Members danika Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 I keep reading this stuff about how vinyl sales, even though still small, are increasing. But I never thought much about it until I was talking to a girl I know who plays in a metal band. They just released a new album and are off on a tour of clubs in Europe to promote it. Then she tells me they only did vinyl. She says that a couple of years ago when they released their first album and went to Europe on a promo tour, people got mad at them because they only offered CD's. Somehow I can't imagine a metal band and vinyl go together that well in the first place, but there it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members UstadKhanAli Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 I buy some vinyl. CDs more often, but some vinyl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jimbroni Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 I actually buy more vinyl than CD's these days. Most of my music I buy online. However, when I actually go to a record store, I end up sifting through the vinyl. Its funner. It used be I would buy vinyl sparingly and mostly CD's but these days, the amount of music available for immediate purchase via download for some reason makes CD's less important to me. So now buy either downloads or vinyl. I can't follow the logic either its just how it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members veracohr Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 As far as NEW vinyl, I've only ever bought one myself, which was just a few days ago. I passed by Opeth's "Blackwater Park" in a store, and it seemed like a good album to have on vinyl. It is. I have one other vinyl that I got new, Tori Amos' "Boys for Pele" which was given to me, but the way that album is mixed and mastered I don't feel the inconvenience of vinyl is worth it. I do buy used vinyl every once in a while, but it's mostly stuff from before I was born. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members orangesix Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 i buy vinyl sporadically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members FireWithin Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 Somehow I can't imagine a metal band and vinyl go together that well in the first place, but there it is. Pretty much every European metal band releases on vinyl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 I would absolutely LOVE to release my upcoming album with vinyl as one of the means of distribution. I can't justify the cost of it, but it would be awesome. As far as buying it, I'm quite sorry to say I don't even own a turntable anymore, but it's really my favorite listening medium. Maybe someday I'll get one again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scarecrowbob Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 My girl friend buys vinyl. Mostly used. It is fun stuff, to go out and look for records. Jeff, put out a couple of the cuts on 7". Do it. (the math, that is). You can do them at less than 3$ a piece for 500 or so. http://www.rainborecords.com/packvinyl.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 Jeff, put out a couple of the cuts on 7". Do it. (the math, that is). You can do them at less than 3$ a piece for 500 or so. It's incredibly tempting. It just feels like something I'd be doing out of vanity or selfishness (to hear it for myself!), rather than business smarts (which is the only justifiable reason to duplicate your music to various media). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members scarecrowbob Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 "It's incredibly tempting. It just feels like something I'd be doing out of vanity or selfishness (to hear it for myself!), rather than business smarts (which is the only justifiable reason to duplicate your music to various media)." Not to try and sell you an idea, but to a certain extent the idea that your music should sell on CD is all vanity. It isn't a bad thing to say: here is my music.... it's great and you should give me money for it. However, having a $4 piece of merch that is kind of unique and definitely cool is not a bad idea. The ROI is not as good as with CDs (depending on your production costs), but the people that buy them typically collect them so they have a great pull, IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jeff da Weasel Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 Not to try and sell you an idea, but to a certain extent the idea that your music should sell on CD is all vanity. It isn't a bad thing to say: here is my music.... it's great and you should give me money for it. I completely agree with you. I'm just looking at practicality for MOST people. If I'm to sell music at all, I need to prioritize the product based on the most common ways people experience music, which leaves vinyl way down the list in 2009, unfortunately, behind a) digital download and b) compact discs (which I'm making as few as I can and still getting enough for reviews, press kits, and the small number I'll sell at occasional shows and such). However, having a $4 piece of merch that is kind of unique and definitely cool is not a bad idea. The ROI is not as good as with CDs (depending on your production costs), but the people that buy them typically collect them so they have a great pull, IMO. It is interesting when you start to think of the vinyl album as a piece of merch rather than just another way to get the music across. That's a whole other perspective. