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Vinyl LPs Make a New Sound: Cha-Ching!

Record sales spike 90% despite digital music, recession

By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff

Posted Apr 26, 2009 7:20 PM CDT
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(Newser) – The crackling, old-fashioned sound of vinyl LPs is back, the Los Angeles Times reports. Defying the digital music craze, record sales spiked nearly 90% last year and fueled a boom in brick-and-mortar music stores across LA. Why the uptick in a bad economy? Majestic artwork, the fun of LP-flipping, and—aficionados say—better sound can account for the record revival.

Major labels are slowly catching on too, reissuing marquee acts like U2 on vinyl. Manufacturers are meeting demand by turning out low-cost turntables. Critics say consumers' love for pricey LPs will be short lived, but record store owners maintain sales are strong. "Sometimes I wonder, 'What am I doing?'" said one. But "it's the only corner of the physical music business that's growing."

David Hale speaks to members of the Vinyl Preservation Society of Idaho at a club meeting at the Modern Hotel in downtown Boise, Idaho on Wednesday, March 26, 2008.
David Hale speaks to members of the Vinyl Preservation Society of Idaho at a club meeting at the Modern Hotel in downtown Boise, Idaho on Wednesday, March 26, 2008.   (AP Photo/Troy Maben)
Vinyl record enthusiast Gary Earle looks over a Judy Collins album at the Modern Hotel in downtown Boise, Idaho on Wednesday, March 26, 2008.
Vinyl record enthusiast Gary Earle looks over a Judy Collins album at the Modern Hotel in downtown Boise, Idaho on Wednesday, March 26, 2008.   (AP Photo/Troy Maben)
Vinyl record enthusiast Gary Earle looks over a Judy Collins album at the Modern Hotel in downtown Boise, Idaho on Wednesday, March 26, 2008.
Vinyl record enthusiast Gary Earle looks over a Judy Collins album at the Modern Hotel in downtown Boise, Idaho on Wednesday, March 26, 2008.   (AP Photo/Troy Maben)
The soundtrack from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey spins on a turntable.
The soundtrack from the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey spins on a turntable.   (AP Photo/Troy Maben)
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COMMENTS
Showing 1 of 1 comment
opheliaglass
Apr 27, 2009 5:17 AM CDT
I remember hearing Deja Entendu on vinyl, and it was like nothing I had ever heard before.

 
record sales • records • record stores • vinyl

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