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Maybe albums aren't on their way to extinction after all?


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Songs may not be purchased in album format as much as they used to be, but they certainly are released in album format pretty much all the time, right?

 

Personally (not that my personal music habits count for much) I still relate to music first in terms of artists and/or bands. Then the list of albums. Then the list of best songs. An artist or band to whom I relate only in the terms of one or two songs is in itself a critical comment on the lack of creative depth by the same.

 

But I don't know how to assess what is going on out there in "MUSIC" as a generic, cultural category. What's the best source of stats and analysis of stats regarding music consumption? I wouldn't know where to look, who to trust, in order to investigate and develop any sort of respectable opinoin on this sort of thing. I'm done with opinionizing off of random articles, industry infosheets, anecdotes and attitudes.

 

nat

 

 

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They could republish the jackets and any original media/info/accoutrement sans the vinyl of course and provide digital copies of the original audio.

 

That's an interesting idea... but why not just toss in the vinyl too and make it a premium package? That way, the customer has the physical goodies to hold and look at while listening (the sleeve, artwork, credits, etc.) and they have the vinyl and digital files so they can listen both at home as well as on their mobile device.

 

Personally I think that on-demand streaming for a monthly or annual fee is going to be the winner in the end (even over the resurgent vinyl record), but that's just a matter of convenience. If people start re-embracing the album as a listening experience, and artists once again embrace it from a creative standpoint, it's hard to say how that might influence things in terms of playback format preferences, but I suspect it would benefit vinyl more than streaming. But with an on-demand, on-the-go culture, I can't see vinyl overtaking streaming in overall popularity in the long run.

 

 

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That's an interesting idea... but why not just toss in the vinyl too and make it a premium package? That way, the customer has the physical goodies to hold and look at while listening (the sleeve, artwork, credits, etc.) and they have the vinyl and digital files so they can listen both at home as well as on their mobile device.

 

I think that's been done, though in reverse. When you buy the phonograph record, you get a digital file thrown in.

 

It's certainly feasible to release an album as a ZIP file containing audio files of all the tracks as well as a PDF of what would be the record jacket if there was a record. And for the boobs who decide that they only like three tracks and delete the rest of the album, there's enough space in the metadata section of a broadcast wave file to include a link to the "jacket" stored in a cloud somewhere.

 

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That's an interesting idea... but why not just toss in the vinyl too and make it a premium package? That way, the customer has the physical goodies to hold and look at while listening (the sleeve, artwork, credits, etc.) and they have the vinyl and digital files so they can listen both at home as well as on their mobile device.

 

Personally I think that on-demand streaming for a monthly or annual fee is going to be the winner in the end (even over the resurgent vinyl record), but that's just a matter of convenience. If people start re-embracing the album as a listening experience, and artists once again embrace it from a creative standpoint, it's hard to say how that might influence things in terms of playback format preferences, but I suspect it would benefit vinyl more than streaming. But with an on-demand, on-the-go culture, I can't see vinyl overtaking streaming in overall popularity in the long run.

 

 

I think the primary reason is vinyl is simply too fragile. It's become a laboratory medium by comparison and as to vinyl's esoteric audio quality - uh wut?

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I think the primary reason is vinyl is simply too fragile. It's become a laboratory medium by comparison and as to vinyl's esoteric audio quality - uh wut?

 

Vinyl too fragile? Have you ever tried to break a vinyl record? It's pretty hard to do. Shellac records are indeed easy to break, which is why they invented the "unbreakable" record. A vinyl phonograph record is all in one piece except for the label, so there aren't things to separate like lacquer peeling off an aluminum backing, oxide separating from the backing of tape, or the reflective backing of the CD sandwich becoming corroded due to the layers separating.

 

True that a phonograph record degrades with playing, but that's mostly a product of poor quality playback equipment, careless handling, or playing so much that it just wears out. Kids these days have forgotten about the CD problem since we've pretty much stopped playing CDs in our cars so fewer of them get left to bake in the sun. I have records and tapes that are more than 60 years old that are still playable (and some tapes 40 years old that aren't playable, at least not without some help). And I've lost some digital recordings from computer failures and operator dumbness.

