THIS weekend’s Record Store Day is a family affair for Chelmsford’s only remaining independent music specialists.

Intense Records, under the arches in Viaduct Road, is run by music-mad duo Jonathan and Jenny Smith.

Born as an idea in Jonathan’s university days in 1999, the shop has been a regular feature under the arches for the past decade.

The national event taking place on Saturday celebrates independent record stores across the world, with many of music’s most famous acts releasing limited edition vinyls for collectors.

This year’s event is seeing special releases from the likes of David Bowie, Foo Fighters and Sixties icons the Kinks.

What makes the event even more special for the pair is that next door Jenny, 30, runs her own printing label Get Customised.

The company this year will be producing the official merchandise for Record Store Day, including T-shirts, mugs and posters, which are being sold at more than 100 independent stores around the country.

Jonathan, 36, said: “It’s a really busy day, busier than Christmas.

“When we open the doors in the morning, around 50 people will be already waiting and queuing outside.”

He said the daywas a chance for people to get their hands on extremely rare editions, with some records only having a print run of “hundreds” before being distributed around the country.

Jonathan added: “It’s a real goldmine for collectors and what’s available. This year there are 600 different releases.”

Throughout the day there will be live DJs in the store.