Record Stores Are the Way Forward

I am here to talk to you about the importance of vinyl. Last year I was given the gift of a record player, something I had wanted for some time. I got a reconditioned vintage one on ebay and started checking out record shops, something I only ever did to buy posters before hand. I feel there is something really special about owning vinyl. The only way I can think to describe it is that it is the most physical form of owning music. There is nothing more exciting than waiting till the day an album is released and heading to your local record shop (personal favourites being Jumbo Records and Crash Records in Leeds) and leaving with a bag containing your new record. That, compared to downloading the album off iTunes, or even buying the cd, is less personal in comparison. You really feel as if you are making your best effort for this album that you have been so desperate to hear.

I also draw on the atmosphere of a record store. The feeling of heading into a shop that is wall to wall with good music. Posters on the walls, gig adverts pinned to the boards and shelves and shelves of plastic wrapped vinyl sleeves in badly organised alphabetical order that you must trawl through to find your record. You then have the pride of taken your chosen record of immaculate music taste to the till and chatting to whoever works there about records/music/gigs and feeling really involved.

So, you've done the shop thing and you then have the excitement of getting home to listen to your record. Another great thing about vinyl listening is that you must be there to physically interact with the music listening. It is not enough to just press a button as you would with a computer, you must turn it on and wait for it to speed up, then delicately treat your record when turning it over half way through the listening. This, I've found, means you end up stopping to listen to your music more. Rather than putting music on in the background and doing something else you are actively sat listening to your music. It gives you more chance to experience and appreciate the music without being distracted by other things!

Finally, if there is anything better than having a good CD collection, it's having a good record collection. It's something to be proud of, something to display and show off about. I always tend to have the album I last listened to proudly displayed next to my record player, and in years to come when I believe I will really appreciate my signed records, the sounds of my teenage years!