Vinyl Me Please Essentials

This is the place that the grew out of VMP burning our house down. It will never be a Pro- VMP place. We may speak positively about a certain release of theirs or whathaveyou but this place will always lean to the negative when it comes to them. If you can’t be cool with that, maybe stick to Reddit?
 
Urbs_hott said:
This is the place that the grew out of VMP burning our house down. It will never be a Pro- VMP place. We may speak positively about a certain release of theirs or whathaveyou but this place will always lean to the negative when it comes to them. If you can’t be cool with that, maybe stick to Reddit?
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Lol stick to Reddit for positivity? Have you ever been to Reddit?
 
tenor.gif


i mean its christmas time can we at least wait until the actual announcement to add extra salt (we dont even know the details yet)
 
i usually have some good luck with VMP presses with the worst stuff i get is some surface noise (though if i had a better record cleaner than a spin clean where the rollers aren't completely smooth that might be different). i have never had a super severe warp from them and beyond once with the tick of death on my copy of the stars album (which they did apologize and fix in the end) things have been pretty satisfied..

fuck storf though we all can agree on that
 
I think the blind defence of VMP to be just as tiring as the constant bashing. The total OTT excitement of every release is just as tiring as the griping. A little balance would be nice.

John Prine is a total classic and if you don’t have it you really should get it. If you have it already, maybe get it, or take the credit, or swap for Killer Mike. But probably not the Isaac Hayes soundtrack. Would like to see some Prine exclusives go on sale.

At the end of the day we are all giving our opinions on an Internet forum. Say what you like about records and I will continue to do so as well.
 
Murfocakes said:
I think the blind defence of VMP to be just as tiring as the constant bashing. The total OTT excitement of every release is just as tiring as the griping. A little balance would be nice.
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To be fair the OTT excitement is a Nathan thing only. I certainly don’t get THAT excited over every release.
And blind defense? I have years of music discovery and albums in my collection I love because of VMP (which is the point).
Just because someone has the opposite view doesn’t mean they don’t have good reason.
I may be tired of the same ol VMP complaints but I *mostly* get where they came from.
 
wynn72 said:
To be fair the OTT excitement is a Nathan thing only. I certainly don’t get THAT excited over every release.
And blind defense? I have years of music discovery and albums in my collection I love because of VMP (which is the point).
Just because someone has the opposite view doesn’t mean they don’t have good reason.
I may be tired of the same ol VMP complaints but I *mostly* get where they came from.
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I’ve discovered a few great albums thanks to VMP too (Let It Die, Go For Your Guns, City Music, Aromanticism) which might not have come on my radar without VMP. There are also a brave few that don’t get regular spins, but then again that is part and parcel for a service like this.

The main problem is many of those with issues, like myself, were members from an earlier stage when it was a very different club. It seemed more like an actual club, now it’s just a record label who often have nice things. If someone enjoys it at the minute good on them, same as if someone doesn’t. This is the Internet, home of hot takes, the disagreement is what I enjoy about here.

No disrespect to you or @NathanRicaud , glad to hear you are both enjoying it. And I guess Nathan is too from his posts. But if you go back to the old forum’s posts (oh right, we can’t) you’ll find similarity praise and enthusiasm from myself and @Joe Mac. Then they hurt him. They really hurt him. But everyone is entitled to praise or shitpost as long as the spirit is positive and friendly. And it is.

My personal feeling is If the praise was more balanced it would let someone like me know that, say, Donny Hathaway or Billie Holiday was worth grabbing. 12 months of 5 star reviews for every track doesn’t serve anyone, it discredits the releases that deserve attention.

I’ve been harsh in the past but it’s not to try and convince anyone not to jump in, it’s an Internet forum and talking shite on here is what is done. I’ve had very bad and excellent service from VMP in the past. You pays your money...
 
Murfocakes said:
I’ve discovered a few great albums thanks to VMP too (Let It Die, Go For Your Guns, City Music, Aromanticism) which might not have come on my radar without VMP. There are also a brave few that don’t get regular spins, but then again that is part and parcel for a service like this.

The main problem is many of those with issues, like myself, were members from an earlier stage when it was a very different club. It seemed more like an actual club, now it’s just a record label who often have nice things. If someone enjoys it at the minute good on them, same as if someone doesn’t. This is the Internet, home of hot takes, the disagreement is what I enjoy about here.

