Vinyl lovers’ favorite unofficial holiday is finally upon us, as Record Store Day is on Saturday, April 12. RSD 2025 is taking place a tad earlier than normal due to Easter, and this year’s long list of exclusive releases is packed with rare recordings, archival live performances, and unique colored vinyl pressings. The vinyl exclusives available on Record Store Day will motivate music fans to get in line early in the morning (with some die-hards even camping out overnight), while causing collectors to hit up multiple independent record stores in the area hoping to find everything on their want lists.

We sifted through this year’s list of Record Store Day releases to find 15 vinyl treasures to keep an eye out for while you are flipping through the racks at the record shop, including a stellar batch of Minnesota-related releases that would make nice additions to your vinyl collection.

Four RSD releases with Twin Cities ties: 

The Jayhawks - Blue Earth: The Jayhawks’ beloved second album has been out of print on vinyl since its original release back in 1989 on legendary Minneapolis record label, Twin/Tone Records. This spare collection is rooted in a series of rough demos recorded before the band went into the studio, giving the songs an intimacy and warmth that shines through. This special RSD release of Blue Earth also includes a 7” EP featuring four bonus tracks that have never been on vinyl before.

Prince & The New Power Generation - Live at Glam Slam: This live, three-LP set from Prince & the NPG was originally included in the Grammy-nominated Diamonds And Pearls Super Deluxe Edition box set. But for those of you who weren’t able to score that set, this scorching live show from Prince’s downtown Minneapolis nightclub is now available as a stand-alone release for the first time. The 100-minute performance from January 1992 captures Prince giving his local fans a preview of the Diamonds And Pearls Tour. This RSD exclusive is packaged in a triple-gatefold set featuring yellow 140g vinyl, with an etching of the cover of Diamonds And Pearls on side 6.

The Replacements - Tim: This two-LP set is pressed on purple vinyl to mark the 40th anniversary of the ‘Mats 1985 major label debut. In addition to the 2023 remaster of the original album included on the first LP, the second record features the fan-favorite Ed Stasium mix of Tim that was originally included on the critically acclaimed Let It Bleed Edition box set that was released in 2023. This was the final Replacements album to feature the band’s original lineup, and the outsider anthems featured on Tim continue to resonate with new generations of music fans.

Soul Asylum - After The Flood: Live From The Grand Forks Prom, June 28, 1997: This live performance took place two months after a flood devastated Grand Forks, North Dakota, when Soul Asylum performed for the local high schools’ combined prom, held inside an airplane hangar at the Grand Forks Air Force Base. Soul Asylum opened their set with a raucous cover of Alice Cooper’s “School's Out” to let the kids know they were on their side, with other prom-appropriate covers filling out the setlist alongside Soul Asylum's big hits. This memorable show is being released exclusively on RSD as a two-LP set on black vinyl.

Best of the rest:

Belly - King: Belly’s second album finally gets a long-awaited repressing on vinyl, having been out of print since the album first came out back in 1995. This beloved, Grammy-nominated indie band were started by former Throwing Muses member Tanya Donelly, following her short time in the Breeders. King would be Belly’s final album until their 2018 reunion record, Dove, and this special RSD release is pressed on green vinyl. 

Charli XCX - Number 1 Angel and Guess featuring Billie Eilish: As if Charlie XCX didn’t rule the music world during Brat Summer, the Grammy-winning artist is also set to own Record Store Day with two hot releases. First up is an exclusive release of her 2017 mixtape, Number 1 Angel — appropriately pressed on Apple colored vinyl — which features production from the late, great Sophie. Charli is also dropping a 7-inch release of her Grammy-nominated collaboration with Billie Eilish, “Guess,” with both the original release and the remix featured on the record.

Lisa Germano - Geek the Girl & Inconsiderate Bitch: Lisa Germano launched her music career as the violinist for John Mellencamp, but her 1994 album Geek the Girl became an underground fan-favorite, eventually being named one of the best albums of the 1990s by Spin magazine. To mark the record’s 30th anniversary, it is getting pressed on vinyl for the very first time for RSD 2025. It’s being issued as a two-LP set, which will also include the preceding EP, Inconsiderate Bitch.

