With the biggest day in any vinyl junkie’s calendar almost upon us, we took five minutes out of Record Store Day UK coordinator Megan Page’s busy day to chat how she landed the role, the exclusive releases on her wish list, and the stores she’ll be hitting on the day…
When did you get into record collecting?
It probably started for me in my late teens when I found my dad’s record collection in the loft. He had collected lots of records from The Beatles, The Stones and David Bowie when he was younger and luckily didn’t get rid of them of all when everyone moved over to CDs. I was really into those classic albums at the time and (as cliché as it sounds) just fell in love with the artwork, reading the liner notes and that nice, warm crackly sound you get from old vinyl. Everyone says it but it is a pretty addictive hobby and so after that it led me to buying lots of new records and really building up a collection that represented my taste in music.
How did you get involved with Record Store Day?
It was a role I got into straight from University and still to this day feels like a right place, right time kind of moment. I fell in love with music from a really young age and spent a lot of time going to gigs and reading the NME like a bible. But I studied linguistics at University so didn’t necessarily have the experience to work in the music industry. But I got a role interning for RSD and four years on and I’m still here and now coordinate the whole of the UK leg of the event which involves the artist, label, retail relations as well as managing the social & PR strategies too. It’s full on but it’s a lot of fun too. It’s great working with so many iconic and special record shops every day.
Which of this year’s releases are on your wish list?
So many. I keep adding to my list too. I think The National’s live in Brussels album is going to be special. Laura Marling has just announced new music for RSD too as part of a new project with Mike Lindsay called LUMP. That’s one I really want in my collection.
Are you seeing more women turning up to RSD events?
Yeah absolutely. Not just on RSD, but all year-round. It’s hard to give any hard stats as the gender split isn’t really tracked but anecdotally, I think those male-dominated, hi-fidelity-esque days are a thing of the past. Record shops could sometimes be an intimidating place but there are loads more women behind the counter nowadays which has obviously created a much more gender balanced environment.
Obviously, girls love vinyl too. It’s naïve and very irritating that there are still some people out there who don’t consider this to be the case!
Which stores will you hit on the day?
I live in Brixton so will go and visit the great shops of South London including the newly opened Soul Proprietors, Lion Vibes, Pure Vinyl and Container Records before heading into central and enjoying the entertainment at Rough Trade East. Though, I’m also thinking of heading to Pie & Vinyl in Portsmouth as they’ve just announced a huge day of live bands and performances which looks like a lot of fun.
What would be your dream RSD release?
I always love it when we get brand new music or rare/ unheard recordings on vinyl for the first time. Last year we went into Abbey Road studios with Kate Tempest and she recorded two songs direct to vinyl and in one take. It was incredible and a really special moment. We did the same again this year with Rag n Bone Man who has recorded two completely unheard tracks and they will be on the RSD release only. I’d love to start seeing more releases like these that are really inventive and different to anything people might have heard before.
Keep up with the RSD 18 fun by following Megan on Instagram here.
