1 week Ago By [email protected] (Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz)
Record Store Day 2025 has sparked an unprecedented buzz across the nation as plethora of vinyl fans have been camping out overnight, aiming to grab those rare releases first thing. The spectacle of long lines formed outside independent music shops has left some bystanders astonished and others feeling a rush of 'panic'. Celebrating the distinct culture of nearly 300 independent record stores throughout the UK, Record Store Day is a much-anticipated annual event featuring special vinyl editions produced solely for this day, and is often marked by live performances from artists in various shops and cities.
But understandably, some have been confused by the appearance of long queues outside record stores - with one person even queuing a whopping 23 hours. In a testament to diehard fandom, Evan from Wigan planted himself outside Manchester's Piccadilly Records at 9am on April 11th with just a book for company, determined to remain until doors opened at 8am the following day, as covered by the Manchester Evening News . He was hoping to grab the coveted copy of the limited-edition Wicked movie soundtrack, with a global circulation of merely 2,000.
As dawn broke today, images began surfacing on social media, showing lines stretching out of sight. One tweet aptly captured the mood: "Panic on the streets of Dublin..
. Record Store Day queues outside Tower and Spindizzy Records." One enthusiast from Manchester captured the spirit of Record Store Day by sharing images of the queues and commenting: "I normally shake my head at the sight of queues but those prepared to queue for a record are the coolest people on earth, without exception.
I hope each gets that piece of vinyl their hearts yearn for. Total respect." Kingston's Banquet Records gave a sneak peek into their preparations for Record Store Day with a TikTok video posted around 8pm on Friday night, revealing an already forming queue.
The clip sparked reactions of surprise and a realisation among viewers that they might need to arrive "earlier than anticipated" with one person exclaiming: "There's a queue already? !" while another admitted they "didn't realise" the early turnout. Over in Austin, Texas, Waterloo Records proudly shared that their first customer had joined the queue around midday on Friday, committing to over 17 hours of waiting. The dedication of this early bird received mixed responses; some were in awe of her commitment, while others couldn't fathom waiting so long.
A fellow music lover noted: "Wow! Even earlier than last year! ! Hoping the line won't be too bad when I get there.".