 

 

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Vinyl too fragile? Have you ever tried to break a vinyl record? It's pretty hard to do. Shellac records are indeed easy to break, which is why they invented the "unbreakable" record. A vinyl phonograph record is all in one piece except for the label, so there aren't things to separate like lacquer peeling off an aluminum backing, oxide separating from the backing of tape, or the reflective backing of the CD sandwich becoming corroded due to the layers separating.

 

True that a phonograph record degrades with playing, but that's mostly a product of poor quality playback equipment, careless handling, or playing so much that it just wears out. Kids these days have forgotten about the CD problem since we've pretty much stopped playing CDs in our cars so fewer of them get left to bake in the sun. I have records and tapes that are more than 60 years old that are still playable (and some tapes 40 years old that aren't playable, at least not without some help). And I've lost some digital recordings from computer failures and operator dumbness.

 

 

Exactly what I mean. They've been handled with kid gloves in your home environment and played by special instruments. The vinyl? hu kerz. The contents cannot even survive air born particles. Yeah digital files break and get stuck irretrievably but you can clone them pretty near instantly and with results identical to the original.

One more thing about those nostalgia packs, you can throw in an EQ app to virtualize the spiral experience.

 

I suspect people just shelled out on the production tools figuring to score big time.

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How often are you driving in the car and they play a song you know from an album you had back in high school and you get anxious near the part where you know the record is going to skip?

 

Great point! Some of those LP skips are permanently imprinted in my brain. :lol:

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Yeah digital files break and get stuck irretrievably but you can clone them pretty near instantly and with results identical to the original.

 

You can't clone a file that you can't retrieve or that's been corrupted. Digitizing audio obligates you to clone it on a fairly regular basis. Of course nobody would think to clone his record or tape collection every few years, but I suppose with the right system, you can keep a rolling backup of digital audio files and hope you catch any errors in time so that you won't continue to clone a corrupt file.

 

 

One more thing about those nostalgia packs, you can throw in an EQ app to virtualize the spiral experience.

 

Sorry, you lost me four times on that one. "Nostalgia packs?" Is that the "Send just $19.98 and you'll receive in the mail 400 of your favorite songs of all time on 20 CDs. And if you order today, we'll include Beethoven's most beloved symphonies at no extra charge.

 

I suspect people just shelled out on the production tools figuring to score big time.

 

????

 

 

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Unfortunately it appears that there are less and less folks who have either the desire or will to become involved in anything that takes time to accomplish. This could be music (as has been discussed here before), painting, crafting or even reading (indepth reading, not just headline scanning).

 

Look around. If you have a single 'hobby shop' in your area, you are lucky (no, Hobby Lobby is not a true hobby shop). No one builds models any more. Those who look at model airplanes tend to only want the models that are already built and finished. And the RC unit better be able to correct any mistakes I make automatically so I don't crash the thing.

 

Music is now more a 'background' activity for the majority of people than ever before. Few school systems go beyond what is required by the state for musical education (which is very little). Few people today have a room dedicated to listening to music. Really listening to music is a skill, like any other, that must be learned and nutured.

 

Learning a skill like music, writing, painting, pottery is nearly gone. There will always be those who practice the old skills (whether it is music or blacksmithing), but the 'glory days of old' where the average person would devote significant time to the music is long past.

 

TL/DR - We just want it now and won't take the time to learn it.

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You can't clone a file that you can't retrieve or that's been corrupted. Digitizing audio obligates you to clone it on a fairly regular basis. Of course nobody would think to clone his record or tape collection every few years, but I suppose with the right system, you can keep a rolling backup of digital audio files and hope you catch any errors in time so that you won't continue to clone a corrupt file.

 

 

 

 

Sorry, you lost me four times on that one. "Nostalgia packs?" Is that the "Send just $19.98 and you'll receive in the mail 400 of your favorite songs of all time on 20 CDs. And if you order today, we'll include Beethoven's most beloved symphonies at no extra charge.

 

 

 

????

 

 

Like all else, clone in advance. Nostalgia packs are the topic in question. Classical transcription aside, most vinyl seems to be rereleases. EDM would wreck your grado in a few seconds blah blah etc. I suppose there's a good bit of partially plugged chamber pop but even that would still fare better on digital media. People just want to make a score on vinyl. maybe they can redo the phenomenon in the third world but even that's questionable..

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