Why Vinyl Can't Survive

I'm sure I mentioned this on some other vinyl thread - I saw a reissue of the original cast recording of Hello Dolly and I cannot imagine the target demographic

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/hello-dolly-ocr/32465957

...like, silent gen grandfolks already have this on LP somewhere, but they all love their CDs and Bose wave radios. Who would want this that is completely unaware that it's always available at the Goodwill? Are there really younger Broadway-heads that are seeking out the hipster cred of vinyl and the impulse buy at B&N? I'd imagine the original pressing sounds great. Near mint on discogs for #1.98 plus shipping.

― bendy, Wednesday, September 11, 2019 3:12 PM (twenty-six minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

Maybe young adult Wall-E fans?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIfD2g9QOTo

I’ve noticed an odd trend: it seems if you know someone who loves music the most adequate and accesible gift is a vinyl record of a band they like. It doesn’t even matter if they actually own a turntable.

People love gifting other people physical formats, I know I’ve gifted way too many books in an era where people don’t really read (they’re photography books for the most part though, people seem to like to leave those as decor in coffee tables in their living room) - and honestly is there a better format for music to give as a gift? They might use a yearly spotify, apple music, tidal, etc... more but you’d probably look cheap if you gave that one.... cassettes, cds are awful gifts unless you know the person collects them. But with vinyl it doesn’t even seem to matter, the fetish works as well as those fancy illustration/photography books, you can frame them and have them in your media room or something.

xxp Even with Spotify (and, I have to imagine, the others), I like to look back over saved albums sorted by newest save first... it works, there's memories (see also: folders of old playlists). And I still buy music as well. There's room for all this, if you've got the room.

I sometimes gift vinyls from my collection if the person seems very enthusiastic about a certain album in there... I think I’ve gifted 11 so far. recently I was hosting a party in my house and some dude was very curious about my collection and my audio system, he’s married to one of my friends so I know for a fact they don’t own a turntable. He got so excited to see I had some Rolling Stones records, specifically Exile on Main St., I don’t actually play that one much because it’s a 70’s print and while the sleeve looks great the actual record is not in a good condition, but I bought it for like 2 dollars so it’s fine for what it is. Anyways, I told him he could keep it and he was ecstatic. As if I has given him like the rarest record in the world.

So yeah, some people seem to think of these things as some sort of treasures. It’s ridiculous to me, but then again I collect vinyl so I’m guilty as well

Moka i've thought a lot about this, about how people used to be able to GIVE each other music and that gift was meaningful because it said something about the giver's identity, about how they perceived the giftee's identity, where they overlapped, about their relationship. And it was something that could be kept. People send playlists to each other... feels like it's not the same to me, that it's disposable, easy to forget, not easy to love and treasure, but maybe I'm just an old git

aw that's cute. as is "I think... 11"

I had that experience giving a Rappers Delight single

Moka brings in an angle I wasn't aware of - the pure gift, like a singing fish novelty or something.

Vinyl does give me this bizarre archival security that, should the climate apocalypse destroy the electrical grid, one will still be able to spin LPs with modified Victrola-like turntable-and-megaphone contraption, perhaps hooked up to a bicycle, Gilligan's Island style.

I haven't had to barter none since I learned to turn the crank at exactly 33.3rpm

yeah theres definitely digital equivalents of the physical organizing/forgetting/discovering experience, but at this point I cant train my mind to function the same way in a digital realm, its like trying to learn to read backwards or something.

Yeah, that's it. I'm honestly not that much of a detail-oriented person so significant gifts are usually a headache for me but most people definitely appreciate a 'personalized' gift rather than a convenient one. I used to give gifts that friends would actually use in their homes and I noticed that they were missing like say: good quality kitchen knives, blenders, air dryers - things like that - and I was often given the weirdest looks. I started giving more customized gifts and people appreciate more if you remember their interests or as TH puts it - a meaningful gift of how you perceive their identity and your relationship - it's usually cheaper too! The thing is, not all of my friends/family seem to have explicit interests. The good thing is, most of my acquaintances like drinking on weekends so giving them a mid-range bottle of whiskey or tequila seems to do the job just fine too!

While I'm here deviating the conversation from vinyl allow me to keep exposing private tidbits of my life when it comes to gifts. I hate giving gifts to one of my brothers, he's very posh and lives somewhat minimal - he doesn't buy any sort of decor or collects anything, he hates having things around without purpose - so the only thing he cares about is watching Soccer and designer clothes, but clothes are a headache to choose as a gift, specially if I'm buying something like freaking $300 dollar Burberry shirt and it doesn't fit well or he doesn't really like it.

Love that story, Moka.

I kind of regret giving my friend my copy of Tusk for their birthday like 15 years ago... finding nice copies for 1-5 bucks was no big deal back then

I felt really bad this past Christmas when all my parents got me was a nice button down as well as some fancy mall kiosk chocolates that came in novelty shapes like wrist watches and pens etc. Sure, that's cute but it's a gift you get for a family member you never see or a co-worker or something. The fact that they didn't really invest much energy into thinking about me and what I like or am into... it felt bad and was hard to navigate cause I didn't want to seem entitled.

So anyway, personalized gifts are indeed really meaningful, and vinyl is very gift-able. The story above about the ecstatic Rolling Stones guy- I mean his attitude towards vinyl as this sacred object is one that most people completely unengaged with vinyl have. So even if they can't/won't/would rarely play it, they're going to be really charmed if the artist is one they have some emotional connection to. It's also why people would bring in used vinyl to sell to a record store and expect to make hundreds or thousands of dollars.

