Bozeman Magazine

Attention music lovers:  Cactus Records in downtown Bozeman will once again be part of the yearly “Black Friday” music release special event, organized by the people behind the popular “Record Store Day,” on Friday, November 28th, the day following Thanksgiving.  

“The Gift of Music” is one of the most cherished and oft-remembered presents a music fan can receive, especially for the holidays. A well-chosen music item picked and offered as a gift to a friend or loved-one can trigger years’ worth of nostalgia that other gifts can’t match.

In recognition of this, each year hundreds of recordings artists and record labels craft special limited-edition, collectible music packages for their fans, collectively released through the Record Store Day organization, and available on “Black Friday”exclusively at independent record stores like Cactus Records.

Like on National Record Store Day, which takes place yearly on the third Saturday of April, each of the Black Friday special releases are pressed in limited quantities, and therefore are in high-demand amongst music fans. Most are unique in some way, including elaborate packaging, colored vinyl (a collector’s favorite), and often contain recordings not previously released. Regardless of their taste, most music fans will find more than a couple of these items that they consider  “must-haves.”

Some of this year’s treats include releases by the Beatles, The Dead Milkmen, The Flaming Lips, Miles Davis, Gov’t Mule, Grateful Dead, Billie Holiday, Outkast, Run DMC, They Might Be Giants, Wu-Tang Clan, and an “Awesome Mixtape #1” as featured in this year’s blockbuster movie from Marvel Comics, “Guardians of the Galaxy.”

In the past Black Friday was an American event created by large corporate retailers as a shopping day that promoted mass-produced items at super low prices in hopes of driving customers into their stores. This new Black Friday subverts that model and creates pieces of art in the form of limited special editions, often numbered, from a diverse list of beloved artists. Record Store Day’s version of Black Friday is an excuse to celebrate both the pieces themselves and the special indie record stores who carry them. Cheap, mass-produced frenzy is not the goal.

Cactus Records is located at 29 West Main St, and will open at 10am on Black Friday. Fans are recommended to get there early for the best selection as many of these items will go quickly.