What MUSIC are you listening to?

Step 1) talk yourself out of getting into vinyl

I was raised on vinyl. It was fine at a time when the only alternatives were 8-tracks or cassettes, but has been rendered obsolete by subsequent formats. Vinyl is fragile. If you don't store it properly, transport it carefully, and handle it gingerly, it will get warped, scratched, or shattered. That warm sound of vinyl is distortion, and every play of your vinyl record gradually degrades the sound, to the point where you will hear snap, crackle, and pop like you're eating Rice Krispies. I haven't owned vinyl or a record player since 1991.

The critical question to ask yourself before getting into vinyl is: "What am I going to play?"

If you already have a large collection, then it may be an interesting experiment. But if you're planning on buying new, consider the cost involved -- new vinyl ain't cheap! Here in Canada it's about $40 an album so even a modest 25 LP collection will cost you about a grand.

Vinyl is to music fandom as collecting boardgames is to playing them.

Man, you guys are harshing my buzz. I was mostly looking into 80's rock and movie soundtracks. Figured the physical experience of vinyl would add some nostalgia over just putting on sirusxm channel 39 (though I suppose that was mostly cassette and later cds). Plus I miss album art.

Maybe I will look into a digital jukebox instead. Anything better than "Alexa play Iron Maiden".

I'd say go for it. Like any hobby or interest, there's different levels of commitment and expense. It doesn't need to be hugely expensive. I pick up the occasional new record, but 90% of my collection is pulled from second-hand bins or our local version of eBay. Going on a dig is a highlight of the vinyl experience for me.

I'd suggest looking at either the Pro-Ject Debut Carbon turntable for something stylish or the turntables by Audio-Technica for something more sturdy. They're both affordable and very good quality. Some places do package deals with speakers and amps so I'd shop around and try and find a deal.

I find the whole vinyl experience very enjoyable, from selecting the album off the shelf, putting it on the player and being committed to that album for the next 30-40 mins. It's not a replacement for digital convenience but is a fantastic complement.

There it is, that's the positive validation for a decision I've pretty much already made that I was looking for

While vinyl weighs as much, it probably takes up less space than boardgames. Suspect trying to sell off a collection nets as much money though!

Plus my wife is a MONSTER at goodwill shopping, I imagine there is a fair amount on there.

I went vinyl shopping with a friend this weekend. She does vinyl, me not. Except I bought 3 albums. One is a new vinyl-only release, two were cheapo used records important to Young Dave. I haven't decided yet if I'm taking the plunge.

The only thing that I miss about vinyl is the big cardboard sleeves. Lots of room for art, photos, liner notes, lyrics, etc. Sometimes there was even a poster insert. A couple of the Led Zeppelin album sleeves were slightly fun to manipulate, especially that rotating wheel on Led Zeppelin III.

I have a good amount of vinyl and a decent U-Turn table. However, it's a pain in the ass. It's only good if I'm in the one part of the house where the turntable is. Otherwise it's music on my phone. If I have my bluetooth speaker, great. Otherwise it plays from shitty little speakers and still gets the job done.

My wife and mini-human got me a turntable setup (AT60X, a simple starter in case I hated it) for Father's Day and I quite enjoy it. I like focusing on what's playing and our house's layout and small size makes it work for us. Only our bedroom and home office/guest bedroom are ill positioned for it.

Of course, I still listen to a lot digitally throughout my day.

Been enjoying Beach Bunny’s album, Emotional Creature.

Drove to Chicago today to see Pet Shop Boys and New Order. I first bought the ticket in 2019, but Covid had other plans... but tonight it finally happened.

It was great, in spite of Chicago earning its title as Windy City. Pet Shop Boys sounded great, as did New Order. The final song of the night was New Order performing Love Will Tear Us Apart by Joy Division, which was pretty fantastic.

I am listening to a lot of sea shanties lately. I bought Sea Evil on sale last month and plan to get it on the table for my Halloween boardgame event in a few weeks, so I need a sea shanty mix. However, sea shanties are often short though repetitive, so I have so far have 20 songs that cover 53 minutes. Need to fill out at least an 80-minute mix disc, and the game could run as long as two hours. My ideal shanties are strictly vocals, and I am trying to steer clear of ones that basically sound like typical celtic folk songs with several instruments in the mix. Even better if the sea shanties have a dark tone or dark lyrics or both.

One standout band has both a full album and an ep featuring sea chanties: The Longest Johns. Dark songs, too, like Bones in the Ocean and Men I've Known and Killed. They also cover some classics like Wellerman and Blow the Man Down.