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Keeping vinyl records alive.

Once thought to be a collector's item of a small number of vinyl fanatics in this time of great technological advancements, those who are keeping vinyl alive are actually more numerous and a more diverse group then originally thought. If you have ever seen the movie 'Ghost World' in which the one middle aged character is portrayed as a socially awkward, nerdy collector of vinyl records, then you can understand how the portrayal of vinyl album users and collectors can be misleading in today's world.

In fact in recent years a surge in new albums and music being released on full size and 45 vinyl has help shatter the stereotype of vinyl collectors and introduced a whole new generation of music lovers to the lure of vinyl recordings. This phenomenon is not being seen in classic records being reissued, rather in popular and youth based music with many modern artists pushing to have their music released not only in CD and MP3 formats, but also in special edition vinyl records. Seem odd? Walk into the music based mall chain Hot Topic and you will see some surprising artists releasing music on vinyl as well as new formats. Modern popular acts such as Fall Out Boy, Nine Inch Nails, Panic! At the Disco, and Marilyn Manson are a small and yet surprising portion of the bands reinvigorating the vinyl scene.

Helping this revitalization are the turntable makers themselves. For a while record players were hard to find and turntable makers turned to making specially designed turntables for DJs and mixing artists even going as far as making turntables that digitally mixed CDs and MP3s. But once again many makers are introducing new versions of classic turntables like those from the days before 8-tracks and CDs.

Of course this is all well and good, but one must ask why? Why are records suddenly coming back, why can fans now purchase new acts on old technology, and why are values of classic original records skyrocketing on sites like Ebay?

One possible explanation may be that many people who grew up with vinyl appreciate the crackling and soft audio quality of records and for them these albums bring back the full experience of listening to their favorite bands like it was the first time hearing them all over again. Another explanation is that a new generation of music fans are being born due to the explosion of music availability and ease of discovering new music brought on by the internet. Younger music fans may want to experience classic music as it was originally experienced and thus want to listen to vinyl. They may also want to go back to a format which was not so restricted in terms of sharing, copying, and usage. It could also be a form of rebellion against an industry so intent on limiting and controlling music in a fast paced digital world.

Nostalgia is a word often thrown around when discussing the fascination with vinyl records and record players. Many fans of this format, both young and old, claim that listening to a vinyl record is an amazing and consuming experience, one that is missing from more modern formats of digital music and compressed audio formats. We may never know the exact reasons why vinyl is alive and seeing an increase in popularity once again, but walk into any music store today and you will find vinyl present once again on the shelves, right next to the CDs and MP3 players.

Learn more about this author, Maxwell Payne.
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