Things Every Vinyl Owner Should Have

It's no secret that I adore vinyl, I've been collecting it for around a year now. I've had a hand in a couple of peoples first "hit" as it were. It's an addiction, ask any audiophile. There's a problem though. It's expensive. I've upgraded my set up once so far and I'm gearing up to do so again this year, hopefully for the long haul. Anyways, with that said, I'm going to presume you have a player and some records, and hit you with the accessories!

A Vinyl Cleaning Cloth or Kit. 

This one really should not be optional. Vinyl is a seriously expensive habit and you should want to keep your records in pristine condition. I have a specially made cloth for cleaning my records, just to take the dust and that off them before I start spinning them. Mine is from Planet Waves, but you can get them from a whole bunch of brands. If you click HERE I've linked a similar one from Amazon.

Decent Headphones 

Again, probably shouldn't be optional, but there you are! I have a set of these exact headphones and they're literally the best thing since sliced bread. With a 6m cable you can enjoy your records without disturbing anyone else and move around the room with a sense of freedom you wouldn't ordinarily have if you just plugged in a pair of Beats or iPhone earbuds... Click HERE for the link!

Friends Who are into Records Too! 

This one makes life so much more easy and fun, honestly! Himself and I frequently go record shopping and trade records here and there, which keeps things fresh and means we always have something new to listen to. Currently, I'm all about Torres and Daft Punk, which I wouldn't be if D hadn't forced them into my bag a few weekends ago, and I slid two of The Darkness onto his shelf as well as Woven Skull! It's fun, it keeps your tastes fresh and it sparks conversations, what's not to love?!

A General Idea of What Perfection is to You. 

I'd also like to just mention that you should have a sense of the kind of music you want to have on vinyl. It's not a cheap hobby, so you want to invest your wedge wisely. I've got records by bands I absolutely wholeheartedly adore, and honestly. I wouldn't want my collection to have anything in it I didn't passionately think was the epitome of audio perfection. If, to you, perfection is vintage records, go for it! Same for new records - have a ball! Just build up your ideal collection, don't buy stuff you think is "meh".

Time To Spare...

...to spend at record fairs! Go to the Thomas House Record Fair, go to the Grand Social Flea Market, dig around in car boot sales, learn where all the secret hidden gem stores are, This hobby requires digging around in record bins, flipping through oceans of re-issues, but it's worth it! I bought a vintage Lord Of The Rings soundtrack because I had the patience to flip through all the crap to get to it!

So there you have it, some things every record-aficionado should have, from the tangible to the thoughtful! Let me know what your necessities are, folks! 

Amy x

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My Record Collection and Set Up

I adore my vinyl collection. I've been collecting for almost a year and I'm just as in love now as I was when I first started. I have a very basic set up but at some point in the coming year, this set up will be super upgraded and expanded. I just wanted to share my love affair with records with you, maybe you might find this interesting!

My Set Up and Storage: 

Currently I'm using a Steepletone all in one turntable, which I picked up on sale when HMV on Grafton St was closing down for the second time... I know that it's not the greatest player but it's a starting point. I also have a giant pair of Phillips Over Ear headphones which have a 3m cable that allows me a certain amount of freedom while listening to my headphones with very little disturbance for the other people in my house. Funnily enough, my lovely boyfriend has the exact same set up in his house! 

About a week after I got my player I started looking for a specialised stand, something that would house my player and records easily. I tried every specialist record place I could get to, trawling in stores and online but to no avail - they were either not to be gotten hold of or outrageously priced if they were available. Sadface. So after putting my thinking cap on, to house my player and records I got THIS little cube from Argos. It cost me around the €20 mark and it's the perfect height for records to stand in, since the proper way to store records is on their end vertically so they don't warp. It comes with a back for it but I almost took my finger off trying to nail it on, so I left it off. My player and records all fit this dinky little cube and it's just so handy for anyone who collects vinyl. 

I also have a specialist vinyl cleaning cloth that I use to dust off my records before I put the tone arm down. I picked that up in KNB Music, a local musical instrument and supply place for under a tenner. 

My Record Collection: 

This might be a long list but here we go! 

