All articles tagged with #vinyl
Fluance launches the RT87, its most ambitious audiophile-grade turntable yet—a belt-drive, dual-plinth Reference Series model with a nine-inch carbon-fiber tonearm, adjustable VTA, high-mass acrylic platter, and a choice of Audio-Technica AT-VM95ML or Ortofon 2M Blue cartridges, no built-in phono preamp, 33⅓/45/78 RPM, three finishes, and an $800 price tag.
Taylor Swift released a limited 10-inch picture disc vinyl for Toy Story 5’s original song 'I Knew It, I Knew You', available for 24 hours or until supplies run out. Side A carries the track and Side B its instrumental; the cover art features Jessie’s hat and the Toy Story 5 logo, tying the release to Disney ahead of the film’s June 19, 2026 premiere.
Charli XCX releases a cheeky pop-punk B-side titled Playboy Bunny to accompany her upcoming SS26. She describes the track as sonically opposite to SS26 and notes the B-sides are paired with songs ahead of the album. Playboy Bunny will only be available on her dedicated Instagram b.sides account and on a limited-edition 7” vinyl, with no streaming release planned.
Noah Kahan earns his first No. 1 on the Billboard 200 as The Great Divide debuts atop with 389,000 equivalent album units in the week ending April 30, led by 212,000 streaming units, 175,000 in album sales and 118,000 vinyl copies; the rock-heavy set marks Kahan’s biggest first week and the largest streaming week for 2026 to date, plus the biggest rock vinyl week in the modern era. Kehlani debuts at No. 4, and Michael Jackson’s Thriller re-enters the top 10 at No. 7 following the release of the Michael biopic, as Billboard’s chart is calculated by Luminate.
Record Store Day 2026 features hundreds of limited-edition vinyl releases (around 350–355 titles) across genres, with marquee drops from Taylor Swift and Pink Floyd and other major artists like Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Brandi Carlile, Laufey, and Neil Young. The piece spotlights a sampling of exclusives—Swift’s violet 7" single, Pink Floyd’s live Los Angeles 1975 set, Springsteen’s Live From Asbury Park 2024 (5LPs or 2CDs), Laufey’s Madison Square Garden performance, and jazz/ archival titles from Ahmad Jamal, Miles Davis, Bill Evans, and more—while noting the post-tax-day rush to indie shops and the ongoing push to keep vinyl culture thriving.
Vinyl fans across the South East queued for exclusive Record Store Day drops as more than 300 UK and Ireland shops took part, with store owners saying the event is crucial for the industry and helps bring people back to high streets amid online shopping, while popular artists like Taylor Swift drive demand for limited titles.
Louder’s Fraser Lewry curates 164 must‑have Record Store Day releases for April 18, celebrating vinyl collecting and independent shops, while noting availability varies by store/region and queues, flippers, and regional limitations are to be expected.
What Hi-Fi? highlights eight must-have Record Store Day 2026 vinyl releases: The Cure Acoustic Hits (remastered 14-track vinyl with reimagined classics), Pavement’s Perfect Sound Forever (7 early tracks on a rare white 10-inch), Nas’s Gods Son (color press unique to Europe), Miles Davis’ From Bebop to Blue (silver/black triple vinyl deluxe with exclusive notes), Kokoroko Live at Metropolis (one-take, four-track live set), Laura Marling Live at Albert Hall (double LP of her 2025 solo set plus a 2024 album performance), Bring Me the Horizon Lo-Fi Covers (23-track lo-fi reinterpretations), and KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack HUNTR/X Edition (film tie-in with posters and extras). The piece notes the growing vinyl hype, the variety of exclusive editions, and why collectors will be chasing these releases on RSD 2026.
Denon's new DP-500BT is a premium belt-drive turntable with Bluetooth streaming, a switchable built-in MM phono preamp, a semi-automatic tonearm, and 33/45/78 RPM support, priced at $899 and designed to work with both analog and wireless hi‑fi setups; it follows the DP-3000NE's premium aesthetic and is available now in black.
BTS is offering a Target-exclusive Arirang vinyl pressed in a Jung Kook Orchid colorway ahead of the album’s March 20 release; the 14-track Arirang, produced by Ryan Tedder, Diplo and Kevin Parker, serves as a physical counterpart to the digital release and is one of several collectible vinyl variants rolling out globally. Pre-orders are live now, and BTS will also stream full-length concerts from Goyang (April 11) and Tokyo (April 18) to accompany the launch.
The U.S. recorded-music industry earned $11.5 billion in 2025, led by a vinyl resurgence that surpassed $1 billion for the first time since 1983, while streaming generated about $6.4 billion (over 80% of revenue). Taylor Swift significantly contributed to the growth with her 12th album opening week (over 4 million copies sold in the U.S.) and hundreds of millions of streams, underscoring ongoing investment in artists and a strong year for both physical and digital formats.
U.S. music industry revenue rose 3% in 2025 to a record $11.54 billion, helped by blockbuster releases such as Taylor Swift’s The Life of a Showgirl and a rebound in vinyl, which topped $1 billion for the first time since 1983; streaming accounted for about 82% of revenue at $9.5 billion, with premium subscriptions driving most of that, while the industry continues to lean on touring, merch and licensing as part of a broader shift in its business model.
RIAA reports U.S. vinyl revenue surpassed $1 billion in 2025, up about 9.3% with 46.8 million vinyl units sold, while CDs and digital downloads declined; streaming remains the dominant revenue driver, but vinyl’s growth is led by Taylor Swift’s Life of a Showgirl, which sold about 1.6 million copies in 2025.
Technics has introduced the SL-1500CS, an updated version of its popular SL-1500C, featuring the ΔΣ-Drive motor tech first seen on higher-end models to further cut motor vibrations and improve rotation accuracy. The turntable preserves the SL-1500C’s strong build (iron-coreless direct drive, S-shaped tonearm, built-in MM phono stage) and adds a metallic grey finish. It ships in March 2026 for £1099, continuing Technics’ premium direct-drive line and offering enthusiasts a refined vinyl replay experience.
Loudwire presents an alphabetized guide to the 2026 Rock + Metal Record Store Day releases, detailing a long slate of titles across artists and formats for the April 18 event, and highlighting a notable Slipknot-related Look Outside Your Window 10-track release along with information on participating stores.