Hip Hop

[Enaz Fox]

For real though!? Is there something like this happening, to ensure a larger pressing of Purple Moonlight Pages occurs?

It states first press on the listing but I have no idea if anything else is in the works. He also said a week or two back that he was planning a So the Flies Don't Come repress but money is tight right now so Hopefully eventually everyone that wants a copy can get one.

 

[Enaz Fox]

But, this obsession hip hop artists are getting into with resell prices is a cancer on the hobby of collecting vinyl.

I do not disagree with this at all and it is a huge issue in the vinyl game period right now. I also can't imagine being a poor, up and coming indie artist and selling your repress for $20 to get by just to see it being bought on discogs for 10x in no reasonable amount of time. It's a super tough line and I hope for the fans sake it gets figured out sooner than later.

So whens that next Uncle Al release?

 

[dirty hands]

805 copies of Purple Moonlight Pages left..

 

[dhodo]

This is cool to see. I thought about saying this in my notes on Shopify but I didn't want to sound like a dick if he didn't know what I meant so I just wrote him some well wishes instead.

Hope he stops worrying about what people are saying or justifying himself on Twitter/Instagram and goes and enjoys his day and his kid and the fact that he already made $40k today (which he deserves).

 

[dirty hands]

I do not disagree with this at all and it is a huge issue in the vinyl game period right now. I also can't imagine being a poor, up and coming indie artist and selling your repress for $20 to get by just to see it being bought on discogs for 10x in no reasonable amount of time. It's a super tough line and I hope for the fans sake it gets figured out sooner than later.

So whens that next Uncle Al release?

At least this one is sticking around and giving me the option to consider buying it. Uncle Al is not invited to Thanksgiving this year

 

[jaycee]

So whens that next Uncle Al release?

This^^^^
How much was that Cool Kids EP again???

This is cool to see. I thought about saying this in my notes on Shopify but I didn't want to sound like a dick if he didn't know what I meant so I just wrote him some well wishes instead.

Hope he stops worrying about what people are saying or justifying himself on Twitter/Instagram and goes and enjoys his day and his kid and the fact that he already made $40k today (which he deserves).

Thanks for doing that.

Also having everything opened (if it was shrinkwrapped) might help keep the secondary market slightly repressed.
Open them all baby!

 

[dhodo]

This^^^^
How much was that Cool Kids EP again???



Thanks for doing that.

Also having everything opened (if it was shrinkwrapped) might help keep the secondary market slightly repressed.
Open them all baby!

Not sure if that's what you meant, but that's not me on Twitter, just to be clear. Glad that person asked though!

I wish this was the standard of vinyl shipping. Nothing worse than shredded custom inners and especially busted outers. I buy all mine to play so yeah, totally agree.

 

[SixthDeadlyVenom]

OK I guess after four pages of posts about it I have to check out this purple moonlight album...

Also, very glad to see Logic announce his retirement. I fucks hard with the concept and production and technical rap prowess on Incredible True Story, but the vast majority of his other stuff and ESPECIALLY the last 2 or 3 LPs are straight 🗑 🗑 🗑

 

[NathanRicaud]

Also, very glad to see Logic announce his retirement.

Same!

 

[dmoney]

i liked that mixtape Logic put out that had the song with the wu tang clan

 

[MikeH]

OK I guess after four pages of posts about it I have to check out this purple moonlight album...

Also, very glad to see Logic announce his retirement. I fucks hard with the concept and production and technical rap prowess on Incredible True Story, but the vast majority of his other stuff and ESPECIALLY the last 2 or 3 LPs are straight 🗑 🗑 🗑

The album is AWESOME which makes $77 so much harder to stomach IMO.

As for the people saying about him taking out a loan to press an album...I totally understand why somebody wouldn't want to do that. I have a small business and have been avoiding trying to get a loan at all costs. But I have significantly cut my overhead at the same time which has made that possible and I do not need much capital to operate really.

I'm with @dhodo on this one whole-heartedly. The guy deserves the money. He's a cool artist, making dope music. He deserves support both financial and otherwise. But basing money on flipper prices when you're the one limiting the pressing to begin with is wack. There's a weird purity test that's happening more and more lately--"if you love this artist you will buy this album and you won't complain about the price". That's not how it works. He didn't need to charge $77 for this. He's not the only one doing this, but to be honest, I'm kinda surprised about it with him.

