But this week, employees at Landlocked Music and Tracks are preparing for a tide of chaos.
Saturday is Record Store Day, an unofficial global holiday dedicated to the celebration and promotion of independent record stores. Originally conceived in 2007, participating stores will see customers from near and far lining the blocks of downtown Bloomington ?Saturday morning.
“There’s usually a line around the block by the time we open,” said Jason Nickey co-owner of Landlocked Music on North Walnut Street. “We’ll see, it’s pretty chaotic for the first couple hours — which is good.”
Nickey said a band will play for patrons as they wait in what he anticipates will be a long line. Disc jockeys Mike Adams, Stephen Westrich, Ann Jonker and Magician Johnson will play from when the store opens at 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., followed by bands such as Thee Open Sex, Birimbi and Cowboys from ?4-7 p.m.
“It’s tenfold,” said Jarrett Noel, music manger at Tracks located on East Kirkwood Avenue, on his preparations for Record Store Day. “We’re so much busier than normal; this is the busiest week of the year for us.”
Noel said he expects a line going around the block. Tracks will open at 8 a.m. and will give free donuts and coffee to customers who arrive early.
Both Nickey and Noel said Record Store Day is the most important day of the year for their stores, not just because of the expected large increase in sales that Saturday will bring, but the exposure they get from people who are not regular patrons.
“I mean, in sales it will be our biggest day of the year,” Noel said. “What we usually do — you know — in a couple of weeks, we do in a day. It’s basically our Black Friday.”
And for music lovers, Record Store Day can be like Black Friday. Maybe not in terms of the discounts, but because of the rush to retailers customers make to get exclusive and limited release records that are sold on the day. Some patrons will feel compelled to get in line early, hoping to grab a limited copy of their favorite record.
Both Nickey and Noel said their respective stores will carry most of the exclusive and limited records that will become available this Saturday.
Nickey said he expects to see patrons from Indianapolis, Terre Haute, Columbus, Ind., and Louisville, Ky., in his store Saturday, hopefully spread ing the gospel of buying vinyl.
“I think exposure in general gets people in to records more,” Noel said. “I mean, it’s nice to make some money on that day, obviously, but all in all it’s good that people are into record stores again.”
