30 years of data shows the music industry peaked when Napster hit the scene: The music industry, like all industries, has changed a lot over the last 30 years due to advancements in technology and the advent of the internet. A new graph from the data experts at Chartr shows just what that change has meant in terms of what kind of media consumers are buying and how much revenue the industry is making from those sales. The transition from vinyl to cassette to CD to digital is familiar to all music fans, but this chart still offers a look at some bizarre moments throughout the industry’s history. For example, 1999 marked the highest grossing year for record companies, which should come as no surprise to anyone who remembers spending $23 on a 10-song EP packed into a cheap, oft-broken jewel case. Coincidentally, that was the same year Napster was founded, ushering in a new era of music consumption that would result in record companies dragging their feet into the digital age. Other statistical aberrations include the recent resurgence in vinyl sales and the mid-2000s ringtone boom that we still can’t believe was actually a thing.
Tucson, AZ | Jack Grossi of Tucson’s PDQ Records dies at 94: Jack Grossi, who built one of the world’s largest collections of vinyl records and at one time had arguably one of the largest independent record stores in the U.S. — attracting buyers from as far away as Japan — died on April 27. He was 94. Grossi died suddenly at home, said his wife of 10 years Liz Ownbey. Grossi had spent that day working at PDQ Records, the store he started in Tucson with his first wife, Nadine, nearly 40 years ago with a single box of records they got from their daughter’s friend. They tossed the records onto a pile of stuff that they sold at the swap meet. The records sold so quickly that they started amassing record collections and opened the store on North Dodge Boulevard in 1985. At one point, they had 1 million vintage and often hard-to-find vinyl records by artists in all genres, from rock and punk rock to country and classical, Ownbey said. Customers came from throughout the United States and abroad to thumb through the rows and rows of records filling every wall of the 12,000-square-foot warehouse.
Vinyl sales record set to be smashed by Garth Brooks’ Legacy Collection: The country music star has reportedly sold more than a million copies of his latest vinyl release. If tomorrow never comes, Garth Brooks will always know he did right by holding out on music streaming. With pre-orders of his vinyl box set Legacy Collection selling all day long – and now surpassing a million units – Brooks looks set to have the biggest-selling vinyl record since the format made its resurgence at the start of the century. With the 7-LP box set retailing at $130, that’s some $18.5 million in vinyl revenues heading his way. You don’t need friends in low places to know that for artists, direct sales of vinyl, as Brooks has opted for here, pays better than streaming, with fans and collectors willing to pay extra for the tactile, analogue experience. Vinyl has of course been staging a significant comeback for the last 15 years, and Garth’s resolution to go against the grain and not sign-up for streaming platforms looks to have paid dividends.
The world’s best record shops #149: Basement Records, Kuala Lumpur: For those unfamiliar with the underground music scene, it may come as a surprise to hear that the Malaysian city of Kuala Lumpur is a haven for punk rock and DIY hardcore. Shopes like Tandang present cassette tapes while hosting riotous shows from locals and touring bands alike. However, formed in 2003, Kuala Lumpur’s darker side is rooted in Basement Records. “We don’t think we’re the best record shop in Malaysia or the world, but we’ve still been doing the stuff since day one,” says the Basement Records owner, who wishes not to be named. “We grew up in the ’80s and ’90s where the record store was our main source for music, so opening a record store wasn’t an idea, it was a dream.” As well as a healthy dose of grind, thrash and punk vinyl, they keep their cassettes well stocked. “Cassette culture has a stronghold in southeast Asia; cassettes never died here,” he says. True to the punk ethos, he’s proud that Basement also “brings political ideas” into what it does.
Brian Eno to reissue Apollo alongside new album of original compositions: A reimagining of the seminal 1983 ambient masterpiece. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing, ambient architect Brian Eno will release a remastered version of his album Apollo: Atmospheres & Soundtracks alongside a new album of original compositions. For All Mankind takes its name from the 1983 documentary by Al Reinert, for which the original Apollo album was intended to accompany. Check out the stunning visuals for a new track, ‘Like I Was A Spectator’, now. The new album features 11 new instrumental compositions, and sees Eno working alongside both his brother Roger and Daniel Lanois for the first time since the recording of Apollo. Apollo: Atmospheres & Soundtracks – Extended Edition, which includes both the remastered edition of Apollo and For All Mankind, arrives on July 19 and will be available digitally, on CD and vinyl.
