Vinyl Me Please Classics

RowBearToe said:
I love this idea. When I first stumbled upon VMP I found Experience Vinyl at the same time and chose that one over VMP because of that reason. I think they only lasted 4 or 5 months, but the idea was a famous artist lists their 10 favorite albums and does small write ups on them and a large write up on their selection of the AOTM. George Clinton choosing Sly & the Family Stone - Fresh was my favorite choice. I knew Sly and George Clinton but didn't know Fresh. I was introduced to an album I didn't know that I came to love and his insight was very cool. Other choices were Talib Kweli picking John Coltrane's A Love Supreme/A Tribe Called Quest's Midnight Marauders and Carlos Santana choosing Miles Davis' Sketches of Spain. The problem with these last two are that so many people already own those albums. Regardless, it was cool to see their take on them and I love the concept.
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That's exactly where I'm coming from, it just seems so much more compelling that some of the out there picks would be from other creators, not just picks from a lifestyle brand. So much music and film that I love today came from hearing what artists and directors I loved were into, and I think with the VMP prestige and production machine coupled with the artist co-sign could move some of these records into non-belivers mailboxes.

I'm sure they've already thought of this idea. At the old place Storf would be responding telling me they had and it wasn't feasible haha.
 
zombie.modernist said:
That's exactly where I'm coming from, it just seems so much more compelling that some of the out there picks would be from other creators, not just picks from a lifestyle brand. So much music and film that I love today came from hearing what artists and directors I loved were into, and I think with the VMP prestige and production machine coupled with the artist co-sign could move some of these records into non-belivers mailboxes.

I'm sure they've already thought of this idea. At the old place Storf would be responding telling me they had and it wasn't feasible haha.
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I honestly can't tell if the highlighted part is said ironically or not but I don't think anyone thinks prestige when they think VMP.
 
Clint Howard said:
I honestly can't tell if the highlighted part is said ironically or not but I don't think anyone thinks prestige when they think VMP.
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lol, It's sincere, in that they have equity and a large social media footprint, and a solid supply chain. Even though their curation can be suspect and they fuck up constantly with QC and fulfillment, I think they could make this idea work a lot more than a fresh startup would be able to. They're the premier vinyl club right now, even if that's like being the king of nothing at all, it's a better starting point.

Just look at TIDAL, it's been a constant uphill battle for them to gain foothold even though they launched with like every celeb ever backing it. The product is actually superior in quality to Spotify but Spotify had the equity, and so did Apple when they launched Apple Music.
 
zombie.modernist said:
lol, It's sincere, in that they have equity and a large social media footprint, and a solid supply chain. Even though their curation can be suspect and they fuck up constantly with QC and fulfillment, I think they could make this idea work a lot more than a fresh startup would be able to. They're the premier vinyl club right now, even if that's like being the king of nothing at all, it's a better starting point.

Just look at TIDAL, it's been a constant uphill battle for them to gain foothold even though they launched with like every celeb ever backing it. The product is actually superior in quality to Spotify but Spotify had the equity, and so did Apple when they launched Apple Music.
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The analogy would work if they were the Apple or Spotify of their lane, and they're not. They're the 4th (iirc?) biggest in the USA .. so not even close to dominant. Not to mention that prestige, again, is the furthest thing I think of when I think of VMP. A 'prestige' distributor doesn't pull half the shit VMP does.
 
Clint Howard said:
The analogy would work if they were the Apple or Spotify of their lane, and they're not. They're the 4th (iirc?) biggest in the USA .. so not even close to dominant. Not to mention that prestige, again, is the furthest thing I think of when I think of VMP. A 'prestige' distributor doesn't pull half the shit VMP does.
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Are you saying they are the 4th biggest vinyl retailer? I don't know any bigger monthly "clubs" which is what I was measuring them up against, the VNYLs or Magnolia's and what not, which would still make them kings of nothing, besides a passing trend.

Like I said, I really meant equity, not prestige. IIRC, Urban Outfitters sells a hell of a lot of vinyl and are a very well known brand, but are notoriously bad at vending the records. The really sad thing you highlight is the idea of "prestige" is easily downgraded in the current climate with so many companies fucking you over daily you just get used to it.
 
zombie.modernist said:
Are you saying they are the 4th biggest vinyl retailer? I don't know any bigger monthly "clubs" which is what I was measuring them up against, the VNYLs or Magnolia's and what not, which would still make them kings of nothing, besides a passing trend.

Like I said, I really meant equity, not prestige. IIRC, Urban Outfitters sells a hell of a lot of vinyl and are a very well known brand, but are notoriously bad at vending the records. The really sad thing you highlight is the idea of "prestige" is easily downgraded in the current climate with so many companies fucking you over daily you just get used to it.
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Sounds like a glass half full/empty kinda deal..

I think the fact that they have a built-in customer base of 30k or whatever it is but still sell less records than Urban Outfitters and another retailer (the first obviously has to be Amazon) speaks volumes as to how terrible their curation is and how un-prestigious their brand is.

As has been mentioned numerous times across many VMP threads, they're basically just another Newbury Comics at this point, except they can't even sell as many records as a comic book store and somehow carry weight? Just don't see it.

