Record shops around Hackney and Islington are gearing up for their annual celebration of vinyl despite the coronavirus pandemic.
Since 2008, on a date in April, music-lovers have flocked to record shops on Record Store Day in order to come together, buy exclusive releases and attend special events.
This year, amid the coronavirus pandemic, Record Store Day is being held across three months - August 29, September 26 and October 24.
So which shops in Hackney and Islington are taking part? Check out the Gazette’s list below:
• Flashback Records, on Essex Road in Islington, is a long-time seller of vinyl and records - it has been “recycling music since 1997”.
It has three stores across London, in Islington, Crouch End and Bethnal Green.
The Essex Road branch spans two floors, with CDs, DVDs, and new vinyl as well as a large selection of second-hand products.
Staff are knowledgeable about different types of music styles and are always on-hand to help.
It will be open from 8am on Record Store Day, with social-distancing measures in place such as masks and sanitation.
• Lion Coffee + Records on Lower Clapton Road was founded by the former manager of Florence + The Machine, Mairead Hayden, and her husband Chris Hayden.
A relaxed and chill environment, Lion Coffee is a place to hang out, drink coffee and browse vinyl.
Nestled in the back is a cocktail bar, bought to life at night.
It stocks both vintage albums and new releases, handpicking all its vintage records and sourcing limited editions from current artists.
• Hackney-based shop Tome Records, on Graham Road, will be participating in Records Store Day.
Patrons can buy, sell and trade new and used vinyl and cassettes.
With staff members on hand with over a decade of experience in valuing records, the shops always welcomes people who are looking to sell vinyl records of any size and genre.
A spokesperson at the store said: “We’ve got a certain amount of Records Store Day titles in store but we’ll just be going about as normal and do what we usually do.
“We are requesting that people maintain social distancing and people have been respectful so far so we hope to keep that up on the day.”
• Stranger Than Paradise Records shop on Mare Street in Hackney owes its name to Jim Jarmusch’s 1984 film.
The soundtrack, as well as the film’s sentimentality, is at the core of what the distinctive record shop wants to achieve.
Records are carefully curated by passionate and friendly staff.
A spokesperson at the store confirmed their participation in Record Store Day: “This is our third year doing it. We’ll be opening up pretty early at 8am on the day.
“There will be socially-distanced queuing and we expect everyone to be wearing masks.
“Only three people will be allowed in-store at a time and they should have a list of what they want. It will be a very swift process but still quite enjoyable for everyone.
“All of the remaining stock will be going online at 6pm.”
READ MORE: ‘Every day is record store day for us’ says Hackney vinyl seller
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