The joy of vinyl
An ode to old tech
There was a time when listening to music had a tactile angle. Hundreds of grooves etched on vinyl rough against your fingerprints. Under a microscope, they are squiggly lines, physical manifestations of melodies and rhythm that came almost directly from the source, the smoother areas capturing silence.
You can, in a sense, actually touch and see the music.
Picking an album, laying the disc gently on a turntable and setting the needle at a specific point (you can visually identify exactly where, for example, Jimmy Page’s guitar solo to “Whole Lotta Love” is based on the density of the grooves) required your eye and ear.
And tedious as it may seem, it was fun. Your attention was required.
The relationship is with the device
Today, it’s the swipe of a finger or a touch of a button on glass or plastic, a generic sensation that has no bearing on whether the ensuing results summon Ariana Grande or Led Zeppelin or the Brandenburg Concertos.
Your relationship is with the device that holds all your data, and some have more value than others including, sadly, music.
Everything is bound in binary code: your Excel file and Radiohead’s “OK Computer” sharing the same cavalier relationship with your fingertip.
The device holds your stresses and joys equally. You want to have every song you ever heard in your life? Sure, you can get it for free… but at the price of sonic quality, depending on the file size.
Analog joys
Satchmi, distributor of almost 80% of the country’s vinyl records supply, officially launched its flagship store in SM Megamall’s Fashion Hall in early December. Earlier this year, it had also revealed the affordable locally made Motorino II portable turntable.
The company’s earnest mission? To reignite and curate a love for “the good old days.”
And that extends to the store’s inventory, which includes books and old cameras and film.
The return of the ‘listening room’
But vinyl records are the centerpiece: hundreds for sale, from jazz classics to the latest indie releases.
There’s a tiny listening room equipped with a Motorino that allows for an analog experience for the curious.
You can also order a cup of espresso while you mull, say, John Mayer’s “Heavier Things” as being worth its sticker price.
Instant noodles vs. ramen
For the launch, indie artists Birdforms, BP Valenzuela, and Reese&Vica played live sets.
Diego Mapa spun old vinyl records and got heads craning to see when he played something familiar such as Edwin Birdsong’s “Cola Bottle Baby” which is the main sample in Daft Punk’s “Harder Better Faster Stronger.”
Valenzuela, for her part, also made coffee: she is employed part-time as Satchmi’s barista.
Vinyl may not be for everybody because it’s pricey and fiddly to use. But it’s good to have an alternative. Just as some days, you want to forego instant noodles for a bowl of real, properly made ramen.
