“Icky Thump” White Stripes

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I read an interesting article in The Guardian the other day on how young music fans are sparking a vinyl revival in the UK. In the flailing record retail industry of all things the 7” vinyl single is making a comeback (up 13% this year), especially limited edition pressings which of course make them collectable. Halleluja, finally some good news. The White Stripes Icky Thump just had the highest weekly sales of a 7” inch single in 20 years!

I used to love buying vinyl records. If I opened the sleeve and it was a color other than black I felt like I got the golden ticket in Willie Wonka. Ooohh transparent vinyl, super cool!

My friend Howie Pyro is a really great DJ in LA. He has a fantastic record collection of wild, way out, wacky stuff and has his own radio show called Intoxica every Tuesday night on Luxuria.com. Whenever Howie has to move apartments it’s a huge undertaking. The guy has over 20,000 records. He tells me that the hardest part of a DJ gig is creating the set in his head before the event and physically pulling out the records. He doesn’t use an I-Pod or laptop. Sometimes a CD player, but 90% of the time it’s vinyl. He feels that when the needle hits the disc it actually comes alive, far more than hitting a play button. Obviously the yougins in the UK feel the same way. Let’s hope it spreads a little bit.