My name is Ben Salmon, and I am addicted to browsing and buying music.

I’m not talking about that piddly online MP3 junk, either. Somehow, I’ve reached 2009 and never paid for a digital song.

No, I love actually going to a record store, strolling up and down the aisles, and flipping through stacks of CDs and records.

It borders on obsession, really.

When I go to Portland, I always head to Jackpot Records and Exiled Records. When we visit friends in Seattle, I make sure to stop at Sonic Boom.

When we go see family in Southern California, I set aside a day to visit Amoeba in Hollywood and Fingerprints in Long Beach. And I could’ve retired by now if I had the money I spent over the years at CD Central on South Limestone Street in Lexington, Ky.

All those shops will celebrate the second annual Record Store Day on Saturday, and so will Bend’s own independent record store, Ranch Records. (Ranch is the only store in Central Oregon listed as a participant at www.recordstoreday.com.)

And you, assuming you’re in Central Oregon, should go down to Ranch and check it out. The good folks at 831 N.W. Wall St. have all kinds of fun stuff planned, starting at 1 p.m., according to Renee Heister, who’s coordinating the event.

There will be live music at 1:30 p.m. by Mosley Wotta, plus discounted merchandise and sweet giveaways, including the “Instant Record Collection,” a pack of 11 vinyl LPs including artists like Animal Collective, Steve Winwood and the Velvet Underground, Heister said.

Ranch will also have exclusive releases made available to affiliated shops especially for Record Store Day. Participating artists include My Morning Jacket, Bob Dylan and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. (Check www.recordstoreday.com for a list of all the cool stuff that’ll be out there. I’ve got my eye on an LP of a live Pavement recording from 1988.)

Now, I know what you’re thinking. You can get the same music cheaper (or for free) online or at Best Buy or whatever.

Probably true.

But here’s the thing: Independent record stores (and other businesses) need our support more than ever right now.

As CD sales plummet, thanks in large part to online sales and downloading, shops that sell actual CDs are dropping like flies.

Venerable chains like Tower Records have shuttered dozens of stores across the country. New York City’s Virgin Megastore, touted as the busiest record store in the world, shut its doors recently.

Locally, Bend’s selection of indie shops was cut in half last year when Boomtown closed for good.

Stack the slumping economy on top of an already challenging environment for the music industry, and you have what appears to be a slow, agonizing death spiral for record stores.

But not only do indie record stores need our help, they deserve it.

Record store clerks have a reputation for being unapproachable snobs, and certainly some deserve that tag. But most are exceedingly friendly, pleased as punch to discuss music with a customer who cares as much as they do.

And discuss music with them you should. Clerks at stores like Ranch generally know more about different types of music than those at big box stores, who must answer questions not only about CDs, but also iPods, digital cameras, vacuum cleaners, and so on.

This is, of course, a general rule. There are almost certainly big-box employees who know a ton about all kinds of music. But you can be sure that the further you dig into the underground, the more help you’ll get from indie clerks and the more blank stares you’ll get at the mega-mart.

Now, about selection. Sure, you can get the latest Lady Gaga, Fall Out Boy and Jay-Z at the big-box shop.

But if you want the latest Ladytron, Fantomas or Jake One, you may need to hit up the local mom-and-pop. (All three had CDs available at Ranch on Tuesday.)

For many folks, access to Lady Gaga, Fall Out Boy and Jay-Z is good enough. And that’s perfectly fine. There’s nothing wrong with that.

But for me — and other serious music nerds like me — the independent record store is a vital lifeline to a world of music that might otherwise go undiscovered.

It’s a place where like-minded people can congregate and discuss the latest sounds.

It’s a place where you can still buy music on 12-inch slabs of vinyl, complete with actual cover art that you can actually see.

It’s a place where a young music fan can hear unfamiliar music over the loudspeaker, ask who’s playing, and then explore the rest of the CD at a listening station.

It’s a place where local musicians can stock and sell their product, and begin to learn about the business side of their art.

An independent record store is as important a piece of the local music scene as an open mic or jazz club or a young garage band.

And it’s a place where a guy like me can get lost for hours somewhere between the “A”s and the “Z”s.

I’d miss that terribly if it were gone, so on Saturday, I’m going to support an independent record store. I hope you will too.