Different Matter: Puttin’ It On Wax

Categories: Different Matter

Originally Published on: February 17, 2012

While having a nice chat with our Editor in Chief, the subject of vinyl record sales came up. One of the things we discussed was that the sales of vinyl is apparently growing at a quick pace again, after having suffered the near death blow of the CD and later digital downloading revolutions. I would not presume to know why this is the case, if indeed it is. However, being a person who has continued to buy vinyl, and indeed has made the pressing of it part and parcel of my dealings with record labels for my former bands, I feel justified in giving my reasons for being a fan of this medium.

Now, I don’t want people to think I am a vinyl purest. I actually never understood why there has ever been a battle there. Yes, when CDs first hit the market we were pitched a product that didn’t live up to its hype, but anyone who thought about it logically would have known that. Just as all new mediums before it, there would be teething problems followed by improvements and refinements. Again, we saw this when data compressed audio (MP3s) arrived. Does anyone make 128 bit MP3s anymore?

I think I can make my point about the pointlessness of arguing about which format is the ‘Best’ for audio by equating it to the following question: Which is the best tool; the hammer, the screwdriver, or the wrench? Not only is the answer a subjective matter, but it is also dependant on the circumstance and job at hand.

Although I indeed do see the benefits of and do use non-vinyl mediums to enjoy music through, when the opportunity to listen to a vinyl record on a good system is there, I take it. So, why would I have such an affinity to this ‘archaic’ format?

One thing that definitely plays a part in it is the idea of nostalgia. I am old enough to have been raised during the pinnacle of the analogue years. My father is and was an audiophile that dedicated a great deal of time and money to his Hi-Fi system and collection of recordings. As a result, I learned from a very young age to respect and appreciate a clean vinyl record played on a well managed and built system. Some of my best, warmest memories of my father during my childhood are of us working on his system and him teaching me the correct way to handle, clean, and care for vinyl.

Something else that plays a pretty heavy role in my preference for listening to vinyl is what is often referred to as ‘the analogue sound’. Yes, the less than perfectly clean representation of what is being captured. The combination of the extra audio vibrations inherent in the physical process of retrieving the sounds form the analogue medium and those artefacts (crackles, distortions, and such) that one can never really be completely rid of in the physical process are pleasing to my ears. I would much rather listen to my old, second hand but near mint first pressing, vinyl copy of Dark Side Of The Moon over my beautifully re-mastered 20^th Anniversary CD.

Apparently, I am not alone on this either as evidenced by the explosion of Digital software/plug-ins that are intended and competing to emulate all of those elements of analogue recordings that digital recording lacks. Oh, and then there is the slightly popular sound of guitars that have been distorted.

Beyond the above auditory related reasons there are the tactile and physical elements of vinyl records (versus CDs) to take into account.

The tactile advantage for me is twofold. The first being, I enjoy the physical act of not only preparing but playing a vinyl record. The Second being, I get pleasure from even just holding the sleeves, which probably has some psychological founding and leads me to my next set of points. ..

Which are the advantages of the physical aspects of vinyl. One of these advantage is shared with CDs; there being a physical ‘thing’ that can put in a place where it is frequently seen, and therefore constantly reminding you that it is indeed there to be listened to. One of the problems I have with music stored on a hard drive is that my old mind tends to forget what I have and exactly where I decided to store it. I wonder how many doubled copies I have within my collection of hard drives?

Even if we put all of that aside, my last point about one specific advantage of a specific component of physical Vinyl recordings is enough to win me over. BIG ART! Okay, this is truer with a 12” than a 7”, but even that is larger than what one gets with a CD. And no, looking at a zoomed in piece of art on a computer screen doesn’t even come close.

I won’t even bother going into the information (lyrics, band info, credits, et. al.) that tends not to be included with non CD digital music. There are plenty of people out there that have pointed out how lame this fact is (yes, in published pieces), and I will simply throw my hat in with them.

So, that is my reasoning. Maybe this is the reason sales might be up, maybe not. Maybe it is in response to people like me that labels have started pressing vinyl again, or maybe it is because it is a lot more difficult to get music off of a vinyl record and onto a P2P site in a quality that the downloading folks will want. No-one can ever really know.