No disrespect to you or @NathanRicaud , glad to hear you are both enjoying it. And I guess Nathan is too from his posts. But if you go back to the old forum’s posts (oh right, we can’t) you’ll find similarity praise and enthusiasm from myself and @Joe Mac. Then they hurt him. They really hurt him. But everyone is entitled to praise or shitpost as long as the spirit is positive and friendly. And it is.

My personal feeling is If the praise was more balanced it would let someone like me know that, say, Donny Hathaway or Billie Holiday was worth grabbing. 12 months of 5 star reviews for every track doesn’t serve anyone, it discredits the releases that deserve attention.

I’ve been harsh in the past but it’s not to try and convince anyone not to jump in, it’s an Internet forum and talking shite on here is what is done. I’ve had very bad and excellent service from VMP in the past. You pays your money...
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Honestly it’s just too expensive now and that kinda kills all temptation from me (other than the odd member exclusive or repress because I still get member free shipping 😂). I can’t get on board with much praise and consider it balanced when a company is expecting me to pay $49-52 unless they’re consistently pressing unicorns at mofi/ap standard.

PS. Spiritualized, Aretha and Otis are the only albums close to that standard for me this year.

PPS. That’s as picks not as pressings, that’s a whole other kettle of fish.
 
Joe Mac said:
Honestly it’s just too expensive now and that kinda kills all temptation from me (other than the odd member exclusive or repress because I still get member free shipping 😂). I can’t get on board with much praise and consider it balanced when a company is expecting me to pay $49-52 unless they’re consistently pressing unicorns at mofi/ap standard. Spiritualized, Aretha and Otis are the only albums close to that standard for me this year.
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This is my thoughts exactly...sure I’m tempted here and there, but that price is absurd now
 
Murfocakes said:
I’ve discovered a few great albums thanks to VMP too (Let It Die, Go For Your Guns, City Music, Aromanticism) which might not have come on my radar without VMP. There are also a brave few that don’t get regular spins, but then again that is part and parcel for a service like this.

The main problem is many of those with issues, like myself, were members from an earlier stage when it was a very different club. It seemed more like an actual club, now it’s just a record label who often have nice things. If someone enjoys it at the minute good on them, same as if someone doesn’t. This is the Internet, home of hot takes, the disagreement is what I enjoy about here.

No disrespect to you or @NathanRicaud , glad to hear you are both enjoying it. And I guess Nathan is too from his posts. But if you go back to the old forum’s posts (oh right, we can’t) you’ll find similarity praise and enthusiasm from myself and @Joe Mac. Then they hurt him. They really hurt him. But everyone is entitled to praise or shitpost as long as the spirit is positive and friendly. And it is.

My personal feeling is If the praise was more balanced it would let someone like me know that, say, Donny Hathaway or Billie Holiday was worth grabbing. 12 months of 5 star reviews for every track doesn’t serve anyone, it discredits the releases that deserve attention.

I’ve been harsh in the past but it’s not to try and convince anyone not to jump in, it’s an Internet forum and talking shite on here is what is done. I’ve had very bad and excellent service from VMP in the past. You pays your money...
Click to expand...

I get it. I was part of old forum too and remember both the stronger support and the harsh feelings after the board closing, even if I don't take that or anything Storf/Matt saids persoanlly.

The criticism itself I guess is not the thing that bugs me, as much as when it comes from people who quit a LONG time ago. I've definitely had my periods where I had enough of VMPs BS (Last year and the year befores shipping and customer service BS were the prime examples) but if I decided to quit, I'd be done with them and focus on other threads.

I'm more being vocal now because I want to be, not because I think VMP needs defending, and I want to speak from the other perspective. Especially since the other main VMP is @NathanRicaud who's praise is "a bit" hyperbolic (not that I think he's insincere at all.