Beautiful story Moka, but what I'd really like to know now: did you gifting him Exile lead to him being a turntable? :)

I've heard some copies of Exile are cursed like that.

Hahaha now that you mention it I haven’t seen him ever since, I should call my friend to see if everything is ok

4000 albums boxed up--this is why.

http://phildellio.tripod.com/albums.JPG

Are you moving?

Trotsky Icepick! Loved bits of them.

ahh man, love those classic sugarhill sleeves!

(xpost) I am. The album paradox: 1) they're much easier to pack than books, but 2) are much harder to find boxes for. I swear that most liquor companies make sure their boxes are either an inch too short in either width or height--it's a big conspiracy.

2) are much harder to find boxes for. I swear that most liquor companies make sure their boxes are either an inch too short in either width or height--it's a big conspiracy.

U-Haul's "small moving box" has always been my go-to box for moving records. There's a Discogs discussion thread that gets into other options, but the U-Haul ones have been great.

agree with elvis. u-haul’s small box are what i’ve used. i recently moved cross country and those boxes did the trick

i think the vinyl market continues to prop up that specific box and also the Ikea Kallax shelf.

Thanks--all the albums are packed now, though. I'm on to DVDs, which are a breeze; they fit most liquor store boxes perfectly.

I'll be looking for new shelving when I get there; that Kallax shelf looks nice and not too pricey. How many albums would one hold?

Each cube of the Ikea shelves holds around 45 records.

If you get the really big one (5x5), you might consider reinforcing the back with something for structural support. I stack 2x4 units and reinforce them so they have a proper back which cuts down on dust.

So that's 350 per shelf (the one I'm looking at for $99 has 8 cubicles), meaning I'd need 12--$1,200 for 4000 albums. I have no idea how that would compare to, say, hiring someone to build shelving.

gonna have to disagree with that calculation, though i did question myself for a second. i did a recount and mine (the Expedit, but it has the same shelf size) holds 75-80 per cube, depending on the thickness of the LPs. Got a couple of the 2x4 ones. I have a bunch of overflow but that's all for discogs and eBay anyway.

I do also recommend reinforcing the back. I had considered particle board, measured out to the exact side of the back (approx 31x59) but i went for a few pieces of strong wood 4 inches wide, cut to proper length, and nailed them across the back side, which allowed for access to the outlets.

If you're right, and they each hold 600 records, then I'd only need 7--I'd definitely go that route.

you will need enough room to flip them surely

Yes--and extra room for whatever I buy in the next decade or two (which won't be much...I buy maybe 50 albums a year now). So eight, maybe nine.

Totally depends on thickness of records. 80 seems tight though!

I love the feeling when I get a new shelving unit and all the records that had gotten a little too snug suddenly expand and have space to breathe. The only direction I have left to expand is up at this point. Eventually I'll have two columns side by side, each stacked with three 2x4 cube units yielding a 6x8 behemoth. Slightly worried about the foundation of the house.

I've seen the 5x5 buckle and collapse under the weight of records, total disaster

I moved over 3000 records today, I hurt all over. But the end result is good, I've sold a bunch and now have room for the ones that were all in boxes. The collection almost fits on the three large shelves with only three boxes of overflow. Now I need to find a bookshelf for all the books I took off of the unit that now has albums (again).

I've seen the 5x5 buckle and collapse under the weight of records,

I've seen things you people wouldn't believe

Another question--there's probably a better thread, but I'll use this one.

I'm going to have to put all these boxes (photo above) into storage for a couple of months. The guy handling my house sale doesn't want them in there while showing the house. I'm trying to find something close to where I'm moving and temperature-controlled--no luck yet on the latter. What is the acceptable temperature range for storing records? I don't expect any really hot days for the next couple of months; wondering more about the lower end.

I knew a guy who had a second floor apartment with a massive collection and when the property management incidentally saw it one day they made him move to a ground floor unit... he had around 8,000 albums on a big floor-to-ceiling custom-built shelf IIRC. So I guess there are worse things than just the shelf collapsing!

xp I've heard that vinyl can get brittle at subzero temps, but I think cold shouldn't really be an issue as long as they stay above freezing.

I've got about 800 in a hanging case bolted to the wall. before putting it in we took the sheet rock down and added a thick sheet of plywood to the studs, then put the sheetrock on that. it's very solid and helpfully cantilevered due to the placement of the (very thick) bolts.

Good article on the Apollo Masters fire: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2020-02-14/apollo-masters-fire-vinyl-lacquer

Damn, that sounds ominous.

So I thought the vinyl industry was doomed. Seems to be chugging along like nothing happened from the consumer standpoint. Maybe I’m asking this too early still? On mobile and didn’t bother to look back to see when we are supposed to start seeing effects.

The article (from a year ago) says:

In the short term, consumers and labels will be OK, he says. (...) Many of the established companies and mastering engineers buy their lacquer stock annually and have backups warehoused.

The concern is that a shortage will threaten new releases and boutique reissues in 2021 and beyond, after the stock has been depleted. At that point, Hashimoto says, “It’s going to affect the whole industry until somebody comes up with an alternative.”

Would be interesting to have an update I guess.

I've been wondering about this as well!

lord are we probably celebrating 10 years of "the vinyl bubble won't last"?

I'm not sure if it's much of a bubble. It's still pretty much a niche market and there are no expectations for it to grow that much more in the grand scheme of things. I can see the demand eventually fading, but it would be pretty gradual.

fremer says a japanese lacquer firm has stepped up and is filling the demand, early on in the video.

https://www.analogplanet.com/content/nothing-can-stop-vinyl-resurgence-analogplanets-making-vinyl-video-opener

get your tape deck fixed up and ready to go just in case