Held every third Saturday in April is Record Store Day (taking place on Saturday 16th April this year). Physical formats are very important to us, and with RSD approaching, we wanted to properly celebrate the all mighty vinyl record. So in the lead up, we decided to catch up with a few of our favourite bands to discuss their cherished memories with the medium and the RSD release that they’re most excited about. Today’s band in focus is ETCHES.
Written by ETCHES drummer, Elliot.
A special memory that is intrinsically linked to a 12″…
“I’m usually a designated driver when we play shows, so it’s a rarity that I get to unwind with an alcoholic beverage after playing. In fact, my post-show ritual is packing down and loading the car.
The last show we played at Liverpool’s much-lamented Kazimier, I happened to not be driving, so I could truly toast our favourite venue by making a fool of myself. After we left the venue, Luke (guitar) and I ended up back at our bassist, Paul’s house and we carried on drinking and listening to some vinyl. Luke fell asleep immediately and Paul put on “It’s a Shame About Ray” by The Lemonheads, which he said was “in his top ten”. Because I had overindulged, I had #NoFilter, and proceeded to talk Paul’s ear off about something he didn’t care about, like 90s alt-comedy or how Wheatus are underrated. Like the gent our bassist is, he sat with a smile and listened to me blather on until the early hours of the morning.
The next day, tender and embarrassed, I bought that Lemonheads album. It’s in my top ten now.”
Our RSD Pick…
“There are a lot of us in this band, so naturally there are plenty of conflicting musical tastes floating around. For example, the rest of the band seem to think I only listen to early 2000s pop-punk, which is a rumour I would like to dispel. Sure, I had New Found Glory’s “Sticks and Stones” on heavy rotation when I was a teenager, but I have matured since then (and now I only listen to “Catalyst” – NFG’s 3rd album).
Out of all of this year’s RSD releases, the only thing we could all agree on is Alan Partridge’s “Knowing Me Knowing You” on picture disc. While I am writing this, Paul is sitting across from me wearing a “I’m not driving a Mini-Metro” t-shirt, so it’s safe to say this glorious picture disc containing 2 episodes from the original Radio 4 series of KMKY is the one for us this year. The only way it could be improved is if it came with an Alan Partridge tie and blazer badge set.
Honourable mention goes to Linkin Park’s “Road to Revolution” RSD release, because I was at the recording of that album in Milton Keynes with my Dad.”
Connect with ETCHES on Facebook and Twitter.
For more on Record Store Day, visit their website here.
