“When I was a kid, vinyl records were so cool to me, not even as something to listen to but more of something to hold and revere.”
“I loved opening my parents’ records and looking at the rock ‘n’ roll photos and the different designs and artwork. I wanted to be those artists, so the vinyl record art and photos were this gateway for me to immerse my imagination into that rock ‘n’ roll fantasy.
My room was covered in liner notes and the fold-out artwork from various records. I had all the Pink Floyd vinyl fold-out art on my bedroom walls. Vinyl albums always had extensive liner notes where I could learn who the musicians were, discover producers, and see who played what on my favorite track. I still love reading them.
I don’t think I actually got into the sound of vinyl and its raw beauty until my later teens. I was playing in bands and we were getting more versed in old sounds. I started to really dive into sound and production and began to collect more old vinyl.
There’s something magical in listening to an old Fats Domino record on vinyl… I don’t really know how to put that into words. It just makes me feel really fucking good. Those little pops and crackles behind such beautiful music give it breath and an authenticity that I love.
Tastes Like Yesterday will be the first album I’ve made to be put out on vinyl and I’m so excited about that. I put a lot of thought into the design; luckily, the label had my back and I think it’s going to be something really cool to hold and look at while listening to the album.
I felt like a kid again when I got to hold one for the first time myself.”
—Thomas Johnson
Tastes Like Yesterday, the new full-length release from Killer Whale arrives in stores on September 18—on vinyl.
