April 18 is Record Store Day, which prompts lineups across the Maritimes. At Taz Records in downtown Halifax, many waited outside several hours before open, and well before sunrise. “At this location 2 a.m. but at the Bedford shop 10 p.m.,” says Jimmy Donnelly, Taz Records owner and manager. This is an international date to celebrate independent record stores. Jimmy Donnelly, the owner of Taz Records, says interest has only increased over the years. “I used to have bands in here, I used to bring in donuts, as it grew and grew and grew and more and more people, I couldn’t really do things like that now it’s very much about the product,” says Donnelly. Vinyl lovers Steve and Lindsay Squiers travelled from Moncton, to get their hands on the exclusives. “I got a couple of PHEONIX albums, The Sisters Of Mercy, the new Peaches you’ve got so many more,” says Lindsay. “I’ve got Fear Factory, Junkie Xl, Collective Soul, MC 900 Ft. Jesus, and a couple of others,” adds Steve. This year Taz Records ordered around 300 exclusive titles. “We have everything from K-POP Demon Hunters to Bruce Springsteen, Pink Floyd, Cam Ron, it goes on and on and on,” says Donnelly. Donnelly says hundreds of people came through their doors Saturday, and to thank Maritimers for lining up so early they offered the first 50 people a free record. “It’s absolutely heartwarming, people get so excited, there is a lot of buildup, its months of work and then it’s a crazy day. The demand is significant there’s a lot of very cool titles and you can only get them in the independent stores,” says Donnelly. With lineups wrapping around the store, some Maritimer’s were worried they wouldn’t get their favourites. “We were lucky, we got our hands on the Springsteen, we got a couple other records, Chapel Rone, Phoebe Bridgers and then a few CDs,” says customer, Maren Bradley. “I got Tate Macrae and Charlie XIX,” says another customer, Erica Moore. “We got the last two Tate Macrae’s, so we are sorry for people that didn’t get it, we had to think of ourselves in there,” said customer Cadence Lemieux. Donelly has seen the growing interest for these physical media firsthand, he says it reminds him of his childhood. “Young people in particular are buying more cassettes and CDs which is nice,” says Donelly Every Maritimer has their own reasons for collecting. “We are the generation of vinyl, I used to work at a vinyl store back in the day I have been collecting since ‘98, ‘99,” says Lindsay Squiers. “My dad is a big collector as well and when we are at home it always sounds better on vinyl,” says Stewart Bradley. “I got into vinyl about a year and a half ago and spent a little too much money on it, but I think it’s an investment and it sounds kind of pretentious, but I think vinyl is more an authentic experience listening to music,” explains Moore. Saturday people had to purchase in store, and nothing was kept on hold due to the demand but Sunday the remaining stock gets posted on Taz’s website. That’s when Donnelly says orders come from all over the world. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page