Maybe the glass just half is in an empty world?
 
Clint Howard said:
Sounds like a glass half full/empty kinda deal..

I think the fact that they have a built-in customer base of 30k or whatever it is but still sell less records than Urban Outfitters and another retailer (the first obviously has to be Amazon) speaks volumes as to how terrible their curation is and how un-prestigious their brand is.

As has been mentioned numerous times across many VMP threads, they're basically just another Newbury Comics at this point, except they can't even sell as many records as a comic book store and somehow carry weight? Just don't see it.

Maybe the glass just half is in an empty world?
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I think they will never crack the ceiling beyond the other vendors because at the end of the day people who collect records want to chose their music for themselves. Curation is a nice little supplement to my vinyl buying habits, but I'm perfectly capable of picking my own music out, and often get more enjoyment from it. Last month I was walking by a local shop and spotted They Say I'm Different by Betty Davis on the wall, a nice VG+ OG copy I've been looking for for years. That was super satisfying and a real "classic" record find for a "classic" record that will stick with me each time I pull it out.

No online retailer can replicate that, but trawling through pages on Amazon or Urban feels closer to the classic experience of digging in the crates than VMP does, it's the sense of choice and self-discovery that VMP lacks by concept. I firmly believe that after a while not too many folks like being told what to do, or what to think, which is essentially the whole MO of any "curated" brand.
 
zombie.modernist said:
One more random thought, but I would love to see VMP play around with guest celebrity curators like the Criterion Closet or something. I wonder if that would be the sugar for the pill. For instance Alicia Keys loves Patrice. Wouldn't it be pretty interesting for this to be "Alicia Keys Presents: Straight From the Heart" and read her take on this album and how it influenced her? I feel like they were going for that with the P4K stuff but it never really wound up being interesting.
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There was another vinyl club that tried to do this. It didn't last too long I dont believe.
 
Clint Howard said:
I honestly can't tell if the highlighted part is said ironically or not but I don't think anyone thinks prestige when they think VMP.
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I think you would be surprised when you factor out this forum. If someone that wasn't a part of the club but bought records was asked to have a quick look into VMP I think its likely they would consider it to be prestigious. Its a members only club, they produce some 'exclusive' records which cant be bought anywhere else, and the resale value of many of their records is high.

When I first joined VMP I rarely bought records from America (im from the UK), and remember the feeling of excitement and exclusivity when my first package arrived. Its certainly different now, but the premise still stands.
 
MikeH said:
I think more along the lines of Prestige worldwide...
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Selaws said:
Im just listening to Patrice Rushen - Straight From The Heart and if it is this then surely its a front runner for the worst pick to date?
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I agree that this Patrice Rushen album can be easily had for < $10 and therefore does not warrant an expensive reissue. But the music itself is freakin' solid. I'll definitely be searching for a cheap copy at my local shop, just as I did with the Isley Brothers album a few months ago!
 
Selaws said:
When I first joined VMP I rarely bought records from America (im from the UK), and remember the feeling of excitement and exclusivity when my first package arrived. Its certainly different now, but the premise still stands.
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It's for sure different now. The feeling you mentioned of excitement and exclusivity has been replaced with shock, relief, and fear for what the box actually contains (and the condition it arrives in).
 
bettim84 said:
I agree that this Patrice Rushen album can be easily had for < $10 and therefore does not warrant an expensive reissue. But the music itself is freakin' solid. I'll definitely be searching for a cheap copy at my local shop, just as I did with the Isley Brothers album a few months ago!
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That Isley sounds better than the original press, I hope this Patrice is the same way if that's the pick.
 
trickyseven said:
It's for sure different now. The feeling you mentioned of excitement and exclusivity has been replaced with shock, relief, and fear for what the box actually contains (and the condition it arrives in).
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True, the first thing I do now is to open them all up to check for warps. Still exciting each time I get the package though, I wouldn't buy them otherwise.
 
Sadly, the entire vinyl industry has buckled under the pressure of the revival. As much as VMP personally messes up, it's hard to find plants that don't screw up. Even the big three "high quality" plants RTI, QRP and Pallas have all had some pretty big fuck ups in the last few years and the same lack of QC has rippled into MoFi, Tone Poet and AP pressings. VMP is one of the few retailers I actually buy from with confidence, not because I expect a high degree of QC (in fact it's usually sub-par) but because they are one of the few no-BS ones with replacements. Amazon won't even do 3 copies anymore, even with returns.
 
oldschoolkirby said:
Yeah, I just found this out myself. Had to get on their CS chat and explain how, if they would just ship the record in a box instead of a plastic bag, I wouldn't be having to request a 3rd copy! :mad: 🤦‍♂️
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The last time I did 3 copies I had to beg too, and they gave me some sort of one time exemption. They really don't care, because they know they have us so deep into the system with Prime, Prime Now, Whole Foods etc they don't have to try.

Again, VMP can suck, but they did let me go through 4 copies of OutKast, and I was able to sell the sub-optimal ones to my local for a few bucks to recover from it.
 
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