I definitely don't LOVE every pick. But I do want to give another perspective from someone who the Essentials is more marketed towards. And I generally don't post about the ones I don't like since there's plenty of that to go around already.
In terms of curation, I like a very very very wide variety of music. I would say to a fault, as it doesnt let me get to spend as much time with certain albums that I love (I have given up on my top albums of all time because I just havent found the time). The Essentials curation from VMP definitely introduces me to alot of music that I wouldn't have been exposed to otherwise. 6/12 essentials picks are albums i wouldn't have listed to otherwise and I would say it hit ALOT more than missed for me last year. If I had the deeper music knowledge that alot of you have, I would probably not need to be a member of a track like this, and I think some people on here forget that the general VMP subscriber probably is closer to that, than you folks. I still love the guess threads and keep track of them every month since I'm so impressed by the breadth of music knowledge on this forum (ironically from the same people I roll my eyes at when the picks are guessed).

Also I get the criticism of the price. I don't love how much it shot up but I live in the US, so the while prices are high they are not ridiculously so it's very worth my money (at least while I'm on my current annual plan). But that's not me defending it.
I am seriously considering dropping RHH next year when VMP Country is released. I love Rap and Hip Hop but it is one of my least listened to genres on vinyl (for multiple reasons). My main reasons for staying in it is to mainly have some new albums regularly in my collection when I do want to listen, and I have a complete collection so far. But I may have to cut it soon (Classics and Country will always stay as non-swaps for me, and Essentials as my main track so that when I do swap I get the most in credit).

So I went on longer than I meant explaining my perspective....Essentially you're right this is a forum, and anyone has the right the to voice their opinion here. . I was just trying to put my perspective and counter the points others were making, which I will continue to do, just as others will continue to crap on VMP. Sorry, if it came off argumentative, it was more to bring balance but I think it's rare for the Pro-VMP posts to be more defensive of the picks rather than just "great pick! will buy".

This will be my last post saying "why not just go to other threads"
 
Joe Mac said:
Honestly it’s just too expensive now and that kinda kills all temptation from me (other than the odd member exclusive or repress because I still get member free shipping 😂). I can’t get on board with much praise and consider it balanced when a company is expecting me to pay $49-52 unless they’re consistently pressing unicorns at mofi/ap standard.

PS. Spiritualized, Aretha and Otis are the only albums close to that standard for me this year.

PPS. That’s as picks not as pressings, that’s a whole other kettle of fish.
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Honestly, Country will probably be the most worth it price wise for me because of the lack of Country pressed otherwise. So I understand in that respect why people continue to bash VMP when something is widely pressed.
I think people have to accept that it just really isnt the point of the tracks, though especially considering the price hike it would certainly be in VMPs interest to focus a bit more on the "lost sounds" to justify the higher cost.
But also remember, every time they don't press the MOST popular album they also get bashed. I'll always bring up when 'Grace' was an exclusive and the outrage about why that wasn't an Essential pick, when you could find that album EVERYWHERE. Same, but to a lesser extent, with Ray Charles 'Modern sounds in country music'.

Edit: Sorry maybe shouldnt have responded to your post with this. You're definitely talking about pressing quality rather than curation.
 
wynn72 said:
Honestly, Country will probably be the most worth it price wise for me because of the lack of Country pressed otherwise. So I understand in that respect why people continue to bash VMP when something is widely pressed.
I think people have to accept that it just really isnt the point of the tracks, though especially considering the price hike it would certainly be in VMPs interest to focus a bit more on the "lost sounds" to justify the higher cost.
But also remember, every time they don't press the MOST popular album they also get bashed. I'll always bring up when 'Grace' was an exclusive and the outrage about why that wasn't an Essential pick, when you could find that album EVERYWHERE. Same, but to a lesser extent, with Ray Charles 'Modern sounds in country music'.

Edit: Sorry maybe shouldnt have responded to your post with this. You're definitely talking about pressing quality rather than curation.
Click to expand...

Acutally both. I get everything you’re saying but if I’m to pay $49-52 for a main track requires more than pressing albums that already have really high quality cheaper pressings out there. Hathaway, Stripes, Nicks off the top of my head all had that. Combined with them boasting about “hidden gems” from discographies and having dumbs slogans suggesting this means that it’s a really valid complaint. They try to play it off on both sides, selling on that whilst saying that’s never been the goal when they press an unnecessary extra version. At that price point the quality has to be much higher than they deliver too.
 
wynn72 said:
I get it. I was part of old forum too and remember both the stronger support and the harsh feelings after the board closing, even if I don't take that or anything Storf/Matt saids persoanlly.

