Vinyl record sales are up 15%. Here’s why.
In the pristine digital world that we live in, how is it possible that some would prefer their music on vinyl records? Chris Stevens of CNet puts it nicely:
“It’s likely that the tactile joy of owning a physical object that represents your attachment to a band is infinitely more enjoyable than entering a credit card number into iTunes. Not to mention the fun of manipulating turntable technology to play vinyl, that sense of physical control of the medium.”
From an NPR bit last week:
“It’s always been more personal, so much more tangible than a CD. The size, the look, the gatefold, you get to watch it go around, you know what I mean. It’s, what’s the word,. . . interactive.”
For some, it seems, it’s not about just listening to music—it’s about engaging with your music and experiencing music on more than just an audible level. For them, music should involve all of the senses, not just that of hearing.
Could it be that technology, no matter how advanced, will only succeed if it solves our complex emotional needs rather than just our technical needs?
What other fun or meaningful experiences has technology “relieved” us of?
Bryan Sebastian February 10, 2009
Great Post. I agree with this. My 20 year old (college student) son started “spinning” (which is, as he claims… the modern term for DJing) a few years ago as a hobby and he uses allot of vinyl. After he purchased his 2nd turntable, I went up and listened to some of his music and it does seem more engaging. He claims that “spinning” is not really any fun if you did not have vinyl. In regards to the question at the end… I went to my 10 year old daughter’s orchestra concert the other night. More than half of the rather large crowd was holding up fancy/small video recorders. Having done this myself, and I feel as though you are focused more on the video camera than you are on what you are recording. Am I getting a good shot?… holding it steady etc. Lately I have decided to just attend these events and absorb them versus record them. Personally, I am not sure that capturing the concert on film is worth more to me than sitting there and getting absorbed on what my daughter is doing and creating my own personal memory of the event. I wonder if some of the technical gadgets are ruining the creation of our own memories we store ourselves as we are now just storing our memories on film. Well, cool post Jonathan.Steve Cooper February 20, 2009
I struggle with the whole video/photo thing constantly with my 7 year old daughter. Do I create the “Chronicles of Hannah” every year? Yes, I do, but I also do it for my daughter so she can see through my “eyes” after I’m dead and gone. I got started as a parent late in life and I hope I have created a balance between the documentary and personal family moments.A.J. Moir March 9, 2009
Like Marshall McLuhan always said–the medium is the message.Jason Sisk July 16, 2009
I concur. As a person with 300+ GB of digital music archives, there's nothing quite like the experience of getting ([insert your situational artist of choice here; mine is A.A. Bondy] to sign the vinyl album at the show. There's something memorable and physical about that event - especially in this era of ephemeral media.