“It’s just not the same as having the album on your phone, there’s a bit of a romance to it” Mark Thorne of Thorne records speaks on the recent revival of record stores, with Edinburgh seeing several pop up over the last few years, Including Thorne records on Burtsfield place.
Before the days when a Spotify subscription and a single click of a thumb made it possible to stream a countless array of music from virtually any artist and any time period, physical vinyl records led the way in how music was consumed. Music fanatics of the 1960s and 1970s had no choice but to visit their local record store and purchase their favourite albums from the likes of The Beatles, David Bowie, and Pink Floyd.
However, in 2023, well into the digital age, it is easier than ever to access music from every corner of the globe. So why is it that physical vinyl records are at the height of their popularity and, for the first time in more than three decades, are outselling CDs? In June, The Guardian reported a 21.7% rise in vinyl sales in the US, and interestingly, it appears to be the younger generation driving this resurgence. The number of under-25s purchasing physical copies of their favourite albums has risen significantly, something Mark Thorne has noticed first-hand. He states, “I’ve noticed just in the last three or four years, the number of people buying records under the age of 30 has risen massively. It used to basically just be males over 40.”
It could be argued that there is something more personal about owning and collecting physical vinyl records, as opposed to streaming music from a phone. Owning a favourite album can feel like a more meaningful experience. “Living their entire lives with everything available digitally and whatever they could want online, maybe they are seeing a bit of romance in the idea of the physical format — or you never know, maybe it’s just something to put on their Instagram!” Mark added.
After the introduction of CDs, vinyl records saw a sharp decline in sales, as the newer, smaller, and cheaper alternative took over. However, by the late 2010s and early 2020s, demand for physical records had surged, sparking the opening — and reopening — of vinyl stores across the UK and around the world. Mark made it clear that he believes there are numerous reasons for this revival, but he particularly emphasised the influence of younger artists. “There are younger artists, like your Taylor Swifts for instance, who really champion vinyl and are big ambassadors for Record Store Day, and I think that has helped people get involved a lot,” he said.
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