Play that funky music; it’s Record Store Day!

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – We may be living in the age of iPods and digital downloads, but there is still one analog format that has never really gone away.

Today marks Record Store Day; the annual event was started several years ago to give independent record stores a boost.

“Every year, it seems to be getting better and better. Even five years ago, most people would be shocked to hear that, but yeah, it’s non-stop,” says Ben Frith, manager of Neptoon Records on Main Street, Vancouver’s oldest and largest stand alone vinyl retailer.

He feels the format is experiencing something of a renaissance. “I think the biggest reason is… as we go to these newer and newer formats, the sound, which should be getting better, seems to be getting worse.”

“So, when you jump back a few steps and hear how great vinyl sounds… there’s just no comparison.”

Frith adds records are also more intimate, compared to CDs, which he says most people rip to their computers and then forget about.

“You put [vinyl] on, it sounds great, and you have to pay attention to what you’re doing,” he explains. “You get the big artwork; it’s really more of an experience all and all.”

Of course, Neptoon isn’t the only game in town when it comes to vinyl. There’s also Audiopile, Zulu, Scrape, and Dandelion, among others.

Frith says we’re something of a vinyl mecca. “Vancouver is a very lucky city in the fact that we have so many independent record stores and that we’re all able to do, as far as I know, fairly well.”

“The luck, for our stores at least, of not having a big box store that sells music anymore… I think we’ve won the battle in this city.”

“Even just talking to different labels and different reps, Vancouver is definitely moving high numbers of things compared to a lot of other places in the country,” he adds.

Neptoon is open all day long and is hosting more than a dozen bands playing live. You can also check out more than 300 Record Store Day exclusives there, too.