The whole vinyl game is fucked if this is how things will continue to operate. It's more prevalent in rap for some reason, but starting to trickle into other genres too. I understand that artists are trying to get theirs. There's no money in streaming. You can only really make money touring/licensing your music. I also understand that he's trying to do everything himself and I commend it. But dude...just get some help hah. Look into alternate methods for pressing vinyl like Qrates or bandcamp's on-demand pressing service. You may make less per unit but I'd almost guarantee he would net more money in the long run. If he had sold this for $40 on qrates, I don't doubt at all that he would have sold more than 3,000 copies. Look at how much money PUSA made on their kickstarter. I understand that's a different beast (long out of print cult classic) but selling your record for $77 and packaging every single record yourself, answering emails, etc. isn't the only way to be an independent artist right now.

 

[jaycee]

He didn't need to charge $77 for this.

I think it's equally wack to say things like this. None of us know this person's finances. None of us know their ability to access supplemental funds and interest rates from the banking industry.

Nobody "needs" to charge any particular price for anything.

The "need" in other markets / business is set (in theory) by overhead, where the business sits in the manufacturing and supply line, etc. and the relationship to demand. In this case you have someone running every aspect of the manufacture and supply line (other than pressing). If this person thinks their time and product are worth X, and people pay that price, then the system we are in dictates that's what the price is. Need has nothing to do with it.

I'm not saying it isn't expensive. I'm not saying it doesn't suck to pay that for a 2lp.
The system is inherently unfair and unjust

 

[SixthDeadlyVenom]

i liked that mixtape Logic put out that had the song with the wu tang clan

That one actually did have some juice you're right.. Hes just so inconsistent that I'm over it.

New Oddisee is great

 

[Woob_woob]

I've already got more than $77 worth of enjoyment out of this album. Being able to stream it for months before buying helps a ton. I had no problem forking over almost $70 for my wife and I to go see him perform for a little over an hour, and now that cant happen, so I have no problem with him getting that money. I also enjoy that only 1500 are pressed and it will sell out sooner rather than later. Not everything has to be mass produced for everyone. I'm just happy that everyone has a chance at it since it didnt sell out within minutes and shipping is included within the states. Do I wish it was cheaper? Of course, but I wish everything was free, so idk.

It's a great album and I cant wait to have it in the collection

 

[Melt Face Molly Drop]

I think it's equally wack to say things like this. None of us know this person's finances. None of us know their ability to access supplemental funds and interest rates from the banking industry.

Nobody "needs" to charge any particular price for anything.

The "need" in other markets / business is set (in theory) by overhead, where the business sits in the manufacturing and supply line, etc. and the relationship to demand. In this case you have someone running every aspect of the manufacture and supply line (other than pressing). If this person thinks their time and product are worth X, and people pay that price, then the system we are in dictates that what the price is. Need has nothing to do with it.

I'm not saying it isn't expensive. I'm not saying it doesn't suck to pay that for a 2lp.
The system is inherently unfair and unjust

I agree. You've got people in the fashion industry charging $500 for a t-shirt. If the market allows it, which it does, people will keep doing it. If it's worth $77 to you, which it seems to be for almost 800 people so far, then smash buy. If it's too much for you to swing, then make the adult decision to move on -- or sell off some items to help pay for it.

I will say though, if everyone starts charging $77 for their records, the market will buck back and it will correct itself. This rap market feels niche at this point and is slowly getting cornered, but the levee will bend before it breaks. And at this rate, it's going doooown baaaabyyyy *Robert Plant voice*

 

[dhodo]

I agree. You've got people in the fashion industry charging $500 for a t-shirt. If the market allows it, which it does, people will keep doing it. If it's worth $77 to you, which it seems to be for almost 800 people so far, then smash buy. If it's too much for you to swing, then make the adult decision to move on -- or sell off some items to help pay for it.

I will say though, if everyone starts charging $77 for their records, the market will buck back and it will correct itself. This rap market feels niche at this point and is slowly getting cornered, but the levee will bend before it breaks. And at this rate, it's going doooown baaaabyyyy *Robert Plant voice*

I don't know anything about designer fashion prices, but the stuff I'm happier to pay more for clothing wise, there is a reason for a higher price. Usually quality, sometimes sourcing. That's why, if an artist is going to tell me they think it's worth that much and that the vinyl itself is also art, it's easier for me to swallow when they put the extra effort in to ensure the quality is there. Like I said earlier, it just makes it harder to stomach for me that he went with GZ, which is probably the easiest and cheapest way to go, instead of going with Sterling and Stoughton and RTI/QRP, for example. Obviously, as @jaycee pointed out, he may not have had the funds to afford paying for that quality, but there's a disconnect for me there, where the artist thinks their art is worth $77, but not worth the best packaging/sound quality treatment.

