ARIA celebrates Record Store Day, 23 April 2022

23 April 2022 is Record Store Day! It’s the 15th worldwide annual celebration of independent music retailers and will feature an array of special releases and promotions.

To find out what’s happening in your local area, head to Record Store Day Australia’s site.

To celebrate Record Store Day, we asked ARIA staff to share a story about one of their favourite records.

Annabelle: I loved Man of Colours by Icehouse when it was released and it certainly seems fitting at the moment as we have had so many rainy days down at the Harbour watching as the grey clouds shatter the bay.

Tess: Hard to pick a favourite but Tom Misch’s Geography has got to be up there as one of my go-to vinyls. The album opens with a line from an interview with Roy Hargrove which really resonated with me. He talks about what it takes to be an artist and work in music. I also love the combination of electronic funk coupled with hip hop-influenced beats and classic disco arrangements. This album literally has something for every and never gets old.

Kristy: This Record Store Day I am featuring the album Needle Paw by Nai Palm. The record opens and closes with transcendent recordings from indigenous songman Jason Guwanbal Gurruwiwi. Naomi Saalfield breaks away from Hiatus Kaiyote with this beautiful and raw offering exploring love and loss. Always better on vinyl!

Luke: System of a Down’s debut self-titled album played a pivotal roll in my early music exploration. Every time I spin it I’m reminded of the impact it and the band had on defining my generation. Big shout out to Utopia Records for always providing the goods!

Sinead: I’d say it’s my favourite record because that’s the one that properly started my vinyl collection. It came out around summer of 2019 so it’s also connected to a lot of happy memories in a pre-pandemic world where I’d go out with friends and we’d play the album together non-stop. It got me back into playing trumpet too after a few years – recreating the horn line in Fine Line is not as easy as it sounds! 

Dane: Britney Spears' Blackout is a hugely influential pop masterclass from a consistently undervalued, under-estimated pioneer of the genre.

Tara: Mellon Collie & Infinite Sadness was one of the first albums I ever owned. I was only 13 years old when it was released and I was instantly hooked. Fast forward to 2015, twenty years later, I walked down the aisle to my high school sweetheart to the title track of the album. Smashing Pumpkins continue to be one of my most played artists every year on Spotify.

Vanessa: I spent all my teenage years fangirling over One Direction. Last year I was super lucky to get my hands on a limited edition pressing of their debut album Up All Night.

John: I love electronic music like Daft Punk but also love classic rock and metal like AC/DC, Metallica and Guns N’ Roses. Justice’s debut album combined my two loves together and no other album will ever come close.

Michael: This is the first vinyl record I ever bought with my own money. I got it for $10 at a second hand book store in Wollongong in about 2003. Sgt. Pepper encapsulates the beauty of music on vinyl. It's a whole experience from the amazing front cover, to all the the lyrics printed on the back and the cutboard insert of cut-outs. Then there's the music! Ringo learned to play chess on this album.