Vinyl sales continue to surge in Ireland

Rage Against The Machine’s Live On Tour 1993, Gorillaz’s Demon Days Live From The Apollo Theater, Prince’s Live At Glam Slam, Beabadoobee’s Live And Acoustic In London, The Killers & Bruce Springsteen’s Encore At The Garden, Van Morrison’s Be Just And Fear Not, Tori Amos’ Diving Deeper Live, David Bowie’s Ready, Set, Go! and Talking Heads’ Live On Tour.

Those are just some of the treasures we’re hoping to add to our collections on Record Store Day, which takes place on April 12 with a comprehensive list of releases and where to get ‘em available at recordstoreday.co.uk.

“The importance of indie stores cannot be understated,” says RSD Ambassador Sam Fender. “Without them, we lose physical spaces for music fans to discover both their favourite new artists and to forge friendships with likeminded people.”

The huge appetite for good old-fashioned plastic is confirmed by Golden Discs CEO, Stephen Fitzgerald, who tells Hot Press: “Vinyl sales continue to surge as more consumers either discover the format for the first time or return to it. Our current sales are now comparable to levels seen in the late 1990s.

“While new releases remain a strong category, the majority of customers are investing in catalogue albums – classic records that have stood the test of time.”

The twenty-first Golden Discs store, which opened before Christmas at Central Plaza on Dame Street, leans heavily towards vinyl.

“Our ongoing ‘3 for €70’ vinyl promotion has been a tremendous success, with demand outpacing our ability to replenish stock quickly,” adds Fitzgerald who also reports a significant increase in turntables and related hardware sales. goldendiscs.ie.

Along with major operators like Golden Discs and Tower, the likes of MultiSound (Cavan), Plug’d (Cork), Spindizzy (Dublin), The Record Shop (Dungarvan), Rollercoaster (Kilkenny), Steamboat (Limerick), Trax (Tullamore) and Luca (Waterford) all deserve enormous respect for flying the flag for vinyl in their corners of the country.

While fans snap ‘em up, artists are increasingly turning to vinyl as a revenue stream. Dublin’s Rotator Vinyl has been guiding the likes of Meryl Streek, Peer Pleasure, The Lee Harveys, The Republic Of Loose, The Frank & Walters, Guernica, Mundy and The Black Pitts through what can be a complicated process.

“We have at our disposal eight boutique presses in the UK and nine in the EU, which are technically very advanced but geared towards smaller quantities – you’re not going to get gazumped by Taylor Swift,” explains Rotator mainman Peter Jones who also handles guitar-playing duties for Paranoid Visions and the Molly Vulpyne Band. “With a new press costing at least €300,000 it’s a big investment but the business is out there.”

Pressing your own vinyl album with Rotator can cost as little as €1,500.

“We have a minimum run of a hundred albums, which with full production – covers, labels, inner sleeves, shrink-wrap, everything – works out at about €14 or €15 a throw,” Jones resumes. “With vinyl selling for at least €25, that immediately makes financial sense.

“Up the number of copies and the price goes way down. I’m doing a thousand run for somebody at the moment which comes in at around €4 a unit. Get the demand right and – especially if you can sell direct to fans – it’s a money spinner.”

The cross-border nature of the business means that Rotator has been able to cut through a lot of Brexit red tape.

“We recently did a five hundred run for an Irish band, half of which were delivered to the first venue on their UK tour and quickly sold-out,” Jones explains. “Not only did that save them the hassle of having to transport two hundred-and-fifty albums across the Irish Sea, but it also meant that they didn’t have to deal with HM Customs when they got to Holyhead.

“Another service we offer is online distribution and mailing records to people which, because of our unique post-Brexit position on this island, can be done to the EU and the rest of the world from Dublin and to the UK from Newry. That’s hugely beneficial to some people.”

As for those other frequently asked vinyl questions, Jones reveals that, “The lead-in is about eight to ten weeks, although that being said we’ve turned an album around in five weeks.

“Sound-wise, what we say to artists is: ‘Get your album mastered as you normally would. We’ll then take care of any minor tweaks that might be needed before doing what’s called a lacquer cut. In other words, we can take the master you’d normally use for CD or streaming and make it work for vinyl.’

“As for the vinyl itself, we do singles, 10”s and albums. You can have a single-sided 12” if you want which cuts costs; one colour, clear or splatter effect; picture discs which are becoming increasingly popular; and, as we did with Hothouse Flowers, records that use 100% recycled vinyl. If you can imagine it, we can pretty much do it!” rotatorvinyl.com

The closure last year of Dublin Vinyl, whose clients had included Rubyworks, XL, Rough Trade, Faction and Universal, left Ireland without a pressing plant of our own. That void is about to be filled, though, by the launch in Clane, Co. Kildare of Anthem Vinyl.

“Our Smart Vinyl records integrate innovative technology to enhance both the artist and consumer experience, seamlessly fusing physical vinyl with the convenience and interaction of digital features,” says founder Brian Kenny. “We are stewards of an art form with a legacy to protect. While the world faces sustainability challenges, we are taking deliberate steps to ensure our operations are efficient and responsible. Our goal is to deliver high-quality vinyl records that preserve the integrity of the music and provide an exceptional listening experience.”

Anthem is hitting the ground running with Declan O’Rourke and the Ninja Tune label among their first clients. anthemvinyl.com