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Monkey Mouse Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 Back when you could buy 12" dance singles (only a few years ago), I was a big buyer of vinyl, probably spending $300 a month for singles. But that genere is now dead on the vinyl side, so I only buys CDs or the occasional eBay rarity. Keep in mind that with over 7,000 albums from the 60's, 70's and 80's; I need for nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members whurly Posted April 2, 2009 Members Share Posted April 2, 2009 I recently set up a turntable in my music room. I hadn't bothered to seek out any vinyl because I'm still getting through my 500+ LPs. Then I stopped at a used record store in the country and found three Peddlers albums (great English jazz/R'n'B band from the 60s/70s). Now I'm hooked on getting more vinyl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Richard King Posted April 3, 2009 Members Share Posted April 3, 2009 I recently bought about 250 records at a garage sale for $20. The records are mostly classical, which I have never really gotten into, but the collection also included several interesting New Orleans blues/spiritual/jazz records, including this record http://www.emusic.com/album/Jim-Robinson-Jim-Robinson-Plays-Sprituals-And-Blues-MP3-Download/10605339.html signed by many of the band members and a few others who played with them at a concert. I had no idea that it was signed and wondered why someone would deface the record cover until I looked closely and realized that the "defacements" were signatures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members A Happy Crowd Posted April 3, 2009 Members Share Posted April 3, 2009 I bought some vinyl yesterday. I was in the record store and came across the debut 7" for a 90s band I used to be really into. I got it used for 99 cents. As for new stuff, I find cds more convenient but I really like how, for the past few years, labels have been including coupons with records so you can buy the vinyl and get a free download of it at the same time. That's actually prompted me to buy a couple of things on vinyl instead of cd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members audioicon Posted April 14, 2009 Members Share Posted April 14, 2009 Keep in mind that with over 7,000 albums from the 60's, 70's and 80's; I need for nothing. Can you send me those vinyls if you don't need them? I would gladly send you a shipping label and a box! AI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members the stranger Posted April 14, 2009 Members Share Posted April 14, 2009 It is interesting when you start to think of the vinyl album as a piece of merch rather than just another way to get the music across. That's a whole other perspective. That's why I keep saying if it was pushed by the industry, vinyl could help the sales of physical media. It's the death of physical media that is killing the music business. And the record was always a piece of merchandise, it just also happened to be the medium. One thing I think people forget is that if the vinyl medium were brought back into the mainstream (marketed correctly, resulting in a resurgence of that medium), it would be followed by a re-focus on that technology and how it could be further improved. And I think it's safe to say that if the record format were redesigned with today's technology, we would see a record that had far superior fidelity and durability. Maybe carbon fiber, in place of vinyl. Lasers instead of diamonds. And probably a mix of old and new. Adherents to both. Some would say 21st century heavy weight vinyl is it, where other groups would say laser is where it's at. Both would have a "sound" and would be as subjective as these debates we have about digital vs analog, I'm sure... Even if the new record lasts forever, it still preserves physical media sales. People will still trade audio files, but do you have the record? This also would help put the ritual back in music. The ritual has been there as long as the music, and when we delegate music to just more noise or another commodity, we are subtracting from the experience. Physical media and more specifically, the interaction of playing a record, is a ritual. The smell, the feeling, the art, and the sound are all part of the ritual that engages all of your perceptions. (I'm assuming the taste and third eye sensory engagement were being handled by another department.) Anyway... I like to think about the technological advancements that would follow of market re-introduction of vinyl as the primary music medium. Imagine what demand could do for a record player... For that matter, what could demand do for tape and tape machines? They didn't have the miniaturization and tech they have now when they peaked with those technologies. Perhaps niche development exists on these technologies, but not on the scale that big demand brings. Imagine seeing jukeboxes start appearing everywhere? Who cares if you have a machine that can do it all inside a microchip? We want to look through that glass and see something happening. I figured it out. Analog vs digital is really mechanical vs digital. Analog: Digital: This gets me thinking of the whole "art" of mechanics. Mechanics as fine art. With of course, a primary back of mind thought being the mechanical vs digital thing...I could ponder on this for a while... