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Vinyl records have undergone a major resurgence in recent years. They are making more and more money for the record industry, and are often the preferred choice for fans who are diligent about how their music sounds. However, a recent study in the United Kingdom seems to indicate that a lot of the people who are buying vinyls maybe don’t actually care about how records sound.
With Record Store Day just around the corner on April 16, polling company ICM Unlimited revealed that only 52 percent of UK adults who reported buying vinyls in the last month have a turntable they currently use. In fact, seven percent of the people polled said they do not have, and have no intention of ever having, a turntable.
These people are buying records, it would seem, as a hobby or for the artwork. One person interviewed about the study said, “I have vinyls in my room, but it’s more for decor… It gives me the old-school vibe. That’s what vinyl’s all about.”
While this is a British study, one assumes that the results are, at least, somewhat similar for American music purchasers. Actually listening to vinyl, which requires having a working record player, is a bit more of an indulgence than cheaper digital means, which is probably why only the most devoted music fans tend to make active use of them. However, vinyl records do certainly have a higher aesthetic quality than CDs or downloaded music. Of course, the dirty secret is the music industry is probably happy to have anybody buying music, even if it’s just to have something to look at.
(via Pitchfork)
