In an era when songs are bought and sold with the click of a mouse and iPods are no bigger than match books, it seems unlikely that anyone would embrace a piece of technology the size of a dinner plate.
But vinyl records are making a comeback, and it isn't just with older music fans who are connecting with their past. Members of the MP3 generation are getting in on the hobby, too, thanks to the increasing numbers of musicians who are offering titles on vinyl.
"In general, there are more titles in print right now in vinyl than probably any time since at least the 1980s, before CDs took hold," said Craig Moore, who owns Younger Than Yesterday in Peoria.
In addition to back albums from the 1960s and '70s being reissued, new artists from Amy Winehouse to The Shins are releasing their albums on vinyl as well as on CD and MP3 formats. New records have perks like thicker vinyl that comes in different colors, deluxe packaging and coupons for free online music downloads. And many people will tell you it's simply a better way to listen to music.
A communal event
Today, most people are more likely to listen to music through the earbuds of their iPod than to sit around with a group of friends. But those communal events are how Moore, age 60, remembers most of his favorite albums.
"In the early '70s as a young hippie, I'd run down and buy the new Jethro Tull album or an Emerson, Lake & Palmer. And we'd go back to the house and get out a bottle of Boone's Farm or something else and sit down and listen to it, look at the album cover and pass it around, get out the poster and put the poster up in the dining room. It was an event. And I think that's lost in today's music scene.
"Many people are fine with downloading a song they heard on the radio or on MTV," Moore said, "but I'm seeing a lot of people who are looking for something more along the lines of that communal thing."
Vinyl resurgence
The return of vinyl has a lot to do with the artists who choose to include that medium in their offerings.
The punk and hip-hop communities have always been big on vinyl, but now artists that would fall under the college rock or indie category - like The Killers, Amy Winehouse and The Shins - have started issuing their releases on vinyl.
And even though vinyl costs more to produce than CDs, many artists see it as something that will withstand the test of time.
Jared Grabb is a member of Peoria-formed band Scouts Honor, which has relocated to Chicago. Grabb said Scouts Honor has released several albums on vinyl, including its recent "I Am the Dust."
"Especially in the punk community there's a lot of support for vinyl," Grabb said. "There are some people who believe that vinyl sounds better and is more true to the sound of the genre. I don't necessarily think that," he said, but he likes the idea of producing a collectible in a time when music is swapped online.
The coolness factor
Matt McClellan, owner of Endless Records, 125 E. Washington Street, East Peoria, said many vinyl purchases come with a certificate for a free online download, which solves the issue of portability for those who want a record but also want to take songs with them in their iPod or car stereo.
"It's just a cool thing to have (an album) on a 7-inch record," McClellan said. "They almost always have picture sleeves, sometimes they're on homemade, colored vinyl - swirl or marble vinyl or blood red."
Bands also will release different pressings on different colored vinyl to make collecting more interesting.
Another factor is the weight of vinyl; 180-gram or 200-gram vinyl is known as "virgin vinyl" and is some of the best you can get.
"Some people who want the ultimate, nice-sounding version of something will opt for something like that if money's not a real factor," McClellan said.
The cost of a record can run the gamut from a couple of bucks for a used Beatles album that has been in print for decades on up to the price of a luxury car. Moore of Younger Than Yesterday once was rummaging with a friend who paid $40,000 for a stereo first pressing of "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" which included four songs that were later withdrawn from the market. The album his friend purchased was one of only three copies known to exist.
But an average record purchase will run around $5 to $20. And that's not bad, considering vinyl may hold its value better than a CD and that it has long been known for its warmer, richer sound.
"I think almost anyone will tell you there's a major difference between digital and analogue," Moore said. "Digital is a laser reading ones and zeros. A record is a needle beating around the inside of a groove - physical contact. Records carry, in the groove, a wider range and a deeper range of frequencies. There's just no debate. . . . If you talk to producers these days, they are all conscious of the limitations of digital, and they're all trying to make (CDs) sound like records."
Old technology is new again
Donald Gort, a co-owner of Electronics Diversified, 4632 N. Brandywine Drive, said he's seen an increase in the number of people seeking the technology to play records. Many of them have inherited their parents' record collections, others were turned on to the hobby by friends.
"I'd say the under-35 crowd has increased several hundred percent in the last 18 months," Gort said.
EDI sells both new and vintage turntables and does repair work on systems dating as far back as the 1950s. Gort said customers always get a kick out of seeing the vintage equipment, and a new turntable starts around $125. He also sells a $199 version with a USB output and the software to play records as well as transfer them into a computer.
Intimate listening
Cameron Feldman, manager of the East Peoria Co-Op Records, said although vinyl records are being discovered by younger music fans, it isn't a mainstream trend.
"The people who are buying vinyl are the true music connoisseurs, and it's nice to see that because you get kind of bummed out sometimes (now that) music has become so disposable. But you have these younger kids coming in that are excited whenever you actually have an album on vinyl, which is pretty cool."
Although it's not a trend that's going to save the music industry, Feldman said, it is introducing a younger generation to a more pure musical experience.
"I've always been a big believer that vinyl is the most intimate way to listen to music," Feldman said. "You take the record out, put it on, you have to flip it over to the second side if you want to continue to listen to it. In the digital age, all of that has gotten cheapened, it's become disposable. With vinyl, it's almost like you cherish it, you hold it closer. It's more of a personal experience, and that's the way music is supposed to be."
