#vinylcommunity #recordstoreday #rsd2024 #gandalf #rainparade
Crazy that these RSD reissues are selling for HUNDREDS of dollars online less than one month after Record Store Day. They've become a lot pricier since I recorded this review. Here's a distilled summary:
This one just hits different on vinyl. As predicable as it seems, I continue to fall for this racquet because it’s true. It’s all for the love of the music. A lot of people will hate me and think I’m a pompous a$$hole just for expressing my opinions. Dropping the needle on these Record Store Day reissues is about as close as you can get to hearing the music for the first time.
All you need is a decent stereo and some yard sale speakers. There were two unobtainable records missing from my psych collection: Gandalf’s self-titled album from 1969 and The Rain Parade’s “Emergency Third Rail Power Trip” from 1983. These records were released 14 years apart, but their similarities may surprise you.
0:00 Intro
1:36 16 Years of Record Store Day
3:23 Faceless Bands
4:39 Lemongrass, The Color of Vinyl
5:05 Three Original U.S. Pressings
5:21 Here Today, More Expensive Tomorrow
7:45 Gandalf Backstory 9:58 Gandalf Review
12:53 Rain Parade Review
16:15 Rain Parade Bonus Disc Review
18:56 Why do I review albums?
19:06 Good for the Soul
19:17 ?'s for ART & MUISC
We are now 16 years into the vinyl collecting frenzy known as Record Store Day. You don’t see posters of Gandalf or The Rain Parade like you see posters of Jim Morrison, The Beatles, Pink Floyd, The Grateful Dead or Jimi Hendrix. Gandalf wanted to do for Tim Hardin what The Byrds had done for Bob Dylan.
The Rain Parade’s “Emergency Third Rail Power Trip” is such an absurd title that it sticks to your brain the way a marshmallow sticks to your teeth. This album soars into the stratosphere and stays there for the duration.
At first, the bonus disc seems like it is for super fans only. Side 1 felt like homework, it’s mostly 4-track demos of the albums songs, so they just kinda sound more lo-fi. But the more l listen to Side 2, the more I like it. I’d recommend not listening to the bonus disc on the same day as the proper album.
I would highly recommend “Emergency Third Rail Power Trip” to anyone who likes ‘60s psych music. It feels right at home. I love this music. I say, take my money.