Well, it's Record Store Day. I woke up at 4.30, made it to the Banquet queue at 5.20 (kinda slow in the morning), store opened at 8 and I was in and out by 9. They didn't have all the records I was after, but I got a handful of good ones, and didn't break the bank quite as much as I expected.
Ordinarily I wouldn't write about an album on the day I bought it, but this one is a reissue of an album I know very well and I thought it nice to write about RSD today. I can't remember when I first heard Radio Soulwax Part 2 but it was definitely back when I was at college. I particularly remember hearing it on a road trip to Brighton and on another to Cornwall. It's probably safe to say that those two experiences are both contributing factors to why I consider this album a classic, and why I paid £14 to buy the vinyl today when I already own the cd (a note worth making is that it was actually £19 but I used two Banquet vouchers and applied the discount evenly across all my purchases). Not an essential RSD buy, but a luxury one.
Musically its great, but I knew that before hand. There are highlights the whole way through, and bits that I'd forgotten about that I always enjoy ("It's 10am, do you know where your children are?"). It also works split across 4 sides. The gaps seem natural despite not really being there on the cd. It looks pretty good as a gatefold and the artwork on the cover is glossy. Of course having the tracklisting broken up by timing is pretty redundant on vinyl, especially since its cumulative. Still, there are lines on the record if you wanted to hear a particular bit.
My only problem with it is this: as far as I can tell, the awesome Kylie remix that was hidden at the start of the cd is missing. It was one of the highlights of the album, and my favourite ever rewind-the-cd-at-the-start hidden tracks (although there was a pretty good one on Altered States of America by Agoraphobic Nosebleed - the longest song on there by a mile). There are ways of hiding songs on an LP (Opiate by Tool comes to mind), but I guess they're not desirable. I'd have even been happy if it was just tacked on the end, although ending on "stop button" is pretty cool. A bonus 7 inch would've made for a lovely surprise. The song is still listed on the tracklisting inside.
When they put out these RSD reissues I always feel like they haven't gone to a brilliant amount of effort to make them extra lovely. I ranted a bit yesterday about this subject. Somehow including that hidden track would definitely have made this a particularly special release, but as it is, it's just a reissue. Still, I'm happy enough with it. I shouldn't keep moaning about RSD because I do love it and there are some great records and it's fun to go spend loads in Banquet on a Saturday morning. I had fun this morning, and I look forward to a similar outing next year, not to mention the countless trips to record stores between now and then (although at more reasonable hours).
Format: double 12", gatefold
Tracks: 30 (or 45, depending how you count them)
Cost: £13.86 new
Bought: Banquet
When: 21/4/12
Colour: black
Etching: none
mp3s: no
