So far behind…..OK, 9 or 10 months behind to be exact! Hopefully I can get some momentum here but I feel the need to at least catch up on my purchases for 2014, here’s April 2014…..
Amazon
Dio – This Is Your Life (2014) – $12
Sonata Arctica – Pariah’s Child (2014)- $10
Steel Panther – All You Can Eat (2014) – $10
Lacuna Coil – Black Crown Halo (2014) – $8
Just a quick $40 order from Amazon to get some new releases…..I know for a fact that I saved about $20 by purchasing via Amazon rather than at my local record store.
Newbury Comics (Warwick, RI)
Devin Townsend Project – The Retinal Circus (2CD/2DVD) (2013) – $22.50
Nightwish – Angels Fall First (1997) – $9 used
Andi Deris & The Bad Bankers – Million Dollar Haircuts On Ten Cent Heads (2014) – $12.75
When there’s a 25% off sale at the record store, you make the trip. Honestly, there wasn’t much of a selection but I managed to grab a couple newer releases on sale. I’d been waiting on the Devin Townsend release because I missed the sale price when it was first released and it was a $30 regular price! With the 25% off, a done deal. Same with the new Andi Deris record, I waited because the regular price in store was $17 and Amazon was no better but $12.75 is reasonable. My find of the day was a Japanese import, and first pressing, Angels Fall First from Nightwish. Only $12 but $9 with the sale, was a steal at $12.
Newbury Comics (North Attleboro, MA)
Black Label Society – Catacombs Of The Black Vatican (Ltd.Ed. +2) (2014) – $14
Anette Olzen – Shine (2014) – $13
Another quick trip to the record store for a couple new releases, this time to the closer North Attleboro Newbury Comics for the new Black Label Society and former Nightwish singer Anette Olzen’s first solo release. Both albums were on sale so I picked up the limited edition of the BLS album so I could get the 2 extra songs for $14 (saving $6) and the Olzen solo record for $13 (saving $5).
Ebay
Crystal Viper – Posession (2014) – $9.35
Silent Force – Rising From The Ashes (2014) – $9.35
Nightwish – Once (2004) – $8.75
M.S.G. – Unplugged Live (1992) – $8.75
Triumph – Thunder Seven (1985) – $8 used
Gotta have a little Ebay action going on while you hit all the record stores, even if it’s just for a price comparison. The first four albums were all from the same seller on two separate auctions for brand new CDs and with free shipping each time. I estimate that I saved $7.65 on the Crystal Viper & Silent Force discs and $6.25 on the Nightwish & McAuley Schenker Group discs compared to record store prices. An added bonus was that the MSG disc was a Japanese import and that adds at least $10 more usually! My last winning auction was for an original pressing of Triumph’s Thunder Seven from 1985. I could have gotten the recent remaster of the record but I heard it sounds different so I’m trying to find all the Triumph CDs as original pressings for the original mixes. If I can’t find them all on CD, I’ll go for the vinyl.
Newbury Comics (Warwick,RI)
Delain – The Human Contradiction (2CD) (2014) – $20
Iron Savior – Rise Of The Hero (Ltd.Ed. + 1) (2014) – $19
Ex Deo – Caligvla (2012) – $0
White Wizzard – The Devil’s Cut (2013) – $18
Hatriot – Dawn Of The New Centurion (2014) – $18
Huntress – Starbound Beast (2013) – $0
Pantera – Far Beyond Driven (20th Anniversary Edition) (2014) – $14
Sevendust – Time Travellers & Bonfires (2014) – $10
(free E.R. Season 2 DVD set – $10 used)
Magnus Karlsson’s Freefall – s/t (2013) – $8 used
Aeon Zen – The Face Of The Unknown (2010) – $6 used
Eclipse – Bleed & Scream (2012) – $0
Nothing like Record Store Day 2014 to get a Buy 2 Get 1 Free sale so I can stock up! I put a $100 limit on myself but I went just a bit over ($113) because I found more than a few bargains. My routine on this sale is to buy up all those higher priced sets and/or imports that I passed up earlier or missed the sale price on, that way I can save the maximum dollars. Most of these CDs were regular price but I managed to save $51 in free CDs. I had to get my wife a DVD set of the E.R. television show because it was a sweet price (free), and she really wants all the seasons, so it turned out to be a good sale for all.
Amazon
Pretty Maids – Motherland (2013) – $7.50
Sebastian Bach – Give’em Hell (2014) – $10
Gamma Ray – Empire Of The Dead (2014) – $12.10
Krokus – Long Stick Goes Boom: Live From The House Of Rust (2014) – $10
Winger – Better Days Comin’ (Deluxe CD/DVD) (2014) – $14
Uriah Heep – Demons & Wizards (1972/2003 deluxe reissue) – $12.50
UFO – Phenomenon (1974/2008 reissue) – $9
Saxon – Heavy Metal Thunder (The Movie) (2014) Blu-Ray – $12
Don’t ask me how I had a $100 Amazon gift card this late in the year but I did. I spent that easily to the tune of $87 worth of CDs & Blu-Rays (plus shipping charges) getting a few things off my want list.
Totals
Total (April) = $268.45
Total (year) = $1068.55
Average Price (per item) = $10.48
Total CDs (year) = 98
Total LPs (year) = 3
Total DVDs/Blu-Rays (year) = 1
Heavy Metal Addiction 