Anybody who thought the vinyl resurgence was just a fad was mistaken: The industry has experienced a legitimate revival. As a result, music fans are interested in physical media in ways they may not have if the decades-old medium hasn’t made a comeback. That doesn’t mean everybody is listening to just their parents’ old music, though. That’s part of it, sure, thanks to rereleases that present classic albums in new ways. A vital part of the renewed vinyl wave, though, is new projects being released as records, of which there are plenty.
Whatever you might be into, each month brings a new slew of vinyl releases that has something for everybody. Some stand out above the rest, naturally, so check out some of our favorite vinyl releases of July below.
Taylor Swift — Folklore
Taylor Swift’s surprise new album, Folklore, has gotten perhaps the most comprehensive vinyl release of any album in 2020: She dropped eight unique vinyl editions of the album, each with different cover art and colored vinyl.
Abba — Abba: The Studio Albums
Abba was unarguably Sweden’s biggest musical export of the ’70s, and now their storied discography is available in one vinyl collection. All eight studio albums are represented here, each in vividly colored pressings that complement the original artwork.
Yaeji — What We Drew 우리가 그려왔던
Uproxx’s Caitlin White notes of Yaeji’s latest, “It’s exactly her intuitive ability to move between languages, and genres — house, hip-hop, pop — that makes When We Drew feel like the next logical step for pop’s best and most interesting impulses.”
Peanuts Greatest Hits and Peanuts Portraits
Charlie Brown and the rest of the Peanuts gang were defining characters over the span of multiple decades, and a big part of that was the music. These two new vinyl releases let fans re-live some of the specials’ classic compositions, and how adorable is that Snoopy record?
Paul McCartney — Flaming Pie Archive Collection
Paul McCartney’s tenth solo album is one of his most beloved, and now it’s available in several expansive editions. Included in these editions are goodies like a 128-page book, an art print portfolio, and more.
Hans Zimmer — Live In Prague
Hans Zimmer is responsible for some of the most epic and iconic music in cinematic history, and hearing him perform it live is a marvel. He likely won’t be touring any time soon, so this 3-LP release of a show in Prague is the next best thing (or better, since you won’t have to find parking outside the venue).
John Mayer — Continuum (Vinyl Me, Please Reissue)
Continuum was John Mayer’s strongest showing as a bluesman of his career at the time, and Vinyl Me, Please’s rerelease of the album is appropriately colored to reflect that. Aside from the slick-looking pressing, the audio was remastered and the release comes with an exclusive art print.
Blu & Exile — Miles
Blu & Exile take their time between albums, and after an eight-year gap, they resurfaced in 2020 with Miles. The effort was worth the wait, as it runs for 90 minutes and features the duo at their finest.
PJ Harvey — Dry and Dry Demos
PJ Harvey is in the midst of a rerelease series, and this month brought Dry, her 1992 debut. Some early editions of the album’s original run came with an exclusive collection of demos, and now for the first time, that set is available as a standalone release.
Spoon — Telephono and Soft Effects EP
Spoon is also at the start of a series of re-issues, and they’ve kicked things off with a pair of formative releases: their 1996 debut album Telephono and the EP that followed the next year, Soft Effects. Spoon leader Britt Daniel notes of the series, “Some of these albums haven’t been available on vinyl or CD in years, and in some places they never actually came out.”
Omar Rodríguez-López — The Clouds Hill Tapes Part I – III
Omar Rodríguez-López has been recording and releasing music on a virtually non-stop basis for decades, and now he’s back with a huge collection. The packaging here is clever: The slipcases feature photographs of the tapes on which these songs were recorded, and putting the vinyl in them gives the illusion of wound tape.
Soul Asylum — Let Your Dim Light Shine
Following the release of 1993’s Grave Dancers Union and the album’s hit single “Runaway Train,” Soul Asylum released Let Your Dim Light Shine, which actually out-charted its predecessor and managed a peak at No. 6 on the Billboard 200. This re-issue of the album (pressed on coke clear with blue swirl vinyl) is an exclusive one, as only 700 copies were made.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. .
