FEATURE:
After Midnights
IN THIS PHOTO: Taylor Swift/PHOTO CREDIT: Beth Garrabrant
The Continued Rise of Vinyl Sales, and the Decline of the Compact Disc
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NOT that one artist can be responsible…
PHOTO CREDIT: KOBU Agency/Unsplash
for ensuring that vinyl sales are o a high, but it seems that Taylor Swift’s latest album, Midnights, has helped push U.K. record sales above 5.5m in this watershed moment for vinyl revival. Rather than it being a case of young listeners buying the album to collect and not play, I do think that artwork comes into it. I know Swift offered different cover options for Midnights, yet fans are buying it for the music. I wonder if this is why vinyl continues to succeed and pervade. I think the aesthetics and artwork of an album is still very important and eye-catching, so vinyl has the impact that a C.D. or cassette does not. Also, when many are pushing against streaming sites and the way they under-pay artist, many are buying vinyl so that they can enjoy an album and at least know that they are not drastically short-changing an artist. Not that Taylor Swift will struggle for revenue, but it is pleasing to see that her incredible new album has helped push vinyl sales up. The Guardian explain more in their recent feature:
“Taylor Swift’s legions of fans have helped propel the amount spent on vinyl records above CDs for the first time since the 1980s when stars including Rick Astley, T’Pau and Pet Shop Boys topped the charts.
The singer’s loyal fanbase of “Swifties”, who have made the 33-year-old’s latest album Midnights the biggest-selling vinyl record of the century in the UK, helped push annual revenues made by the sale of vinyl album sales above the once-mighty CD for the first time since 1987.
While CD sales have endured years of precipitous declines – having peaked at 2.45bn globally in 2000 just as digital music emerged to presage the streaming revolution that has transformed music listening – the classic LP has somewhat counterintuitively experienced a striking revival in popularity.
This year vinyl album sales are expected to grow for the 15th consecutive year to about 5.5m, the most since 1990, with the 80,000 copies of Swift’s Midnights the most of any album in a calendar year this century.
What started as a vinyl renaissance built largely by older music fans seeking collectible editions of treasured albums – mostly classic artists such as the Beatles, David Bowie and Pink Floyd – has since spread to younger generations of fans in love with retro music formats including cassettes.
Unusually, eight of this year’s Top 10 sellers, which will officially be revealed in the new year after final sales are tallied, are new albums released in 2022.
“It’s a watershed moment for the entire music industry,” says Kim Bayley, the chief executive of the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA). “After the CD came along and pretty much wiped out the vinyl business, few of us would have believed a renaissance like this was possible.”
PHOTO CREDIT: a_ndrecip/Unsplash
The pandemic accelerated music-buying habits as fans unable to go to gigs and events channelled their spare cash into building up their record collections at home.
In 2021, revenues from vinyl album sales rose 23% to £135.6m, while CD sales continued to fall by 3.9% to £150m, according to the ERA.
This year revenue from CD sales, which overtook vinyl in 1988 and cassettes in 1991, will fall below that of vinyl LPs by as much as £20m, according to sales figures.
More than 14m CDs were sold last year, with a significant double-digit percentage annual fall expected when official figures for 2022 come in next week.
“Will the CD disappear? Of course its prospects don’t look good right now, but it offers a permanence and robustness and quality which is unique,” says Bayley. “Given how wrong we were about vinyl, it would be foolish to write off the CD for ever”.
It is encouraging that new albums are dominating the top ten U.K. vinyl sales I think this will also be the case in other nations, but, aside from the perennial vinyl favourite, Rumours (which would have had a sales boost due to the sad death of Christine McVie recently), Arctic Monkeys, Wet Leg, Muse, and Fontaines D.C. are up there. It shows that there is a genuine appetite for albums on vinyl. I know the classic albums are still bought on this format but, as it is tough for artists to earn money through digital streaming, physical sales are vital! I don’t think many people would have imagined as recently as five years ago that vinyl sales would be where they are now. The pandemic did not deter the passion for this very special format. I can see no reason why this revival and growth will ever halt. Of course, albums like Midnights do add quite a lot of heft and sales to the tally, but it is not only major artists like Taylor Swift who are connecting with fans in terms of vinyl sales. As I say every time we get news of vinyl success, it is that tangible quality and sense of ownership that people love. Rather than the ephemeral and cold nature of streaming, the warmth and tactile nature of vinyl is not only for diehards and older listeners now. Younger fans are saving money and investing in their favourite artist’s new release rather than relying on streaming. Of course, streaming is still happening and will not slow. It allows you easy access to albums and songs and, if you are going to buy an album, you can hear it first on streaming platforms and decide if you want to spend the money for a vinyl copy.
I admire physical formats greatly. It is a shame that the compact disc does seem to be declining a bit. It has been like this for years, but there is still a definite demand. Whilst people are buying record players and know there is sustainability, maybe it is harder and less worthwhile trying to cultivate a C.D. collection. Players are less common. Old-school devices like the Discman are available in other brands, but are bought less frequently. Also, in terms of the feel and look of a C.D., it does not have the same pull and appeal as vinyl. C.D.s seem less sturdy and are more prone to scratching. Although vinyl is expensive, the overall benefit of owning them seems to be outweigh that of C.D.s. It is sad that compact discs are declining and seem less relevant with every passing year. All physical media is important, and it is a tragedy is there is any loss. I think that C.D.s will always be bought, but it is clear that vinyl is champion. Long may it continue to inspire young listeners and the older alike. Following the record-breaking Midnights’ achievements, we look ahead to see how vinyl sales will fare by the end of 2023. I think we may see another bumper year. Perhaps records will be broken again! There will be some huge albums released, so that will do wonders regarding sales. It is exciting to see a format which has been around almost seventy-five years…
PHOTO CREDIT: jan_huber/Unsplash
FLOURISH in the modern age.