Interesting article today in The Globe and Mail about the impermanence of archival formats... Except vinyl.
Got me curious. Calling upon the author to explain, we learn:
In Britain, media have been reporting a strange mould affecting audiotape and videotape. Thousands of kilometres of magnetic tape have already been destroyed by the dust-like substance...
It seems, dear music lovers, that nature is rebelling against our inferior audio and video formats! It's almost like some summer blockbuster with that wonder-eyed Zooey Deschanel and what's his name.
For those of you who can't make it out to the Princeton Record Exchange, the good folks in Princeton have put together an excellent video tour of their wonderful store.
If you can make it out to Princeton, but haven't yet made the time, these videos may be just what it takes to motivate you. I'm sure forum member, selfdivider, will want to make a trip now that he's got his new turntable all set up!
While the PREX offers thousands of new and used compact discs as well as DVDs and even video games, I am especially interested in their 60,000 vinyl titles.
Also interesting is the behind-the-scenes look, where we see my darling Rosie (the VPI HW-16.5 record cleaning machine) in action.
Oh crap. I just received an e-mail from the Princeton Record Exchange. Turns out they've added thousands of titles to their already overwhelming collection of tantalizing vinyl.
It was just a few months ago that I was moaning and groaning about Sonic Youth's latest release being made available only on vinyl. I wrote:
I've collected every one of these burning masterpieces—on CD—going back to those college nights with Todd and Michelle, racing down River Road to catch the 168 or the 175 and finding our way to the Cooler on 14th, or Tonic on Norfolk, and later even watching thrilled and perplexed as Sonic Youth took the stage to make noise at Lincoln Center's Avery Fisher Hall.
Here's a sneak-peek at Mikey Fremer's upcoming DVD, "It's a Vinyl World, After All," scheduled to be released later this year. I swear: Mikey doesn't always talk like this. It's just that it's loud at the RTI pressing plant, and Mikey's a little excitable.
Last Tuesday evening, JA and I left the office together and stormed through Madison Avenue's rush-hour onslaught, beneath so much Art Deco splendor, around Grand Central's excitement and confusion, passed happy hour revelers—slicked-backed men dressed in jackets and ties as if it wasn't 100 degrees outside, and impossibly radiant women in their picture-perfect poses sipping frozen drinks through tall, thin straws—to make our way into Park Avenue's old and golden Waldorf=Astoria.
It was from Michael Lavorgna. I opened it. He wrote:
I heard from Patrick Amory and it's looking like we are going over his place this Friday for a Road Tour. Patrick, besides working for Matador Records, has a huge collection of rare classical recordings and knows a boatload about them. His system: original refurbished Quad 57s, Leak or Radford amps, a Shindo Monbrison preamp, and a Garrard 301 in a new LignoLab plinth. We'll be doing stereo and mono.
I had other plans, but how could I pass up such an offer? My other plans would have to wait.
Friday, June 20th, was Elizabeth Donovan's last day at work. We left the office together, and walked across the street to Mulligan's Pub. Elizabeth carried a large backpack, a box of books, a lamp. The place was packed, but we found a little space by the door, beneath an air conditioning unit.
Fortunately, I didn't have to rob any banks or max out my credit cards this weekend. I didn't even have to travel to Africa. The crazy heat and humidity (Footnote for Jaclyn Gooding), however, made it feel like high noon in the Kalahari Desert. Simply sitting at my kitchen table, my laptop (Footnote for AlexO) open and our April 2008 issue turned to page 155, was a kind of dull, hot torture.
I looked up through the heat to find that the blades of my ceiling fan had turned into circling vultures. The ice in my tall glass of water quickly melted, and then the glass melted, too. Outside, I could smell the charcoal from my neighbor's barbeque grill, I could hear the sounds of classic salsa. Ismael Rivera was telling stories about young girls, playing on the long, sandy beach. Frisky squirrels raced up and down the old wood siding of my apartment building, stopping at my kitchen window just to laugh at me. The entire world seemed to be taunting and teasing and laughing.
