"We carried you in our arms, on International Record Store Day..."

April 15-16, 2011

1808: I'm on a Union Pacific West train from Chicago's Ogilvie station to Geneva, Illinois, to help/hang out at Steve Warrenfeltz's Kiss the Sky music store for International Record Store Day. Accompanying me on the ride is what will be my final listen of the new Destroyer album for some time, two master cylinders of Miller Lite, and Jonathan Franzen's latest New Yorker piece on Robinson Crusoe, the evolution of the novel in English, his travels to a near inhospitable island outside of Chile, and the ashes of David Foster Wallace. The article's erudition and emotional intelligence compel me to put it down at intervals and look at the window. After all, I got records on the brain.

1930: Eating a modest assortment of nigiri and maki at Matsuri with Jamee, just a few steps away from the Spice House, where Jamee works. The hamachi is so good I get an extra double order for the the both of us.

2035: Kiss the Sky in preparation for the midnight opening in honor of International Record Store Day. We hear from Steve that the last shipment of exclusive RSD releases didn't come through, because of some miscommunication or mis-distribution between warehouse and retail outlet (my comprehension of the situation is admittedly limited). Environment is intense, but when I look at the racks stocked with Syd Barrett-Pink Floyd and late-era Velvet Underground singles, I see that there is definitely some stuff here, some good stuff. Jamee and I break down boxes of RSD promos, get a swag system together for easy passing along to customers, move things into the back. I pull boxes of the Steve Warrenfeltz Made in Aurora LP out of his RAV-4 while Jamee hangs a canvas poster above the MIA display. And I eat cookies and muffin pieces in secret while Jamee blocks off the back of the house with a sun tapestry.

2200: We stop in at Bistro Thai for the RSD celebratory concert, packed to the gills with fans and family members. Complimentary appetizers were supposed to have been placed out for visitors, but no space--no space for sitting, hardly for standing. A sign of the night to come. Jamee and I go two doors down to the Ale House, she venting while I cram my mouth full of homemade potato chips (food-wise, I was on a rather disgusting roll). Mat and Al stop buy, and we talk running while I'm in the process of eating myself to death.

2345: Last minute tweaks before the doors open at Kiss the Sky. My job as it turns out, is to keep the Made in Aurora shelf stocked and to talk with people as they wait in line. Speaking of lines, the queue outside the door goes down the block, and every so often someone will sneak in through the front door as if they don't know what's going on.

2400: Though these days it seems inappropriate to use "tsunami" as a basis for comparison, a wave of people flood the narrow aisles (well, they seem narrow if crowded with 25 customers) of Kiss the Sky. Some know what they want and flow right from the product to the register--the serious folks browse, talk story, and pick up different things just because they love them. Steve works like a beast checking folks out, while Jamee computes prices at his side.

0100: The Made in Aurora LP is going fast. I stock one row, and the other disappears. Someone requests Fela Kuti. Another learns that the Ryan Adams release sold out 55 minutes ago.

0230: I'm in line with a young woman picking up a single by the hip-hop artist Self, I think as a gag. Eventually talk turns to the nature of good and evil. The fact that I can have a comprehensive, in-depth conversation with someone illustrates how long the line is at this point. I consider lying down in one of the boxes in the back.

0330: Everything I thought I wanted has been bought--all that's left are a few 45's by Peter, Bjorn and John, Black Angels, and a surprising amount of Michael Jackson (whose estate released something for Record Store for some reason). The last few customers reluctantly leave the store with either what they wanted or their back ups. I fall asleep in the car on the ride home.

0730: Everyone up again, Jamee to work at the Spice House, Steve to put in another Record Store Day for the customers who didn't hear about the midnight opening. Turns out Kiss the Sky nearly did as well the second shift. I stop by Kiss the Sky for my own customer experience, walk away with my own copy of Made in Aurora, the new Stokes LP and and Iron and Wine single I bought just because I felt like I had to. It wasn't that good. A mad dash for the 0830 train, a long commute back into the rainy city, and a day spent on the couch eating chips and listening to public radio, which puts me to sleep for the rest of the day.