Co-ordinator of Record Store Day and manager of Rough Trade East, Spencer Hickman (who also makes a cracking mix tape) has described this year’s event as an "overwhelming success". And the stats certainly seem to back up his claim. For all of us who treasure the feel of hefty vinyl packaging in our hands, there’s good news: bands such as Radiohead, Foo Fighters, Gorillaz and Queen all enjoyed spiking sales, with the Official Charts Company (OCC) reporting a doubling physical single sales from independent stores over Record Store Day 2010.
Furthermore, eight of the top 10 selling selling physical singles for the week were Record Store Day exclusives, as well as nine of the top 10 vinyl albums – a remarkable feat, considering the exclusives are on sale for only one day. As Hickman said: "In commercial terms, this year was the biggest we have yet seen."
This was the third Record Store Day in the UK, with the number of participating stores increasing to 180 from 150 last year, while physical album sales were also up 20% on 2010. And there are also unconfirmed reports that Quietus pilot Luke Turner nabbed the last of the Suede exclusives on sale…
Hickman added: "In commercial terms, this year was the biggest we have yet seen."
