Is it worth whille releasing anything on vinyl these days?

[blumarten]

Has the democratisation of dance music morphed into a tyranny?

http://www.djbroadcast.net/features...on_of_dance_music_morphed_into_a_tyranny.html

 

[Afek_One]

I've got a wager on vinyl being discontinued by 2016. The only thing that worries me is Reggae/dancehall. Everything else is more or less digital now.

Indie probably shifts more vinyl units than anything.

 

[Dagz]

Indie probably shifts more vinyl units than anything.

Oh totally but that's not exactly what I ment. Indie could easily be changed to digital same as most music styles but Reggae/dancehall, its like a religion to use vinyl anyone that's ever been to an aba shanti night understands. I could not imagine them playing cdj's at all it just wouldn't feel right

jah

 

[rythmatix]

But why are the pro vinyl heads all saying that vinyl releases should come with free digital as standard? surely if you want the vinyl then play the vinyl no?

I only play vinyl when I DJ, but it is nice to click 'download' and be able to hear the music you have just bought on vinyl right away - it makes that pain of waiting for the physical product to arrive that much easier. Also, as I have mentioned, I think it may persuade more people to splash out a bit more for the physical product

 

[OneSeventy]

^^ Also I don't believe I am the only one who likes to listen to dnb while doing other things. It's not music only for DJing and you can't exactly take a set of decks with you everywhere.

 

[Samurai Music]

Also, as I have mentioned, I think it may persuade more people to splash out a bit more for the physical product

Sadly the download cards add extra expense and from our experience don't appear to have much impact on sales. We gave it a go!

 

[rythmatix]

Sadly the download cards add extra expense and from our experience don't appear to have much impact on sales. We gave it a go!

Nah Geoff I'm meaning direct download links - having the download card in the vinyl means you have to wait for that too haha

 

[Samurai Music]

Nah Geoff I'm meaning direct download links - having the download card in the vinyl means you have to wait for that too haha

Ah, Surus and Bandcamp is about it for that then

 

[rythmatix]

Ah, Surus and Bandcamp is about it for that then

yeah I think all vinyl stores should be able to provide that service too! buying through Surus we end up paying for the MP3's via the more expensive shipping anyway...

 

[Samurai Music]

yeah I think all vinyl stores should be able to provide that service too! buying through Surus we end up paying for the MP3's via the more expensive shipping anyway...

Thats just normal price shipping mate, the only reason the other stores do cheaper shipping is because of the massive volume they send. More and more people are going to start doing limited editions direct and the postage will be the same.

 

[Afek_One]

It would be interesting to do Kickstarters for every release. Advertise on Facebook, Twitter and forums. Let the market dictate what to press and how many.

Kind of like the Gridlock and Prolix did for Project Trendkill.

 

[Samurai Music]

It would be interesting to do Kickstarters for every release. Advertise on Facebook, Twitter and forums. Let the market dictate what to press and how many.

Kind of like the Gridlock and Prolix did for Project Trendkill.

I really really think this is a perfect idea for some of the newer producers who believe with all their hearts their release deserves a vinyl pressing. Lately a lot of labels have been getting told by producers that their release deserves a vinyl pressing and will sell, not knowing the realities of the market or the costs. I would encourage any artist who thinks they know better than experienced labels to actually do this. It may work. The world is wide open now for avenues for artists to discover this for themselves, why rely on labels if you don't trust that they know their own business. DIY is there for everyone...

 

[rythmatix]

Thats just normal price shipping mate, the only reason the other stores do cheaper shipping is because of the massive volume they send. More and more people are going to start doing limited editions direct and the postage will be the same.

oh yeah I know that bro, and it seems a lot of stores prices are going up which just really starts to price the format out of my budget - a good example is the Teddy Killerz album sampler. 7 pounds for the record, and they want another 7 pounds 35 to send it! In NZ$ we're talking $28 for one plate. That's rough...and with the gradual increase in the cost of vinyl too. All these things make the format harder to sell....

 

[blumarten]

yeah I think all vinyl stores should be able to provide that service too! buying through Surus we end up paying for the MP3's via the more expensive shipping anyway...

i'm just building something like that for our site. Problem is that it takes time, knowledge and willpower to make something like that happen... and those things are often in short supply for most people.
It's easy to say "they should do [x]!" but it's much more difficult to implement. You're asking people who often have no experience at all of site builds, sales, online retail to invest a lot of time and money copying what major retail outlets have spent years working on with dedicated staff. It's a big ask when you stop and think about it.

 

[fonik]

It's easy to say "they should do [x]!" but it's much more difficult to implement. You're asking people who often have no experience at all of site builds, sales, online retail to invest a lot of time and money copying what major retail outlets have spent years working on with dedicated staff. It's a big ask when you stop and think about it.

bollocks and lies. give us what we want now chris. NOW

 

[blumarten]

lol @ bollocks and lies

 

[fonik]

^ jokes aside, could waffle for ages on this subject and i may return and do so if i have the strength of mind but for now will simply say that i have been avidly collecting vinyl for years now. so staunchly vinyl its untrue. that time has still come though where i have just bought myself another cdj to make a pair.

wax is fucking expensive. the market is diminishing which is only going to push prices up further, thus reducing the market and so on. simple economics. stickers and marbled vinyl dont make £20 for 2 plates any more affordable tbh

vinyl for me now is the one offs, the ltd editions, the deluxe packages and so on, but more than anything the quality TIMELESS music that i will return to 5, 10, 15 years down the line and not feel embarrassed or annoyed about having wasted money on (i.e a lot less dance music). that is the real key imo.

 

[blumarten]

the ideal solution would be a spreadshirt-type model where the label delivers the metalwork and the plant just prints 1 vinyl at a time to meet demand with no minimum runs.

would never work though, unfortunately

 

[fonik]

every label needs a lathe in the office

http://www.vestax.com/v/products/detail.php?cate_id=183

 

[Afek_One]

every label needs a lathe in the office

http://www.vestax.com/v/products/detail.php?cate_id=183

You're assuming labels even have offices.