Records rule everything around us.

'STRANDED' BOOK COVER

"Buying records in stores is more fun for customers and shopkeepers," Viaduct says, shrugging off the concern. "The personal contact really makes a difference. There is nothing better than to recommend something and a day or two later the person comes back and says, 'Thanks! That record is great.' Of course, we know that folks can buy records online, so we do not even try to compete with that."

1-2-3-4 GO!

One of those shining star examples of making it work in the name of the music you obsessively collect — fellow East Bay record shop and label, 1-2-3-4 Go! (www.1234gorecords.com) is this month celebrating five years in Oakland.

Also noteworthy: the label will be 12 come August (time for a Bar Mitzvah?). It's notable for discovering and releasing records by trash, thrash, psych, punk, garage, surf, doo-wop, whatever local acts along the lines of Nobunny, Shannon and the Clams, Personal and the Pizzas, Lenz, and Synthetic ID.

With its move to a bigger space, the store is now also noted for its all-ages shows, with many of the above frequenting the location along with out-of-towners from LA and beyond. For the five-year marker, the shop is having a big sale on March 23 and 24, and will celebrate further with its second annual the Go! Go! fest May 16 through 19.

I asked label-store owner Steve Stevenson, a 33-year-old Oakland resident, the same question as Viaduct regarding the problems with opening a store such as this. Stevenson perhaps had it rougher, as his doors first opened in that very tumultuous year of '08.

"2008 was brutal but there was a ton of support. I had no money to advertise but for the first three weeks I was packed with people who had heard about this record store that was barely bigger than a walk-in closet," he says. "Honestly, the store struggled for the first three or so years; always making it but always just barely. Since moving in to this new space, things have really taken off. I'm able to hire employees so I don't have to do everything myself which gives me time to do even more cool stuff for the store and book shows outside of it at places like New Parish."

"We're one of the very few record stores in the East Bay and we exist through the support of this community and our mail order customers around the world," he adds. "We're always growing, expanding, and trying new things because of this support and there's no way I can say how much I appreciate it. It's massive."

AFROLICIOUS

Is Afrolicious the hardest working world band in the Bay Area? It seems to pop up everywhere. The 12-piece Latin soul-tropical Afrobeat act met at Elbo Room's energetic weekly Afrolicious party, and is this week playing the Great American Music Hall in celebration of its debut full-length album California Dreaming, released on its own label, Afrolicious Music. With Midtown Social Band, Afrolicious DJs Pleasure Maker and Senor Oz.

Fri/15, 9pm, $15. Great American Music Hall, 850 O'Farrell, SF. www.slimspresents.com