The sales of vinyl may not crunch the big numbers of its glory day, or the way that digital downloads and streaming services do for the music industry today, but as recent industry reports and the booming success of this year’s Record Store Day demonstrate, the vintage format is steadily surviving.
In fact, as Fact Mag points out, a recent report from the IFPI shows that last year sales of vinyl reached $177 million, their highest since 1997, meaning that the little wax format is actually experiencing a booming resurgence.
Universal Music Group, the largest record label in the world, has certainly noticed, and are looking to capitalise on the upswing by reissuing out-of-print vinyl releases from their massive back catalogue in an innovative new crowdfunding campaign, as Consequence Of Sound reports.
Universal is looking to plunder its extensive archives but is asking music fans for their input and funding in a new campaign called Uvinyl: The Vinyl Project, which follows in the footsteps of a similar fan-service initiative by the Ninja Tune-backed BeatDelete, namely re-pressing albums and singles long since deleted from their catalogues. …Reissuing out-of-print vinyl releases from their massive back catalogue in an innovative new crowdfunding campaign.
As for who’ll be getting the vinyl resurrection treatment, according to CMU, releases currently being considered for Uvinyl include Sonic Youth’s 1990 album Goo, Björk’s latest, Biophilia, the breakthrough His N Hers album from Britpop icons Pulp, and Nirvana’s famous MTV Unplugged performance.
Others potentially being dusted off from the archives and repressed include Def Leppard’s Hysteria, Cream’s Disraeli Gears, Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, and The Jackson 5’s ABC.
The Uvinyl project, aimed at “bringing back rare and deleted records” is looking to continue the success of its UK-based online store, which has kicked up production of picture discs, rarities, singles and Record Store Day exclusives.
The new crowdfunding campaign however, is specifically asking for input on future re-pressings of long deleted items, and like many crowdfunding ventures, pledgers will be entitled to unique rewards, with the Uvinyl project website boasting that “Funders will become owners of limited edition rare records, which will also include digital downloads and personalised art prints.”
Those interested in kickstarting Universal’s vinyl project can register online and then issued a questionnaire (and a 20% discount from the online Uvinyl store upon completion) for their feedback and input.
