Boing Boing » vinyl

Saturday is Record Store Day 2013!

David Pescovitz — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 19:11:04 +0000

Tomorrow (Saturday 4/20) is Record Store Day! Support your local independent record shops and score special Record Store Day exclusive releases! Here's the full list of special releases and guide to participating shops.

J Dilla's vinyl collection

David Pescovitz — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 16:10:34 +0000

J Dilla (1974-2006) was a highly-influential music producer from Detroit who collaborated with the likes of A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Janet Jackson, Talib Kweli, and Erykah Badu. In this new half-hour documentary, Fuse looks at Dilla's life and digs into his record collection, currently in a Detroit storage locker.

Classic SF/horror TV theme 7"s from Death Waltz Recording Co.

David Pescovitz — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:24:51 +0000

Death Waltz Recording Company is the phenomenal reissue label that deals in exquisitely-curated horror/cult soundtracks in gorgeous packaging like masterworks by John Carpenter, Alan Howarth, and Giuliano Sorgini. To my ear (and eye), label mastermind Spencer Hickman is doing everything right, from offering a subscription service for these limited objets d'art to packaging up special collectors' editions to picking unique vinyl coloring such as, er, "blood splattered."

In celebration of this year's Record Store Day on April 20, Death Waltz is releasing five limited editions that will only be available through indie record shops. Two of the releases are 12" vinyl: Antoni Maiovvi's "Yellow: Original Music From The Short Film" and "Horror Business - Steve Moore." But I'm really clamoring for the three split-7"s seen above emblazoned with stunning art by We Buy Your Kids. Top left, the themes from Star Trek and Lost In Space; top right, the themes from The Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits (listen above), and finally bottom left, Alfred Hitchcock Presents and The Munsters. Each 7" is an edition of 1,000 on colored vinyl and includes the inner sleeve seen above and a free art print card. Death Waltz Recording Company: Record Store Day

Portable USB record player/cassette deck combo

David Pescovitz — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 22:43:47 +0000

I can't vouch for the sound quality of the Ion IT34 Duo Deck USB turntable/cassette deck but I sure dig the design. It runs on four AA batteries, fits in a backpack, ~~and plays 78s~~ -- perfect for a real old timey picnic. Would also be fun to build it into your auto's dash, like this fine car audio system of yesteryear! $50 from Amazon. "Ion IT34 Duo Deck Ultra-Portable USB Turntable with Cassette Deck"

SHAG's Skull Boy Shag Racer toy

David Pescovitz — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 18:56:08 +0000

This is Skull Boy, the second toy in Josh "SHAG" Agle's line of "Shag Racers" created with Squibbles Ink and Rotofugi. The ultra-limited "gallery prototype edition" of 100 are long gone but a "standard edition" release is coming next year. Shag Racers: Skull Boy

Exploded view record player t-shirt

David Pescovitz — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 18:10:27 +0000

This fantastic record player exploded view t-shirt is available for $22.50 from ShanaLogic, who of course is also a beloved sponsor of the site you are currently reading. (But this post isn't at her urging -- I just dig the design.) "Vinyl Turntable Explosion Diagram T-shirt"

Ron English's Hulk baby

David Pescovitz — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 17:46:20 +0000

Ron English's wonderful "Temper Tot" will be born as an 8" vinyl toy early next year. (Popaganda)

Classic horror soundtracks on vinyl

David Pescovitz — Tue, 30 Oct 2012 19:00:23 +0000

Death Waltz Recording Company deals in exquisitely-curated horror/cult movie soundtracks reissued on vinyl in gorgeous packaging with newly-commissioned cover art. Several months ago, I posted about their fantastic reissue of John Carpenter and Alan Howarth's Escape From New York soundtrack. Since then, I've picked up several more Death Waltz reissues like Giuliano Sorgini's "Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue," Johan Söderqvist's "Let the Right One In, " and John Carpenter and Alan Howarth's "Halloween II." Surprise, surprise, now I want all of them. In fact, Death Waltz offers a subscription service for six releases in limited-edition colored vinyl complete with a numbered lithograph and poster. Yes, that will be on my holiday wish list. Juno Plus just posted an interview with Spencer Hickman, Death Waltz's zombie-in-chief:

Where was the idea for Death Waltz born? My three loves have always been music, movies and art, and I’ve always worked within that to an extent, whether it’s doing horror fanzines, putting on film festivals or working in record shops. And I was just thinking there’s a real lack of soundtrack music out on vinyl, even though vinyl is the only physical format growing in sales. So I decided to do start my own label – it’s just something I wanted to do. It was originally only going to be soundtrack reissues but now we’re moving into current films…
You obviously have a predilection for horror – where does that stem from?
I think I was 12, and my dad gave me a copy of The Exorcist on bootleg video. Around that time I was watching stuff like Salem’s Lot on TV, scaring myself shitless. There was a video shop that opened up down the road from us, and because there were no laws then, we joined and I would go down and rent stuff like Cannibal Holocaust. I remember watching a double bill of Cannibal Holocaust and Last House On The Left when I was about 13. I’m surprised I’m a functioning member of society. I basically watched a lot of shit and then the odd gem.

Death Waltz Recording Company

"In discussion with Death Waltz’s Spencer Hickman" (Juno Plus)

Listen to bits of Death Waltz releases on Soundcloud

How records are made

David Pescovitz — Thu, 27 Sep 2012 19:02:01 +0000

Gorgeous black and white photos from 1954 and 1962 of vinyl records being made, including scans of an album jacket with a description of the process. "How records are made" (Voices of East Anglia, via @chris_carter_)