record store day
Record Store Day is just around the corner, as stores around the country will be stocking limited releases and hosting special events to celebrate vinyl culture on Saturday, April 16. Oxford’s own The End Of All Music is again planning to pull out all the stops for the record aficionados of north Mississippi.
“Record Store Day is more of a celebration for the community around the record store, rather than the record store [itself],” says owner David Swider. “Because without the customers, I wouldn’t be here.”
“So rather than just sitting here and taking money all day, I like to throw a big party.”
The End Of All Music will open at 10 am on Saturday, and will feature live music, food trucks, coffee, and all the other amenities that contribute to what has become arguably the record store’s foremost annual event. High Point Coffee, the Yoknapataco truck, and Brad Hayden’s BBQ Smokeshop rig will all be on hand.
And of course the special vinyl releases themselves will be a surefire draw.
“People usually come with some idea of what they want to get in mind, and we usually have a great turnout,” says local writer and End Of All Music employee Bill Boyle. “The last couple of years there have been people waiting overnight, camping out.”
After the initial morning rush dies down, there will be plenty of reasons to hang around. Len Clark will be opening his art studio, located just two doors down, to the public and showing his new series of paintings for the event. Woodworker Ryan Peirce will also be selling custom-made record crates, which Swider describes as “pretty amazing.” The End Of All Music will also be hosting raffles for some top-notch swag, including speakers, headphones, signed records, and more.
Other official sponsors include Yalobusha Brewery, Fat Possum Records, and illustrator J. Burwell. The full list of Record Store Day releases (“The List”) is available at www.recordstoreday.com, though the store cannot guarantee exactly what they will have in stock due to high demand nationally.
“There’ll be a lot of good stuff to buy, but we’re going to be giving away a lot of free stuff,” Swider emphasizes. “And I want to drink beers with everybody, too. We’ll have a good time with it.” 
