Ah, Record Store Day.

As Marc Fayd'Herbe of Universal Music has said about the awesome event, many view Record Store Day as "'the single best thing that has ever happened to the indies (stores).'" This event has single-handedly become a second Christmas to many people heavily involved in the music industry. For those who might not know, Record Store Day is a yearly event and organization that fosters, supports and (on every third Saturday in April) celebrates the unique culture surrounding independent music stores.

Starting the tradition in 2008, Metallica was the unofficial Record Store Day Ambassador and kicked off the day with a performance at Berkeley's Rasputin Music. The same California store saw the second performance of Metallica this past Record Store Day, as the band was ambassador yet again. Over the years, we have seen the likes of Josh Homme and Iggy Pop (who put out this amazing "Post-Pop Depression" album), Ozzy Osbourne and Jack White as Record Store Day Ambassadors, and special appearances from The Beatles to Slayer. Needless to say, it's an exciting time for music enthusiasts. Although it is in April, Record Store Day is easily Second Christmas for many people.

As everyone gets their tax returns back, the special releases for RSD are announced, from special live box set releases to swirled, multi-colored vinyl exclusives that are just too rad to not own. When these would have already been considerations for future purchases, a list is now growing of your desired pressings due to the extra cash flow and you are essentially giving yourself really late Christmas presents. Many collectors will be scoping out the best stuff, so you have to get to the store bright and early and sit in line in a Black-Friday-esque manner. And best of all, tons of supporters of RSD and the individual stores themselves will be more than ready to provide a plethora of free stuff; from free CDs and cassettes to a shirt that reads "This Record Store Sucks."

For those that work at record stores, the holiday spirit is amplified because you literally throw a party in your store. The night shipment delivers all the special releases for the next day and you can't help but peek at the boxes before they are tucked away. You set up the displays to hold the RSD exclusives and work feels even less like work from all the excitement and anticipation for the next morning.

Which leads to the next point: you will not sleep. If you are opening the store on RSD, you will be getting up at an ungodly hour to get to the store, only to find there are still customers who beat you to the door. Even if you are not opening that day, you will most likely be too excited to sleep in and will be at the store almost as early as the rest of your coworkers to grab some swag and the items desired.

And just like that, you've visited with loved ones (because I think we can all agree that record store employees are always the best *cough cough*), gained some amazing items, and probably have a similar feeling of contentedness as when you were a kid sitting at home after the long day of eating and celebrating, while playing with your new toys (or in this case, records).

So quickly, Record Store Day comes and goes once again. But don't worry, next year will be coming around soon enough and if you can't wait until then, you always have Rex Manning Day to celebrate on April 8. So; damn the man, save the empire, and have a wonderful Record Store Day/Second Christmas.