Midlife Nostalgia Is Driving Vinyl’s Comeback

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Maria Alexander Thirty years after Sony ceased vinyl production, the electronics and media conglomerate announced in 2018 that it would renew record pressings. Although the more convenient and fashionable CD largely replaced vinyls in the mid-1980’s and 1990s, the music industry has since moved to a largely virtual format. However, vinyl sales began to rebound in 2006, informally known as the start of the “vinyl revival.” In fact, vinyl sales have grown for the 15th consecutive year since 2006, a more than 30-fold increase, with over 60% of vinyl buyers over the age of 35. digital file is re-converted into an analog sound wave, leading to loss in audio quality. Similarly, before the introduction of lossless audio, digital streaming also led to quality loss. Because sound waves are directly engraved into the surface of the vinyl, no audio quality is lost in re-conversion. In addition, vinyls offer several advantages which lossless audio streaming does not. In contrast with the fast-paced culture of streaming, vinyls are an emotional investment for consumers. Many record enthusiasts, like George Johann, founder and owner of Ithaca’s Angry Mom Records, says that there’s an inexplicable mystique and warmth in vinyl sound. “I’m not sure what the science behind it is, but there’s just something there. Everyone always talks about the warmth. I think there’s a more direct, less tweaked sound,” Johann said. “You hear a good record compared to a really good CD and you just know it when you hear it. You just know it.” Moving beyond the sound itself, the physicality of the product is refreshing in an increasingly digital world. Unlike Spotify and Apple Music, which make listening automatic with the press of a button, vinyl involves meticulous care of the record and its supportive audio system. Buying a physical product is also a clear display of the listener’s preferences and identity. “I think people want a legitimate totem to hold onto the things that they love. Of all the formats that you can listen to music, the record is the best,” Johann said.

The Sound Behind Behind the Boom

Figure 1: Lossless input and digital output at different bits Although major streaming services such as Spotify and Apple Music introduced lossless playback this year, vinyls have historically offered the highest audio quality for consumers. CDs register snapshots of sound at a certain rate, or “bits,” which are then kept as a digital file (see Figure 1). When CDs are read by a stereo system, the

George Johann standing in Ithaca angry mom records

The Market Power of Nostalgia, Audiophiles, and Aesthetics

To understand vinyl’s comeback, it’s essential to determine the demographics of buyers. With records popping up in new retail spaces, such as trendy clothing stores like Urban Outfitters, it may seem as though a new wave of young consumers is driving vinyl demand. However, research by the Recording Industry Association of America reveals that vinyl’s comeback is due to those over 35 experiencing “midlife nostalgia.” According to YouGov, a market research company, the largest age group of UK vinyl buyers is between the ages of 45 and 54, with those between the ages 18 and 24 actually the least likely group of buyers. In addition, research shows that the most popular music genre for vinyl is Classic Rock (‘60s-80’s), suggesting that a substantial portion of sales come from aging consumers re-establishing a connection with the music and format of their youth. While the youth market may not influence overall sales to the expected extent, records are being adopted by boutiques and trendy stores for a good reason. In fact, those between the ages of 18 and 24 accounted for 16% of new vinyl buyers in 2018. Urban Outfitters, a lifestyle retailer geared towards teenagers and young adults, is now one of the largest stockists of vinyl, which means that vinyl has more visibility than ever outside the boundaries of the traditional record store. As Bob Stanley wrote in the Guardian, “Old heads might be sniffy about the limited selection, but if you’re 14 years old and you pick up a Modern Lovers LP while buying a new pair of jeans, that has got to be healthy for the future of vinyl.” Occasionally, new buyers purchase vinyl without possessing a turntable to listen to it. George Johann, owner and founder of Ithaca’s Angry Mom Records, believes that such purchases are motivated by the buyer’s appreciation for a record;s aesthetics. For young consumers who have limited experience with records, art and aesthetics may be

Occasionally, new buyers purchase vinyl without “

possessing a turntable to listen to it. George

Johann, owner and founder of Ithaca’s

Angry Mom Records, believes that such purchases are motivated by the buyer’s appreciation for a record’s aesthetics.

their gateway into the vinyl market– a promising trend for record manufacturers and retailers.

Small Market Players: A Look into Ithaca’s Own Angry Mom Records

Located in the basement of Autumn Leaves Used Books in Ithaca Commons, Angry Mom Records has been selling both new and used records since 2009. EAven as an experienced vinyl retailer, George Johann finds it difficult to predict the future of the vinyl industry. “Every year it gets a little better, with more sales and prices going up. Everyone in this business is always worried about the bubble that we’ve all been through with other things,” Johann said. “We keep thinking that it’s going to pop, but then the bubble gets bigger, so we’re going to keep riding it out.” Many record manufacturers are now facing significant supply chain issues in record production due to the boom in demand. Although the supply bottleneck is frustrating, smaller retailers like Angry Mom Records maintain stock of older records to mitigate supply chain risks. “It’s just supply and demand. It’s sort of a good problem to have, but it’s frustrating when we’re used to being able to get what we call ‘evergreen’ titles that would sell every week for us, that we could recommend, that are just gone now. I don’t think [the problem is] going away any time soon,” Johann said. As for the locals visiting the shop, Johann says that customers have become more diverse in recent years. “When I first opened the store, it was mostly white, mostly male, mostly straight, lonely guys, so your typical record nerd. Now our customers are 50-50 split, male and female, and the age range is about 10-80, so it’s everybody right now,” Johann said. “I hate the grumpy old record store ‘knows more than you’ trope, so I’m glad all of these people are coming.” Despite Angry Mom’s strong local presence, online retailers continue to pose a threat. “The bane of my existence, probably like everyone’s in the world now, is Amazon. You can’t compete. They have records at Target, and Barnes and Noble, and that’s part of why it’s hard for me to get stuff,” Johann said. “I guess in the long run it’s good because people are out and seeing records in multiple places so it is what it is.” Despite purchasing restrictions instigated by COVID-19, vinyl’s sales rose 28.7 percent between 2019 and 2020, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. Although the vinyl industry was able to withstand supply chain disruptions, its future is not nearly as secure as demand growth indicates. Due to the emergence of lossless audio streaming, vinyls will have to offer significant aesthetic appeal to consumers to ensure record’s future success.

Source: Recording Industry Association of America