Vinyl now matters even more to the music industry: It is the final quarter of 2022 and almost time for Spotify Wrapped – that thrilling rush of data that knows more about your music listening habits than you do yourself. However, my Wrapped will be redundant this year, since at least half of my listening time has migrated to playing vinyl records on the turntable. Statistically, this is impossible to quantify, unless I am to keep a record by hand. Like many other music fans of all ages, vinyl has gripped me. The whole experience of dropping into my local record shops, chatting with the folks at the counter and on the shop floor, browsing the aisles, having a latte, and all the rest of it. Walking out of there on a Friday or Saturday with a couple of new albums tucked under my arm has become a highlight of this post-pandemic lifestyle.
Tucson, AZ | This Tucson record show will have thousands of albums for sale: Need proof that vinyl records are still red hot as collectibles? Talk to Bruce Smith, whose Tucson Record Show returns for its 17th year this Saturday, Oct. 29. Smith, owner of the online record business Cassidy Collectibles, said last year’s show was easily one of the best he’s ever had. Not only were the attendance numbers high, but “nearly all of the sellers I talked to were very pleased and anxious to come back,” he said. Smith is cautiously optimistic that this show will do just as well, with about 20 dealers from across Arizona set to offer tens of thousands of titles from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Fraternal Order of Police Hall, 3445 N. Dodge Blvd. Smith said a little bit of everything will be available: jazz, soul, hip-hop, country. But the most popular titles by far, year after year, are the classic rock albums.
Maplewood, NJ | Elusive Sounds Maplewood to Hold 5th Record Fair + Music Extravaganza Sunday, Nov. 13: Maplewood residents Charles Maggio and Jennifer Klein are hosting the 5th Maplewood Record Fair on Sunday, November 13 from 10AM-4PM at The Woodland. Around 40 vendors will sell items that are music, art, movie, and collectibles related. Patrons will find an eclectic assortment of vinyl records, music paraphernalia, collectibles, vintage clothing, comics, books, and more! Vegan and vegetarian treats available.
Fresno, CA | Fresno Record Show invites all to buy or sell records: The Fresno Record show held its event on Sunday, October 23rd. The event not only invites community members to buy records but also allows them to sell their own collection at the show. The record show is usually held 3-4 times a year but has been on pause for the past couple of years due to the pandemic. The event was held this year at Bentley’s Drum Shop in Fresno, which has been in business for 30 years. The owner, Dana Bentley, says the turnout keeps growing and that this year was the biggest yet now that records are making a big comeback. This is the 8th time the show has been held, and people of all ages were there to find some of their favorite records.
10 best Halloween vinyl records to own, ranked: The top records to soundtrack the Halloween season for vinyl collectors. Vinyl collectors seldom need a reason to buy more records, but to be sure, the arrival of the holiday season certainly provides one to expand one’s collection. After all, no collection is complete without a holiday section. Taking that one step further, many collectors also love movies and TV shows. With that comes further opportunities – further need – to flesh out the ranks. There’s a certain feeling connecting the dots between the things we consume can elicit, and if you’ve fallen in love with a movie, isn’t it great to add the soundtrack to your stacks of wax? We think so. As such, in celebration of the spooky season and the eternal need to have a record for every occasion, what follows are 10 records to soundtrack the Halloween season for vinyl collectors.
Los Angeles, CA | The power of the Swifties: Taylor’s ‘Midnights’ breaks streaming and vinyl sales records: It’s a good week to be a Swiftie. Pop superstar Taylor Swift has toppled multiple sales and streaming records with the Oct. 21 release of her 10th studio album, “Midnights.” In just the first three days of its release, “Midnights” has already become the top-selling album of 2022. On Spotify, “Midnights” tallied 88 million streams in the U.S. and 185 million worldwide in one day, besting Bad Bunny’s record of 183 million global streams for his album “Un Verano Sin Ti.” Swift also broke first-day records at Apple Music and Amazon Music. Billboard reported that “Midnights” sold over 800,000 copies in the U.S. in its first day, including streams, digital downloads, and CD, vinyl and cassette sales. …“Midnights” also broke existing vinyl sales records, having sold nearly 500,000 copies in one day. “Harry’s House” held the one-week record, with 182,000 12-inch copies.
Taylor Swift’s New Album Is Finally Out. But Do You Really Need Four? With the release of her new album Midnights, Taylor Swift is poised to reclaim her weekly record-sales title from Harry Styles, who eclipsed her previous album’s sales back in June. Records, in this case, refer to vinyl, the kind your (grand) parents used to listen to, and now, apparently, your tween-age daughters too. Swift is likely to achieve her latest feat not just because of her immense popularity, but a clever marketing ploy that presents her albums as items to be collected as much as listened to: fans can choose among four vinyl editions of the same $29.99 album, each with different cover art. Superfans can assemble all four into functional wall art with the addition of a clock kit that sells for $49. But vinyl LPs are made from un-recyclable plastic in a process that produces approximately 0.5 kg of CO2 per album—the equivalent of driving two miles in a gasoline powered car. In the overall scheme of things, it’s not much, but buying four copies of one album in the pursuit of fan art stretches the standards of environmental responsibility.
AU/NZ | Jacinda Ardern’s fiancé approves of Rolling Stone’s vinyl gift: Jacinda Ardern and Anthony Albanese exchanged vinyls earlier this year, but the Aussie PM’s choices were a little old-fashioned. That’s why Rolling Stone AU/NZ decided to step in. Back in June, new Australian PM Anthony Albanese met with his New Zealand counterpart Jacinda Ardern, and the pair – both big music fans – exchanged vinyls. In a turbulent time for politics, it was a genuine moment of camaraderie. There was just one issue though: our Albo’s taste was good but a little old-fashioned. While Ardern gave him powerhouse folk singer-songwriter Aldous Harding’s 2014 self-titled debut and Reb Fountain’s recent album Iris, Albanese provided her with Midnight Oil, Spiderbait and Powderfinger in return. That even prompted Ardern’s fiancé, Clarke Gayford, to lightly mock the gift in an Instagram comment, the broadcaster pondering if it was actually 2004 instead of 2022. Absolutely nobody is disputing the quality of that trio – all three bands are favourites of Tone Deaf writers – but there were sadly no contemporary Australian artists in Albanese’s vinyl gift pack at a time when the country’s music scene is having quite the moment.
