Old tech breathes new life to OPM
Scratchy, destructible and high maintenance.
Compared to CDs and digital, vinyl records are a pain in the butt to play and maintain.
But lo and hey, they’re back. According to Billboard Magazine, vinyl recordings now account for two percent of all albums sold in the US.
OPM on vinyl
In the Philippines, sales of brand new OPM recordings on vinyl are starting to pick up and PolyEast Records is leading the way.
“Since June of last year, we have released two batches of OPM vinyl albums and they all sold out even before the records arrived in the Philippines from the foreign supplier,” said Richard Calderon, head of new media (ironically enough) at PolyEast Records.
“Most of the buyers are Filipino record collectors but I am still surprised by how fast the supply got sold.”
Almost laughed out of the room
Richard is a record collector himself.
He remembers that at the height of music piracy in the early part of the last decade, he proposed the idea of reviving vinyl during an international conference of record executives to combat the illegal trade in recorded music.
He almost got laughed out of the convention.
Pet project
When CD sales took a nosedive in the local market, Calderon again broached the idea to the top bosses of PolyEast.
It became his pet project and it eventually got off the ground.
His first attempt at vinyl releases were the greatest hits albums by Bamboo and Martin Nievera.
Different track list on vinyl
Richard himself chose the songs included in the greatest hits albums.
“It’s a safer bet to release greatest hits albums as opposed to a specific record by the artist. They contain hits so there would be more than two songs that would appeal to the buyer,” he explained.
In most instances, the vinyl release has a different track listing from the CD version of the artist’s greatest hits collection, which will likely have illegal copies elsewhere.
The issue of price
Price can be an important factor in deciding to go vinyl.
Only 500 copies are pressed of every album title that’s pressed. Each sells for P900.
The vinyl records were initially manufactured in the Czech Republic which at that time offered the best deal.
OPM records pressed in Germany
The second batch of 500 copies per artist was produced in Germany in what Richard describes as one of the best pressing plants in the world.
Titles in this batch included the greatest hits of FrancisM, Joey Albert, The Dawn and True Faith. They were priced at P1,200 per copy and sold out even before the shipment arrived in the Philippines.
Richard says, “I am already putting together a third batch of vinyl releases from P.O.T, Ogie, Regine Velasquez, The Boyfriends and a second hits collection from Bamboo. Tuloy tuloy na ito!”
Non buyers of OPM began buying OPM on vinyl
Calderon observes, “One of the good things with the latest OPM vinyl releases is that record collectors who traditionally won’t buy OPM albums started purchasing them when we started our vinyl releases.
“They know they’re pressed abroad so they’re assured of top quality recordings.
“Unlike before, local pressings would use recycled vinyl which was the root cause of problems like popping sound, wobble, etc.”
Recording artists are major buyers of vinyl
He adds that aside from collectors, recording artists are the other major buyers of vinyl.
He cites the case when PolyEast released the greatest hits of the Dawn on CD. No calls at all were made. Now with the vinyl version, PolyEast got inquiries not only from customers but also the artists.
“A lot of our vinyl releases are from acts who are no longer with us. They’re either with another label or no longer active in music. Still, when they found out about the vinyl releases, they’d come calling offering their services for signings and photo ops during promo campaigns,” Richard observes.
“Some even told me they feel honored to be (reissued) on vinyl!”
Vinyl puts a premium on OPM
Calderon argues that the vinyl version also puts a premium on OPM.
“Consider Bamboo who belongs to the CD generation. Now if you are a big fan of Bamboo and you’re based in another country, you can only get his latest release on vinyl here in the Philippines.
“Unlike most foreign artists whose CDs are available online, our OPM vinyl releases can be bought only in the Philippines. You don’t have a choice. In a way, vinyl sheds some light and gives more life to OPM music.”
Impressed by PolyEast’s small success with vinyl releases, sister company Universal Records, now with an all-OPM catalog, is making plans for its own batch of vinyl releases. Other labels are likely to follow.
PolyEast’s vinyl OPM collection can be purchased at AstroPlus, Odyssey and Stereophile, an audio video store which is the sole distributor of affordable Rega brand of turntables, with promotional tie-up with PolyEast. For inquiries, contact: +632 374 8410 to 12 and 374 8385 to 87.
Related: 13 tips on starting your vinyl collection
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