Radio Fragments

For the last few months I've been fixated on vinyl. I'm not sure why exactly -- I gave it up back in the 90s and my CD collection grew out of control. A few years ago that turned into a large number of MP3s as I ripped all my CDs. Lately I've found myself listening to most of my music as lossy-digital copies played through the tinny speakers on my macbook and while it does the job and helps me prepare for the show, it really isn't the way to enjoy music.

And so I started thinking about what it is I enjoy about listening to music, and I realized that I miss two things: physicality and intentionality. It's convenient to pick a song or an album off the drive and press 'play', but it's a throw-away gesture. I could do it a hundred times and not really notice it. It's a different thing to flip through a row of records, pull one out, slide the plastic cover off, slide the paper sleeve out, take the record from the sleeve, put it on the turntable, clean it, turn the player on, position the needle, and let it drop. Yes, it takes many times as long, it's a bit of a hassle, but it's somehow more rewarding. And when you finally stop and sit and listen, you listen. I kind of like that.

I've been thinking about that a lot lately, it got to the point where I was literally dreaming about turntables. So it was time. I had an idea of the model I wanted, but I didn't want to make a decision like this without talking it over with someone more knowledgable than I. I did a bit of research and found that Turntable Treasures in Tacoma had the model I was considering, so we made the trip down.

Wow. That's all I can say. The guys at TT are amazing. Not only did they have the model I wanted, but they actually talked me out of it and into one step down, saving me $100. I don't know the last time a salesperson tried to talk me into spending less. And that's how I ended up with the Pro-ject Debut III (seen below).

But not only did they save me $100, but it turns out that with the purchase of a new turntable you get $100 worth of vinyl from their collection. Did I mention their collection? Oh right, it's not just Turntable Treasures, but it's also "The House of Records" (no, really, its on the sign). 120,000 albums...and you want me to pick just a few of them? That's just cruel. The picture below is about one quarter of the shop:

Yup, it's pretty badass. They are totally worth the trip if you are interested in vinyl or interested in becoming interested in vinyl.

Look for some new treasures on the show sometime soon!