AS a proudly “old-fashioned” record store, Songland Records in Weston Creek will celebrate International Record Store Day on April 16 with a charity sale, says owner “Frog” Harris.

“International Record Store Day is a worldwide promotion of record stores,” he says.

“It’s the busiest day of the year for independent record stores and we’ve already had some donations from the public of really great stuff.”

Frog is asking anyone with unwanted vinyl, DVDs, cassettes, VHS tapes or DVDs to bring them to Songland Records as soon as possible before the sale on the weekend of April 16-17.

“We need more donations, and everything will be priced to go as we want all the money raised to go to the animals at the RSPCA in Canberra,” he says.

“I love animals; they’re genuine, loving and don’t ask for anything.”

Frog says that he finds that the older generation values the physical product of a record and the artistry of the acts themselves.

“The MP3 generation can have 20,000 songs on random, which is a very unfulfilling experience,” he says.

“When they’re reintroduced to vinyl, it’s a commitment to 20 minutes of listening, the way the artist intended.

“The artist would have spent an eternity on perfecting that track list, and the sound is tactile and richer.”

Frog has owned Songland Records for 36 years, more recently in its current location upstairs in Cooleman Court.

“We’re an old-fashioned record store and we love to talk and listen to our customers,” he says.

“We enjoy helping people track down music, and we say that if it’s available on the planet, we will find it. We sell memories.

“There have only been a handful of things we haven’t been able to get, and we’re talking about more than 75,000 customer orders in 20 years.”

International Record Store Day is on April 16. The sale will be on at Songland Records, Cooleman Court, on Saturday, April 16, 9am-5pm and Sunday, April 17, 10am-4pm. All funds raised go to the RSPCA Canberra.