Despite the ever-rising temperatures blasting through our open doors and cracked windows, it feels like Christmas time over here at the Old Caustic Factory. While we’ve seen some terrific singles and albums being released, our team has been buzzing about April 18, the long-awaited 2026 edition of Record Store Day. The lovely day when your favorite local record shops carry rare first pressings, sought-after reissues, and exclusive vinyl from bands and artists ranging from legends to contemporary heroes, all coming together to celebrate physical media.
We have a special edition of Caustic this week. We’re shifting gears to the list of fresh releases set to hit shelves on April 18. You can check out our picks for the most essential Record Store Day releases of 2026 below, along with a link to the entire list of the hundreds of releases.
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialReleases
Flying Lotus – 1983
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19904
Originally released in 2006, 1983 is the debut project from acclaimed producer and electronic pioneer Flying Lotus. The criminally underrated project is pressed on limited-edition gold splatter vinyl and is freshly mixed and remastered for this release.
The Cure – Acoustic Hits
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19954
The iconic emo forerunners The Cure released an acoustic LP in 2001 to accompany their greatest hits LP. 25 years later, frontman Robert Smith himself has remastered the stripped-down outing for RSD, and it is pressed on “silver bio” vinyl.
Violent Femmes – The Blind Leading The Naked
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/20015
Violent Femmes’ long out-of-print third studio LP, The Blind Leading The Naked, is finally being repressed. Celebrating its 40th anniversary, the band’s 1986 LP is being pressed on colored vinyl.
Danny Brown – “Grown Up” 7” Vinyl
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/20151
Hip-hop innovator Danny Brown has been manipulating genre tropes since the beginning, and one of the brightest examples of his daring tendencies is his 2012 single “Grown Up.” The hypnotic single is receiving an exclusive release on a 7” vinyl this year, with the instrumental being featured on the B-side.
Anderson .Paak – Malibu: 10th Anniversary 7” Box Set
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/20144
Anderson .Paak’s now-classic breakthrough LP Malibu is turning 10 in 2026, and the artist is celebrating with a fresh pressing. The 16-song LP is now stretched across a 7” box set, with the whole thing being packaged in a beach cooler-style box.
Don Cherry – Blue Lake
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/20198
Originally released exclusively in Japan all the way back in 1974, Don Cherry’s Blue Lake is a piece of jazz history every fanatic of the genre should own. Now being remastered from the original tapes and being pressed on a double-LP gatefold edition for a fresh listen into Cherry’s renowned 1971 live show in Paris.
Roy Ayers – Daddy Bug
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19794
Featuring an All-star band that included Herbie Hancock, Hubert Laws, and Ron Carter, Roy Ayers’s third and final album for Atlantic Records is finally receiving a reissue. Daddy Bug is an underrated piece of Ayers’ storied career and has been out of print for a long time, until RSD 2026. Daddy Bug will be reissued on yellow vinyl.
Freeman – Freeman
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19812
With its original 2014 pressing sold at outrageous prices online, it is a delight to see Gene Ween’s post-Ween project receive a proper reissue. The self-titled debut from Freeman will receive an orange-and-purple split-color treatment, reflecting the psychedelic fusion contained in this long-awaited reprint.
Megadeath – Hidden Treasures
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/20047
Fresh off the release of their self-titled LP earlier this year, legendary metal act Megadeath isn’t done gifting their fans with new music. Hidden Treasures, originally featuring eight tracks, is now a 12-song LP filled with covers and demos. An extra four songs, originally exclusive to the Japanese release, have been added to this single-LP, colored-vinyl pressing.
Bob Mould – Body of Song (20th Anniversary Expanded Edition)
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19879
Yep Roc Records is giving Bob Mould’s seminal 2005 LP, Body of Song, an expanded reissue for its twentieth anniversary. The 12-song album will now feature songs that were originally exclusive to a double-CD pressing, but will now be on wax for the first time, and peach-colored wax at that.
Porcupine Tree – We Lost The Skyline
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/20168
While touring in support of Fear of a Blank Planet album, Porcupine Tree stopped in at Park Avenue Records in Orlando, Florida, for an exclusive in-store performance. Fans have hunted down the recording of this live session since it was recorded in 2007, but hunt no more, as the 8-song set has been remastered, pressed on crystal-clear wax, and set to be released this Record Store Day.
John Prine – BBC Sessions
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19937
For the first time officially, this intimate solo set from John Prine is being cemented on wax. Featuring songs from his first two albums, Prine runs through some classics live for the BBC, and now those 1973 recordings can find a home in your record collection.
Steely Dan – Alive in America
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19949
For the first time on vinyl, Steely Dan’s first official live album is receiving the wax treatment for RSD 2026. Capturing their return to the stage in the 1990’s, Alive in America is pressed on 180g black vinyl and features extended versions of hits like “Reelin’ In The Years” and “Aja.”
Billy Strings – Tiny Desk
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19988
One of the most beloved figures in contemporary music performing in one of the most intimate settings the internet has to offer, and now you can bring it into your home. On November 6, 2025, bluegrass phenom Billy Strings traveled to NPR headquarters to perform a set for their acclaimed “Tiny Desk” series, and it is being pressed on wax for RSD.
Talking Heads – CBS/Columbia Demos
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19951
Yet another first-pressing for this Record Store Day, CBS/Columbia Demos captures a young Talking Heads with their original trio cutting demos for the label in 1975. This 15-song, double-LP pressing includes demo versions of future hits like “Psycho Killer” and “Warning Sign.”
Ween – Europe “90”
https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/19958
Along with the reissue of Gene Ween’s Freeman project, Europe “90” is another must-grab for Ween fans on this RSD. A triple-LP pressing, with the first vinyl containing a long-lost studio session from 1990, and the other two capturing Ween’s acclaimed “Brown Live in Basil” performance from the early nineties.
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