was pretty cool.

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

Yep! Full list should be up on the website now.

What is your favourite concept album and why?

It's sentimental (and probably cheating) but You Am I Hourly, Daily.  Growing up in the suburbs of Sydney this was it, from dawn 'til dusk.

We walk in to your shop with $150 to spend – what do you recommend we buy?

Keep it local! Super Wild Horses,  Absolute Boys, Songs, The Drones, The Stevens, Dick Diver, School Girl Report - all genuine hit records and you'd probably get some change.

The demise of physical product in the music industry has been exaggerated – discuss.

It's been exaggerated by lazy media who have only bothered to check Excel spreadsheets and ask their buddies who run multi-million dollar “music stores”. Fuck them. People who have always bought records are still buying records, they're the only people we listen to.

NEW SOUTH WALES

Repressed Records

Name and position of person answering:

Chris, Owner

Contact details and operating hours:

www.repressedrecords.com  Open 10 -7pm Mon to Sunday

What does your store specialise in?

Vinyl and t-shirts. Lots of alternative, Australian indie, DIY, punk and import stuff.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

The Drones' I See Seaweed just turned up on vinyl. Enjoying it a lot. Dick Diver Calendar Days is great too. For fans of The Go-Betweens [and] Flying Nun stuff.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

Loads and loads of exclusive releases, a shipment of import vinyl. Plus Kim Salmon is playing instore from 4pm and we are giving away a double pass to the Dig It Up! festival on Sunday to a lucky customer.

What is the holy grail of vinyl, that everyone wants to buy, but nobody can get their hands on?

Repressed Records.

Who is the most famous customer that has come in to the store and what did they buy?

The dudes from You Am I come in occasionally, Dave Graney came in. Isaac Luke and Wes Carr walked in then walked out in ten seconds. Loads from the bands that matter around Sydney and Melbourne.

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

Yep. From Slayer and Venom to Half Japanese and Captain Beefheart, Foo Fighters and Kings of Leon to White Stripes and Wire, Thee Oh Sees to David Bowie and Bob Dylan. Our biggest haul yet! Check our website for a full list.

What is your favourite concept album and why?

Husker Du Zen Arcade. It's fast and you barely realise it's a concept album. Just play classical if you wanna look smart.

We walk in to your shop with $150 to spend – what do you recommend we buy?

Lower Plenty Hard Rubbish, Hot Snakes Automatic Midnight, The Clean Oddities, UV Race Racism, Minutemen Double Nickels On The Dime, Pavement Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain. All on vinyl.

The demise of physical product in the music industry has been exaggerated – discuss.

We sell vinyl, and not just to fifty year olds. Young people with blood coursing through their veins and a pep in their step come here. They talk with enthusiasm about this physical product they have purchased and return to do it repeatedly.

Egg Records

Name and position: Ric Trevaskes and Barry Scott, owners

Contact details and operating hours:

(02) 9550 6056; 10am – 6pm seven days, Newtown

What does your store specialise in?

Rare and recycled records, from 1950s to the present – all genres.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

It's a fight for the record player because there are too many things to explore. Today it's power pop, but tomorrow it's English folk.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

Glebe Record Fair is on Saturday 20 April – Record Store Day – and we'll all be there as I'm sure all your readers will as well. It's the perfect way to start your record store crawl – all the shops have a presence at the fair, you'll support them all by being there.

What's the holy grail of vinyl that everyone wants but nobody can get their hands on?

Everyone has their own holy grail and we've hidden them all somewhere at Glebe Record Fair. All you need to do is find them there...

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

Both shops will stock record store day releases, but who knows what they will be?

Utopia Records

Name and position: Garry Stapleton, owner

Contact details and operating hours:

02 9571 6662 - Mon, Tue, Wed, Fri, Sat - 10-6pm; Thu 10-8pm; Sun 12-4pm

What does your store specialise in?

Hard rock and metal – but with vinyl we buy a lot of collections, so we have a diverse range of genres.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

Ghost – Infestissumam, because it's fucking awesome! Also, new releases from Hypocrisy, Kvelertak, Jello Biafra, Stone Sour, Witchcraft and of course any number of classic metal and rock albums.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

We'll have a shiteload of Record Store Day releases from local and overseas suppliers. We'll be discounting the 6,000+ new and used vinyl we have in store. There'll be random giveaways of stuff. We're also chasing instores from a couple of touring acts.

What's the holy grail of vinyl that everyone wants but nobody can get their hands on?

The Sex Pistols – Pretty Vacant 7” on A&M records is probably as close as I'd get, but this is really subjective and I can't speak for everyone. Others might be The White Album Mono numbered under ten or a local release could be The Saints – I'm Stranded 7” on Fatal.

Pacific Records

Name and position: Sven Wouters (Owner)

Contact details and operating hours:

Tue to Fri from 12pm until 5pm, Sat from 10am until 5pm. Although I can be found here often outside these hours! 
Shop 3/1761 Pittwater Road, Mona Vale; Ph: (02) 8411 2331; contact@pacificrecords.com.au; www.pacificrecords.com.au; www.facebook.com/pacificrecordsaustralia.

What does your store specialise in?

Predominantly collectable vinyl, both new and second-hand. CDs, shirts, posters but also turntables and other hi-fi components.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

Electric Wizard, Uncle Acid, Black Angels, Brian Jonestown Massacre, Arthur Lee & Love, Iggy, Sonic Youth, Bad Brains, Buffalo and Seasick Steve. All on sexy vinyl of course.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

RSD will be Record Store Weekend at Pacific Records! Saturday we'll mainly focus on the Glebe Record Fair and Sunday will be our biggest day in the shop. Not only will we celebrate RSD but also the first anniversary in our new Mona Vale location! There'll be some live music, a BBQ and several tasty beverages available! Oh yes and a sale on all our stock.