Some people might wonder what it is about me and the Rega P3. Why would I simply settle on the old Rega when there are so many other similarly priced turntables out there?
A new Rega P3-24 turntable with RB301 tonearm and Elys 2 cartridge costs $1095. An audiophile looking to spend about a thousand bucks on a new turntable might also consider the Clearaudio Emotion ($1200); Funk Firm Funk ($1159); Music Hall MMF-7.1 ($1299); Nottingham Horizon ($1100); Pro-Ject Experience ($1000); or Sota Comet ($1050). There are, of course, many others. All are special in their own ways, and would probably be considered by most to be more physically attractive than the decidedly austere Rega.
So: Why not consider some other 'table before jumping into a long-term commitment?
Judging from the video, it appears as though the first Brooklyn Record Riot was a smashing success—men and women, old and young, enjoying beer, pierogies, kielbasa, and records. Got a problem with that, fun-haters?
In a sense, DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist are music historians and preservationists. In "The Hard Sell," they take us on a scratching, mixing, looping journey through musical genres and fads, from the wildly obscure to the completely commercial, while employing not one, not two, but eight turntables and a collection of original 45rpm seven-inch singles that would make Mikey Fremer's hair go straight.
At some point, I hope to post a long list of links (A Long List of Links) to sites that specialize in vinyl LPs. This will be for you, dear readers. But also for me! I have been collecting the web addresses and adding them to a Favorites folder. If you know of some sites that offer great selections of LPs (new or used) and you want to help me go deeper into debt (just kidding, Clifton), please do share! Together we will build a database of all the World Wide Web's most alluring online stores. (Not those kinds of stores! LP stores, you naughty naughties.)
Today I made a purchase at Aural Exploits. Jeff Wong introduced me to the site. Just like me, it is dedicated to vinyl. Rid Of Me, PJ Harvey's powerful and enthralling 1993 album, is now available on vinyl for the first time in I don't know how many years. Limited to only 500 copies, it is pressed on magnificent white vinyl and is exclusive to Aural Exploits. I clicked, I purchased. It was the smart thing to do. In fact, it had to be done.
You should do it, too.
Visit Aural Exploits for vinyl records from XL, Yep Roc, Matador, Secretly Canadian, Jagjaguwar, Vinyl Films, and many other excellent labels.
For the last few days, in the midst of shipping the gorgeous September issue, I have been thoroughly enjoying the new release from Secretly Canadian's Bodies of Water, A Certain Feeling.
Posted Thu Jul 10, 2008, 11:43 AM ET — By Ariel Bitran, editorial intern
Ariel has been plugging away at the Buyer's Guide, collecting information from the many manufacturers and importers who contribute to our great passion for music and sound. It is often a thankless task, bound by the cold limitations of electronic communication, spreadsheets, voice mail. Some of these manufacturers and importers don't want to be bothered by our requests. Which is understandable. They've got their own pressing concerns.
But, every now and then, a relationship is formed. We grow to know one another. Here, however, Ariel shares a bit about what happens when communication fails. —SM
It's not nearly as sexy as the Bellari VP129, but I was still happy to receive it. The Exposure 2010S's phono card ($219) arrived on Thursday afternoon, secured in bubble wrap and covered by Styrofoam peanuts. There were no instructions.
Who needs instructions anyway?
Up until now, I had been listening to my vinyl through the Tangent AMP-50's onboard phono section. For only $259, you get fine styling, 50 watts of power, detailed sound, and the ability to listen to vinyl. Budget-strapped music lovers looking to build a system should definitely consider the Tangent, especially if they want to easily incorporate vinyl playback. Match the Tangent amp with an entry-level Rega turntable and a pair of PSB Alpha B1 loudspeakers, for instance, and you've got gorgeous music and great fun for under $1000. But the Tangent has its limitations, and I'd been eager to hear what the Exposure could do. So, on Friday morning, I set about installing the card.
Ariel's two new favorite toys—one found in the garbage, and one bought with his hard-earned cash: The Sony CFM-10 Radio Cassette-Corder and the Bellari VP129, one-tube wonder.
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