The criticism itself I guess is not the thing that bugs me, as much as when it comes from people who quit a LONG time ago. I've definitely had my periods where I had enough of VMPs BS (Last year and the year befores shipping and customer service BS were the prime examples) but if I decided to quit, I'd be done with them and focus on other threads.

I'm more being vocal now because I want to be, not because I think VMP needs defending, and I want to speak from the other perspective. Especially since the other main VMP is @NathanRicaud who's praise is "a bit" hyperbolic (not that I think he's insincere at all.

I definitely don't LOVE every pick. But I do want to give another perspective from someone who the Essentials is more marketed towards. And I generally don't post about the ones I don't like since there's plenty of that to go around already.
In terms of curation, I like a very very very wide variety of music. I would say to a fault, as it doesnt let me get to spend as much time with certain albums that I love (I have given up on my top albums of all time because I just havent found the time). The Essentials curation from VMP definitely introduces me to alot of music that I wouldn't have been exposed to otherwise. 6/12 essentials picks are albums i wouldn't have listed to otherwise and I would say it hit ALOT more than missed for me last year. If I had the deeper music knowledge that alot of you have, I would probably not need to be a member of a track like this, and I think some people on here forget that the general VMP subscriber probably is closer to that, than you folks. I still love the guess threads and keep track of them every month since I'm so impressed by the breadth of music knowledge on this forum (ironically from the same people I roll my eyes at when the picks are guessed).

Also I get the criticism of the price. I don't love how much it shot up but I live in the US, so the while prices are high they are not ridiculously so it's very worth my money (at least while I'm on my current annual plan). But that's not me defending it.
I am seriously considering dropping RHH next year when VMP Country is released. I love Rap and Hip Hop but it is one of my least listened to genres on vinyl (for multiple reasons). My main reasons for staying in it is to mainly have some new albums regularly in my collection when I do want to listen, and I have a complete collection so far. But I may have to cut it soon (Classics and Country will always stay as non-swaps for me, and Essentials as my main track so that when I do swap I get the most in credit).

So I went on longer than I meant explaining my perspective....Essentially you're right this is a forum, and anyone has the right the to voice their opinion here. . I was just trying to put my perspective and counter the points others were making, which I will continue to do, just as others will continue to crap on VMP. Sorry, if it came off argumentative, it was more to bring balance but I think it's rare for the Pro-VMP posts to be more defensive of the picks rather than just "great pick! will buy".

This will be my last post saying "why not just go to other threads"
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As I said previously your perspective is important and it should be recognised or the place could just degenerate to a shit slinging contest. The same applies to Nathan. Recognising the hyperbole required in his role as Head Cultee I think he's great. Gets absolute pelters - although a lot is no doubt intended to be light hearted-- and he takes the lot with good grace and humour. I'd be telling people to fuck off left, right and centre (although I am from North East England so that's just in my DNA). And as there are rarely any posters who just think that VMP is kinda alright it means the discussion manages a kinda organic balance.

So yeah, honestly man. Keep fighting the good fight (or futile fight). I'll chip in on the occasions they don't completely balls something up. By the way, did I mention there were only 3 minutes between me sending them an email with a sound clip of my Billie saying 'listen to the piece of shit you've sent me this time' and them emailing back saying it would be replaced. 3 minutes! Fair play to VMP.
 
wynn72 said:
Honestly, Country will probably be the most worth it price wise for me because of the lack of Country pressed otherwise. So I understand in that respect why people continue to bash VMP when something is widely pressed.
I think people have to accept that it just really isnt the point of the tracks, though especially considering the price hike it would certainly be in VMPs interest to focus a bit more on the "lost sounds" to justify the higher cost.
But also remember, every time they don't press the MOST popular album they also get bashed. I'll always bring up when 'Grace' was an exclusive and the outrage about why that wasn't an Essential pick, when you could find that album EVERYWHERE. Same, but to a lesser extent, with Ray Charles 'Modern sounds in country music'.

Edit: Sorry maybe shouldnt have responded to your post with this. You're definitely talking about pressing quality rather than curation.
Click to expand...
Country might be the most attractive to me too. There are plenty of Waylon, Prine, Guy Clark, Nanci Griffith, Willie albums I would jump on.
 
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