Only a few years ago vinyl records were close to being presumed dead with record-low sales and a rise of digital music being the main culprit. Fast forward to 2015 and we’re back in an age where the vinyl album sales are just as good as when they were in their prime in the early 90s but what happened? Why are vinyl records making a comeback?
Liberty Games seem to be determined to find out as they’ve just released an infographic with their findings on just how well vinyl is doing these days. In the UK, it’s reported that in 2014 physical releases (CDs, vinyl’s, etc.) still made up half of album sales – showing that interest for a physical product is still there.
A similar situation has also happened elsewhere too. In the US, record sales have increased by 52% from 2014 against 2013 and the same time period saw a massive 127% increase in Australia.
It’s interesting to point out that some of the best-selling records of 2014 not only included recent releases like the Arctic Monkeys, Jack White and Lana Del Rey but also included re-issues and classic albums from the likes of Pink Floyd, the Beatles and Bob Marley.
The BPI (British Phonographic Industry) recently did a survey to find out who were buying records today and the results seem to explain the reasons for the mixture of old and new material. According to the survey, 28.5% of the vinyl buying public were between the ages of 35 and 44 whilst 35.3% were under the age of 35.
So why the success – Well, it’s pretty clear it’s booming popularity has nothing to do with the cost or convenience of records as digital music can be bought cheaper and can be taken anywhere on a phone/MP3 player. One of the reasons might be the ownership of the physical product, as Liam Hart mentioned when interviewed for an article in the Guardian saying that “you bought it, you own it”.
As well as having a sense of nostalgia about it, there’s also the fact that vinyl records provide ‘musical warmth’ to music with its different analogue distortions. With their popularity, comes an increase in stores selling music too. It’s reported that in 2014, there were over 10,000 music outlets in the UK (a massive increase since 2010 with over 6,000).
It’s clear to see that vinyl records have a bright future ahead of them and may face the test of time as the ultimate format to listen to music on. Have a look at Liberty Game’s infographic below to find out some more cool facts about the resurgence of vinyl.
How vinyl records made their comeback [Infographic] by the team at Liberty Games