I'm assuming that some fashion designers charging that much still get their clothes made in sweatshops and argue you are paying for the design, not the manufacturing quality or ethics, not sure. But personally I'd rather pay that price for some artisan's hand made stuff, or something US grown and manufactured to last, you know? Just as a practically minded person, it's hard for me not to see that disconnect.

I don't say this to argue or disagree with anyone. I definitely can't disagree that the artist gets to set the price. Just thinking out loud.

 

[Melt Face Molly Drop]

Like I said earlier, it just makes it harder to stomach for me that he went with GZ, which is probably the easiest and cheapest way to go, instead of going with Stoughton and RTI/QRP, for example. Obviously, as @jaycee pointed out, he may not have had the funds to afford paying for that quality, but there's a disconnect for me there, where the artist thinks their art is worth $77, but not worth the best packaging/sound quality treatment.

As far as this goes, I'm willing to bet Milo is not invested in the collecting culture as much as we are. To him, maybe all pressing plants are the same. Probably also has no idea what a tip-on jacket is. I've been finding that most artists are not in the know on these things, and why should they be? They're focusing on their art, after all. So I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt there in that he didn't do any research on this topic, because he didn't know better.

In looking at his discogs, it seems he's mostly a tape guy.

 

[Woob_woob]

In looking at his discogs, it seems he's mostly a tape guy

Another reason I'm happy to jump on this since his last few albums havent got vinyl pressings

 

[dhodo]

As far as this goes, I'm willing to bet Milo is not invested in the collecting culture as much as we are. To him, maybe all pressing plants are the same. Probably also has no idea what a tip-on jacket is. I've been finding that most artists are not in the know on these things, and why should they be? They're focusing on their art, after all. So I'm willing to give the benefit of the doubt there in that he didn't do any research on this topic, because he didn't know better.

In looking at his discogs, it seems he's mostly a tape guy.

You're probably right. Just personally I think if I wanted to get into the game of selling my own vinyl, I should learn the ins and outs of it. And if I want to charge considerably more than the standard market price, maybe learn what kinds of things increase that price in the market, production wise. I also always try to research the "best" ways to do things if I want to do them right.

But again, I'm a very practically minded person, and I could never make art like Rory does. So I understand that he might not think the same or agree with me.

Edit: I don't know if practical is the right word, since you could argue maximizing profit margin is practical. Maybe obsessed with details many people don't care about?

 

[MikeH]

I think it's equally wack to say things like this. None of us know this person's finances. None of us know their ability to access supplemental funds and interest rates from the banking industry.

Nobody "needs" to charge any particular price for anything.

The "need" in other markets / business is set (in theory) by overhead, where the business sits in the manufacturing and supply line, etc. and the relationship to demand. In this case you have someone running every aspect of the manufacture and supply line (other than pressing). If this person thinks their time and product are worth X, and people pay that price, then the system we are in dictates that's what the price is. Need has nothing to do with it.

I'm not saying it isn't expensive. I'm not saying it doesn't suck to pay that for a 2lp.
The system is inherently unfair and unjust

Fair enough. Maybe saying "need" is not the right term. I don't know about his finances. You're right. It's not that hard to look at interest rates from the banking industry, but that's besides the point. As I said, I wouldn't want to take out a loan either right now. And I work in an industry where I get paid for time + talent so I understand valuing your time and charging for it.

Just sayin...he's been selling LPs for $25-$30 in the past. And now that he, and other artists, are seeing resale value, they want a piece of that action. I don't entirely blame them. But those resale values are ONLY because they choose to press limited quantities. It's a vicious cycle but either the artists aren't seeing it or are trying to up the prices themselves. IMO, there's a fine line between taking advantage of your fans and charging a premium for something. And as @dhodo said, there's a bit of a disconnect for me with the pricing of it and where it's being pressed/manufactured. And I know it's probably silly of me, but if this was pressed at Pallas with tip on sleeves, the price would be a bit more enticing to me because I know the quality is there. But I've gotten records from Ruby Yacht in the past with split seams and they wouldn't replace them, and we all know about how hit or miss GZ is. So it makes me think twice to drop more money than a MoFi costs on an album that likely won't be anywhere near the standards in quality of that. It also rubs me the wrong way when other people say "buy it for $77 now or $200 later" and say people aren't allowed to complain that a 2xLP is $77. Not saying you are saying this at all and I agree with your points overall, but it's a sentiment I've seen all over reddit and twitter about this release.

In an ideal world, he'll repress this for cheaper without the bonus tracks so more people can have access to it because the album is awesome and the $77 price tag is a big hurdle for lots of people. I give all praise to him for being independent and trying to do everything himself. I know how hard that can be to run a business on your own and have to do everything yourself. But there's also a point where it makes sense to bring in someone to help you with logistics.