Record Store Day

Record labels have been hardest hit by the music industry recessiona result that many listeners seem to be OK with, given that record labels have long been viewed as the industry’s soulless, profiteering villainsbut the industry’s good guys, those tiny independent record stores, have also taken a pounding as listeners increasingly turn to downloading. As part of a national push to get consumers to return to those wonderful hubs they used to buy their music from, some great artistsincluding R.E.M., Built to Spill, Stephen Malkmus and Death Cab For Cutieare releasing a series of exclusive, in-store-only singles today, while record stores around Milwaukee offer special sales, promotions and entertainment. (Read this ExpressMilwaukee.com article for a complete line-up of the bands playing Atomic Records and the Exclusive Company.)