George Harrison / Beck - “Be Here Now”: George Harrison’s moving mantra, “Be Here Now,” from his 1973 album, Living in the Material World, has been selected as RSD's Song of the Year for 2025. This double A-side, 12-inch single includes the 2024 remaster of Harrison’s classic tune, and it features the first physical release of Beck's stirring cover of the song, which was originally released as an Apple Music exclusive. All proceeds from this release will go to Harrison’s charity, the Material World Foundation.

Hindu Love Gods - Hindu Love Gods: Members of R.E.M. started this ramshackle side-project in the mid-’80s, covering old blues standards at various clubs in the band’s hometown of Athens, Georgia. The group eventually were tapped as the backing band on Warren Zevon’s 1987 album, Sentimental Hygiene, and during those sessions, they recorded the 10 loose and spontaneous covers that comprise Hindu Love Gods’ only album, which includes their rendition of Prince’s “Raspberry Beret” that surprisingly charted on the Billboard Hot 100. The album hasn’t been available on vinyl since 1990, and it is pressed on 180g black vinyl. 

Oasis - Time Flies…1994 - 2009: Oasis’ upcoming reunion has been dominating the music world’s headlines since the Gallagher brothers first announced they were getting back together for a run of stadium shows around the world this summer. They are capitalizing on that attention by reissuing their 2010 singles compilation, Time Flies…1994 – 2009, for the first time since its original release. This limited-edition reissue is a numbered, four-LP box set featuring multicolored vinyl pressings. 

Post Malone - Tribute To Nirvana: During the 2020 pandemic lockdown, Post Malone — 2025’s Record Store Day ambassador — hosted a livestream tribute to Nirvana shortly after the anniversary of Kurt Cobain’s death. He was joined by Blink-182’s Travis Barker on drums, guitarist Nick Mack, and bassist Brian Lee, and the impassioned, rousing, 14-song set proved that Posty is a true Nirvana fan and can adapt his sound to suit any genre. He’s since gone on to perform alongside the surviving members of the band, and for RSD, his Nirvana tribute set is available in a physical format for the very first time, being pressed on yellow vinyl. One-hundred percent of net proceeds from this release will be donated to Musicares’ Addiction Recovery/Mental Health division.

Rage Against The Machine - Live On Tour 1993: This incendiary live collection captures a young and untamed Rage on their very first world tour. The two-LP set features 10 explosive songs from their early shows at a variety of venues around the globe, with the live recordings remaining completely untouched and unmixed to capture the band’s raw fury and frenetic energy. Side four of this collection features an etching.

Lou Reed - Metal Machine Music: Lou Reed’s divisive 1975 album gets a special two-LP release on Record Store Day to mark its 50th anniversary. In addition to the striking, redesigned cover art, this exclusive release by Legacy Recordings is appropriately pressed on metallic silver vinyl, with each side featuring a single, 16-minute experimental composition that Reed simply titled "Metal Machine Music A-1, 2, 3, 4." This album remains as sonically challenging today as it did a half-century ago while also highlighting the uncompromising creative genius of Lou Reed. 

Taylor Swift - “Fortnight”: Taylor Swift was 2022’s Global Record Store Day ambassador, and the music megastar typically releases some of the most in-demand titles on RSD every year. Her “Fortnight” 7-inch this year should prove to be no exception, as she shares her Grammy-nominated, chart-topping collaboration with this year’s RSD ambassador, Post Malone. The flipside features the first-ever vinyl release of the “Fortnight [BLOND:ISH Remix],” while the cover art features a still from the stylish music video for “Fortnight,” which Swift directed herself.

Wicked: The Soundtrack: Wicked is a pop culture phenomenon, with the Broadway musical receiving three Tony Awards and earning a Grammy. The blockbuster film adaptation — starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo — became the top-grossing film based on a Broadway musical, and it received 10 Oscar nominations. Wicked: The Soundtrack debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard album chart, and it features the smash hits, "Defying Gravity" and "Popular." This limited-edition release is a numbered two-LP set featuring RSD exclusive cover art, and it is pressed on green-glitter and pink-glitter vinyl. The record also features a bonus track ("Ozdust Duet") that was only previously released digitally, with a special poster included in the set.

External Link

Record Store Day – official site