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

I haven't gone all out on the exclusives as there are so many other amazing releases around.

Resist Records

Name and position: Graham Nixon, owner

Contact details and operating hours:

(02) 9557 8771; Mon – Wed: 10.30 – 5.00pm, Thu: 10.30 – 6.00pm, Fri: 10.30 – 5.30pm, Sat: 10.30 – 5.00pm, Sun 10.30 – 4.00pm

What does your store specialise in?

Punk and hardcore music and merchandise.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

The Rival Mob's Mob Justice LP and Vigilante's Quality Of Life 12”. Both are great!

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

Other than stocking some exclusive RSD titles, we won't be doing too much else. Maybe the odd balloon, some streamers – see how I'm feeling on the day!

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

We'll have the Parkway Drive Killing With A Smile LP on vinyl for the very first time, a Poison Idea 7”, Integrity LP, an a few other bits and pieces.

The demise of physical product in the music industry has been exaggerated – discuss.

People still want to own a physical product whether it be vinyl or CD. People are possibly buying less music, however there's a lot more being released these days than ever before, as well as a lot more bands touring.

Music Farmers

Name and position: Jeb Taylor, co-owner.

Contact details and operating hours:

5 Crown Lane, Wollongong. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday: 10am – 6pm, Thursday: 10am – 7pm, Saturday 10am – 4pm, Sunday 11am – 3pm. www.musicfarmers.com

What does your store specialise in?

Vinyl but we also stock books, CDs, DVDs, shirts, etc.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

For today, the new Kurt Vile record is sounding great, the Foxygen album from earlier in the year has really grown on me. There's also been some Betty Davis, Rodriguez, Howlin' Wolf and Ty Segall in there.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

We have bands and solo artists playing across the day, free BBQ, record store day releases, giveaways. Here's who's playing live: Bored Nothing (7pm), Tiny Ruins (6pm), Shining Bird (5pm), Leadfinger (4pm), Peter Black (aka Blackie) (3pm), Michele Madden (2pm), Sweet Lime (1pm).

What's the holy grail of vinyl, that everyone wants but nobody can get their hands on?

We get asked regularly for a lot of '90s Australian albums like the You Am I catalogue, first Silverchair (which is actually being reissued soon), Magic Dirt, Spiderbait, etc, which have either never been pressed on vinyl or only had very limited runs back in the day.

Audio Boutique

Name and position: Carmelina Stillone, Director

Contact details and operating hours:

Shop 5/18 Bungan Street, Mona Vale; (02) 9997 5313; Weekday 9.30am to 5.30pm, Sat 9 to 4pm, closed Sundays

What does your store specialise in?

Traditional Hi Fi solutions with a strong focus on Audio and also home theatre. Our passion is customising solutions that deliver the best sound quality for people's listening pleasure. We like to represent quality brands at various prices to accommodate all kinds of social demographics. With the current resurgence of vinyl, we're providing a fantastic selection of turntables, vinyl records, cleaning products and accessories including cartridges and stylus'. We also offer an in-store cleaning service for old records that need a little extra love and care to perform at their best.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

We're celebrating by offering the opportunity to purchase turntables at reduced prices. We've over 500 second-hand vinyl records from $2 to $5 each. We've limited edition vinyl too. Celebrations commence 10am with DJ Romeo using 2 Audio Technica turntables outside. We'll have a rep from Audio Technica showing you how to record vinyl to computer.

QUEENSLAND

Egg Records

Name and position of person answering: Ric Trevaskes and Barry Scott, owners

Contact details and operating hours:

(07) 3844 9948; 9.30am to 5.30 pm, seven days; Brisbane

What does your store specialise in?

Rare and recycled records, from 1950s to present – all genres.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

It's a fight for the record player because there are too many things to explore. Today it's power pop, but tomorrow it's English folk.

What is the holy grail of vinyl that everyone wants to buy, but nobody can get their hands on?

Everyone has their own holy grail and we have hidden them all somewhere at the Fair. All you need to do is find them there...

Are you stocking any exclusive Record Store Day releases?

Both shops will stock record store day releases, but who knows what they will be?

We walk in to your shop with $150 to spend – what do you recommend we buy?

If you're headed to the Fair then $150 will buy you a stack of wax – with 100,000 LPs to choose from, you won't need recommendations from me.

The Record Exchange

Name and position of person answering: Richard Van Hart

Contact details and operating hours:

Monday – Saturday 9am to 5pm, Sunday 10am to 4pm

What does your store specialise in?

Records, CDs, DVDs, rock t-shirts and rock posters, Docs, new vinyl, rare vinyl, etc, etc.

What's on high rotation on the sound system at the moment and why?

Rodriguez, Bob Dylan, Beatles, Led Zeppelin – all these sell all the time.

How is your store celebrating Record Store Day?

Buy three get two free for all used Records, CDs and DVDs. $5 off all rock t-shirts

What is the holy grail of vinyl that everyone wants to buy, but nobody can get their hands on?

Bands like Buffalo, La De Das, Nick Drake, Beatles – all classic stuff that we have in stock now and more coming.

Who is the most famous customer that has come in to the store and what did they buy?

We had quite a few over the last 40 years - Slash, Courtney Love, Henry Rollins, Lenny Kravitz and the lead singer of Opeth.