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anderton Posted April 14, 2009 Members Share Posted April 14, 2009 Some of my stuff from the 60s was re-released in Spain, and they do ONLY vinyl. Apparently they can make a living from it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members A Happy Crowd Posted April 15, 2009 Members Share Posted April 15, 2009 That's why I keep saying if it was pushed by the industry, vinyl could help the sales of physical media. It's the death of physical media that is killing the music business. And the record was always a piece of merchandise, it just also happened to be the medium. One thing I think people forget is that if the vinyl medium were brought back into the mainstream (marketed correctly, resulting in a resurgence of that medium), it would be followed by a re-focus on that technology and how it could be further improved. And I think it's safe to say that if the record format were redesigned with today's technology, we would see a record that had far superior fidelity and durability. Maybe carbon fiber, in place of vinyl. Lasers instead of diamonds. And probably a mix of old and new. Adherents to both. Some would say 21st century heavy weight vinyl is it, where other groups would say laser is where it's at. Both would have a "sound" and would be as subjective as these debates we have about digital vs analog, I'm sure... Even if the new record lasts forever, it still preserves physical media sales. People will still trade audio files, but do you have the record? This also would help put the ritual back in music. The ritual has been there as long as the music, and when we delegate music to just more noise or another commodity, we are subtracting from the experience. Physical media and more specifically, the interaction of playing a record, is a ritual. The smell, the feeling, the art, and the sound are all part of the ritual that engages all of your perceptions. (I'm assuming the taste and third eye sensory engagement were being handled by another department.) Anyway... I like to think about the technological advancements that would follow of market re-introduction of vinyl as the primary music medium. Imagine what demand could do for a record player... For that matter, what could demand do for tape and tape machines? They didn't have the miniaturization and tech they have now when they peaked with those technologies. Perhaps niche development exists on these technologies, but not on the scale that big demand brings. Imagine seeing jukeboxes start appearing everywhere? Who cares if you have a machine that can do it all inside a microchip? We want to look through that glass and see something happening. I would love to see physical media make a comeback. I still buy all of my music on some sort of physical format and do most of my shopping in brick and mortar record shops. I still really enjoy the record store experience but, sadly, I know that people like me are dwindling. I live in New York and, of my three favorite stores, one has already closed for good and another significantly reduced its floor space devoted to music. If record shops are struggling in a place like New York, I can't even imagine what it's like in other parts of the country. I really like your idea of re-inventing the record with more modern technology, although I wonder how feasible it is unless these new records could be played on existing turntables. I'm not sure if people would, in this climate, go out and spend a few hundred dollars on a new piece of stereo equipment just so they could then start to buy music in a format they've never used before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Monkey Mouse Posted April 16, 2009 Members Share Posted April 16, 2009 Can you send me those vinyls if you don't need them? I would gladly send you a shipping label and a box! AI You are funny! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members slight-return Posted April 16, 2009 Members Share Posted April 16, 2009 I try to maintain some back compatibility (vinyl, compact cassette, don't have my r2R anymore though) in terms of format as it annoys me greatly when I have the information, but can't retrieve it (the frustration of finding some funny little record or tape and not being able to play it) I figured it out. Analog vs digital is really mechanical vs digital. Analog:Digital: This gets me thinking of the whole "art" of mechanics. Mechanics as fine art. With of course, a primary back of mind thought being the mechanical vs digital thing...I could ponder on this for a while... I'm not sure a clockwork would be a great example funny thing about clockworks -- many/most use an escapement. you know the "tick" - that's basically a mechanical logic pulse essentially, we are taking time and parsing it with discrete markers (I mean, we're really bumping up against that region where analog and digital interface) I think we forget, even electronically, digital is, essentially, a special operating mode of analog we still have physical quantities that are analogous to values, but we interpret them discretely-even though there may be some variation in the quantities themselves that fall beneath the thresholds of our discrete interpretation... Like, remember the copy protection that would ride on some analog video signals? Well they often worked with analog slop. OK, there's acouple of different sync pulses, a clocking signal which basically tells the raster scan when it's time to "reset" So what some of these systems would do is put in a "ghost" sync pulse, slightly lower in amplitude or sometimes in reverse polarity right up near the the genuine sync pulse.so when you tried to tape it, the reduced fidelity of the copy (at least on home decks) would have sync pulses that wouldn't get properly interpreted (so the picture wouldn't just be fuzzy, put would roll or be horizontally offset or that kind of thing). Or why there are multiple overwrites for scrubbing an HDD (to thwart analog analysis - looking for "residual magnetic ghosts")... Discrete quantities (pulses) that have their continuous quantities (the "analog" voltage) massaged, so we can't properly interpret the info from the data Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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