Record Store Day returns for a 19th year of celebrating independent music stores
Posted April 17, 2026 1:21 pm.
Last Updated April 17, 2026 1:35 pm.
Saturday is Record Store Day, the 19th annual celebration of independent music retailers that began in 2007.
“It’s still by a mile our busiest day of the year, and every year is busier than the previous one,” said Ben Frith, manager of Vancouver’s Neptoon Records.
Frith says it’s remarkable how the event has evolved over the years.
“I think one of the biggest changes is just seeing that we have such a different demographic of people coming in for the event,” he said.
“Like they’ve really expanded [who] the special releases are catering to. It’s not just the diehard nerds. It’s also the fresh fans, which is great.”
Special releases this year include titles by Honeymoon Suite, David Bowie, and Taylor Swift.
Frith says Swift fans, or Swifties, represent a new generation of record buyers.
“Not only are they a large customer base, but they’re a great customer base,” he said. “They’re always friendly and nice.”
Frith is personally excited for releases by Ike White, the Ngozi Family, and the 13th Floor Elevators.
Nineteen years in, he says Neptoon is always looking at ways of keeping Record Store Day fresh.
“We’re always trying to find ways to make it a little bit better every year, whether it’s just refining the process, figuring out how to make things go faster,” he said.
“We always have quite a lineup in the morning and [we’re] really trying to make it so that can move a little bit faster.”
“I want to say the earliest we’ve had [people show up] was last year, and it was 1:00 or 2:00 in the afternoon the day before, which was wild. But that being said, we get people to come later at night and they still get their spot.”
He has some tips for first-timers.
“One really important thing to do is take a look at the Record Store Day website and see what the releases are. You don’t want to go home with something you don’t want, or maybe you’ll discover something you didn’t know existed,” he said.
“Take a look at that, take a look at every store’s list, and see what they have. And think, if there’s 100 people in line and there’s only two of this, will I get it?”
For the full list of releases and participating retailers, head to recordstoredaycanada.ca.
