Merge Records Charity Auction

If you'd like to help a good cause and snag a sweet package of CDs, check out the Merge Records Holiday Charity Auction. The auction is going on on ebay right now and runs through Thursday at 3pm EST. The package includes every Merge Records release in 2006 signed by the respective artist. Here's the list:

East River Pipe What are you on?
Robert Pollard From a Compound Eye
Destroyer Destroyer's Rubies
The Essex Green Cannibal Sea
Lambchop The Decline of Country & Western Civilization Part II: The Woodwind Years
Camera Obscura Let's Get Out of this Country
Camera Obscura Lloyd, I'm Ready to be Heartbroken
Portastatic Who Loves the Sun
White Whale WWI
Spoon Telephono/Soft Effects
M. Ward Post-War
Lambchop Damaged
Richard Buckner Meadow
Portastatic Be Still Please
Robert Pollard Normal Happiness

Damn. Merge had another killer year of releases.

So, that's 15 CDs which at $12 a pop would run you about $180. The current bid is $375 but since its for a charity, I think you can deduct it on your taxes. So, that $375 is really like $300 net out of pocket. It'll be interesting to see where it ends.

Additionally, Merge is saying that other auctions will follow this one. So, it may be worthwhile to bookmark that site. You never know when they are going to auction off Arcade Fire's ski helmet.

All of the money raised goes to Oxfam America and TROSA.

By the way, another interesting ebay auction to follow is the one for the one-of-a-kind VU album. Apparently, the VU cut a demo album before signing with MGM Records and some guy in NYC bought a copy at a flea market for $0.75 in 2002 without knowing what it was. The songs titles are the same as The VU & Nico but are different versions of the songs. The current bid for the album is $126,404 and the bidding ends on Friday at midnight. All things being equal, I think you're getting much better value with the Merge auction.