Entertainment

Published on Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Bring back the vinyl
By TONY MARTIN

There are a million ways to appreciate music, but there is nothing better than vinyl.

People can talk all day about mp3s, or even CDs, but vinyl provides an all-around better experience and listen.

Smaller bands, which may or may not be worth your time, put out vinyl-only releases constantly. Some of my favorite releases are split vinyl EPs, some of which will run you a steep $2.50. Compare that to shopping at the ridiculous music chain stores, where CD prices can run up to almost $20. Are they serious? Do you know what I can get for $20? No wonder people download so much music. Nobody is happy spending too much for music.

For you classic rock aficionados, you can find good music for next to nothing. Through scrounging I’ve found Foreigner, Yes, and Rush for less than $5 combined. That’s roughly 35 to 40 songs on vinyl for the price of a quarter of a CD. Think about this as you look at the CD racks at Best Buy, ready to spend your entire paycheck.

Honestly, a lot of bigger bands don’t put music out on vinyl, mainly because those bands are lame. However, while you’re buying vinyl online, or at a local record store, you can afford to take a chance on some random record. Even if it turns out to be complete garbage, the cost is not a substantial one to you.

So, take the risk. Buy a record player, stock up and rock out. You don’t have to worry about inane things like bit rate, or ripping it to your computer, or hard drive space, or anything like that. All you have to worry about is rock, and at the end of the day, isn’t that all we want?

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Question of the Day
Where do you prefer to meet new friends?
Campus party or bar.
Not in a party atmosphere.
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