Excenteric - Unconventional Behaviour. This is Prog House/Techno EP I got in Cork
Journeys By DJ - For The Pleasure. Another EP, this one is more Techno, also from Cork.
Kelis - Get Along With You. This is a compilation record but it's mostly D'n'B, it's very upbeat!
Greenskeeper - Live In Me EP. House music yet again. I know, I'm surprising myself.
The Darkness - Last Of Our Kind. Glorious glorious rock'n'roll!! 
Lorde - Pure Heroine. One of my favorite albums of all time, flawless. 
Taylor Swift - 1989. A double gatefold of joy. Love me some T-Swizzle! 
Hozier - Hozier. Another double gatefold. Another perfect record. 
Asia - Dont Cry. This is a single that Dex picked up for me in Norwich. It's a funny shape, but it plays at 45rpm perfectly and it was a lovely gesture.
Mumford and Sons - Wilder Mind. This album splits the crowd but I absolutely adore it. This is my favorite M&S record of all. Audiophile Porn!!! 
Ex Machina - OST. I adored Ex Machina, it's a beautiful movie and the OST is just as wonderful.
Mumford and Sons - Babel. Perfection. 
The Stone Roses - Second Coming. This was the first record I bought for my player. I adore it. 
Young Guns II - OST by Bon Jovi. Self explanatory really. A second hand find from a small seller in Blackrock.
Billy Idol - Charmed Life. When I put this on, I'm 16 again, the early days of my rock love affair. 
Music Inspired by Lord Of The Rings. Beautiful background music. Vintage store finds, huzzah!
Jeff Waynes - War of The Worlds. I bought this off a guy I know and it's still in mint condition despite being pressed in 1978. . 
The Darkness - Permission to Land. This is a picture disc of the first rock album I ever bought. Yum. 
Mumford and Sons - Sigh No More. Told you!!
Woven Skull - Lair of The Glowing Bantling. I managed to get this record (in Cork) off the guy who produced it. I talked him into selling me it well before its release, so my copy is the first one ever sold. I also bought it completely on a whim having never heard of the band or anything, and it's one of the best record purchases I've ever made. You should check these guys out. 
No Doubt - Tragic Kingdom. Okay so I bought a lot of records in Cork. Not sorry. Great record. 
Placebo - Without You I'm Nothing. We all need some melancholy from time to time. YAS!
NOW Thats What I Call Music. This is the original. Therefore it's the best of 80's pop! 
Imagine Dragons - Night Visions. Another flawless record. 


So there you have it, my record set up, collection, storage and anything else you might want to know. I love vinyl and find the process of digging through record stores and record fairs incredibly relaxing. I love the sense of camaraderie that you get from other audiophiles, the little not when you start flipping through the crates next to someone at a fair. Record collectors know when you lay that record out flat on the top of the stack you've just flipped through, it's yours now - you're going to buy that. That's nice. I like that.  

If you're a record collector, let me know your recommendations. 

Ax

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Red Review - Last Of Our Kind

I've been getting majorly into vinyl in the last three months, and I've collected a few records, both recent releases and vintage.

One of my first purchases was The Darkness new record, Last Of Our Kind. Today I'm gonna run you through what I thought of it. Bear in mind I am incredibly biased, they're one of my favorite bands!

Firstly, can we take a moment to appreciate the cover art? It's a baby driving a spaceship!!! I just think that's so quirky and cool, though I don't expect anything less than quirky from the band whose first record had a naked air traffic controller on it!! I love it, their whole aesthetic is tongue in cheek, has an air of humor. The Darkness are a band that know how to have fun! Trust me, I've been to a show, they are insane in the best way!

The content of this record is the Viking invasion of East Anglia, referencing Ragnar, archery, Edmund The Martyr, and so on. Probably not for everyone, but I love that kind of thing. The first single to be released from this is the first track, Barbarian, and it's basically a musical history lesson gussied up a bit, and put to epic riffs. I reckon this would be a great song to blare and belt in the car with all the windows down!

The whole album is just perfect. I know there has been much criticism about Hot Cakes, their last release, but I thought that was a great album... Up there with Permission to Land, for sure! This though, it's completely and utterly brilliant. I find myself flipping the record over and over, listening to it twice or three times through, every time it's on my player. Of the 4 albums The Darkness has released, I would rank this as my favorite so far.

My favorite track on this record is the title track, Last Of Our Kind. Maybe I have an affinity for the archery imagery, maybe it's the insanely catchy opening and beltable chorus - who knows?! I'm toying with getting a line from this song tattooed, actually. It's that good!

Honestly, I've nothing bad to say about this album, nothing at all. It's incredible. The vinyl itself is green, the slip case is decorated with the lyrics and doodles and the cover is incredibly fun. The record itself harks back to the older, more flamboyant early days - all in all, a truly brilliant offering, and possibly my favorite record in my collection so far!

I'm giving this record 5 stars *****

Have you any recommendations? 

If you have, let me know! 

If you want me to do a record collection, just shout!

Keep your eye out for my next review!

Loooooooove you! 

Amy 

xx

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