<p>New online and offline stores are sparking a fresh interest in vinyl records among those between 25 and 50. Replaced by cassettes and CDs, vinyl records were once regarded as a nostalgic indulgence for older folks.</p>.<p>Entry-level, affordable turntables, and same-day delivery of records are contributing to the growing interest.</p>.<p><strong>New outlets</strong></p>.<p>On Sunday, Bangalore Creative Circus (BCC) launched a store in Yeshwantpur with 300 pre-owned vinyls, priced between Rs 1,000 and Rs 4,000. Called JD’s Jukebox, it is an extension of collector Sujit Ponoth’s store in Kerala. It drew about 50 visitors on launch day and sold 30 records. Most buyers were in the 35-50 age group.</p>.<p>Manisha Vinod, co-founder of BCC, believes curated listening sessions, which they plan to host, will help promote vinyls. The collection now boasts 10-12 styles, including Hindi songs by Bappi Lahiri and Pankaj Mullick, Tamil albums by Ilaiyaraaja, classical music by M S Subbulakshmi, Bhimsen Joshi and Vilayat Khan, soundtracks of British films like ‘Buster’, as well as disco, funk, soul, rock, and heavy metal.</p>.<p>Rams Musique Experience on M G Road sells vinyls and equipment (player, amplifier, speaker). Since opening in June 2024, it is doing monthly business of Rs 15-18 lakh on average.</p>.<p>Their 10,000-plus collection includes new Malayalam albums priced at Rs 1,500, soundtracks of Kannada movies by Dr Rajkumar priced at Rs 4,999, and a signed 1972 Parveen Sultana LP priced at Rs 1 lakh. They sell eight to 10 records daily.</p>.<p>“While we do have records by Indian indie artistes, customers largely ask for international artistes such as The Beatles, Talking Heads, Diana Krall, Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande. We sell at least two copies of Pink Floyd’s ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ every day,” says cofounder Sangeeth Ram.</p>.<p>Half the customers are music buffs, while the other half, including school students, are drawn to the analog technology after a demo at the store. The latter include those starting a new hobby, and those exploring vinyls after receiving them as gifts at birthdays, weddings and corporate events. “People who are gifted records come looking for a player, and vice versa,” says Ram.</p>.<p>Rishi Walia, who runs the store Analogue Space in Halasuru, says 60-65% of his customers don’t own record players. “They want to buy a copy of their favourite artiste or album before it runs out. They have plans of buying a player sometime in the future,” he says.</p>.<p>Walia shares that records made in Japan are more sought after because of their strict quality controls, low surface noise and use of pure virgin vinyl.</p>.<p>The Japanese records come with an ‘obi’ — a strip or sash around the cover. As the obi strip is solely present in Japanese pressings, a Japanese pressed vinyl with the obi intact is much more valuable than the same record without its obi strip.</p>.<p>Vikram Bhat has been collecting vinyls since 2000. Through his store, Mahatobar Distribution, located in the Public Utility Building on M G Road, he has been selling records and record players for 10 years. He sells about six record players in a month, with prices ranging from Rs 20,000 to Rs 2 lakh.</p>.<p>“Some customers are older people who had record players and now want to get back into the hobby,” he says. Bhat, member of one of India’s first death metal bands, Dying Embrace, has a few first-press Black Sabbath records in his collection.</p>.<p>Back in the early 2000s, many were getting rid of their collections. Bhat was able to buy them cheap. It was cheaper than buying a CD, he says. “For instance, in the UK, a record was three pounds, while a CD was 10 pounds,” he recalls.</p>.<p>In recent years, contemporary artistes have started producing LP (long playing) records, says Akhil Hemdev of On the Jungle Floor, an online LP store. Now, Kendrick Lamar, Charlie XCX and Taylor Swift release their albums as records. They are priced upwards of Rs 3,000. Rock and hip-hop sell the most at his store.</p>.<p>Contemporary Indian record labels are yet to catch on as the vinyl business is not yet viable here, says Bhat.</p>.<p><strong>Repeat business</strong></p>.<p>Until Covid-19, people who had inherited a love of vinyl from their parents or grandparents would visit A Murugan to update their collection or get repairs. Today, his home business in Domlur, Vinyl Records Hub, sees at least one college student or young professional daily. Some teenagers also visit with their parents.</p>.<p>“Many kids born after the ’90s have never seen a vinyl player. When they do, they find the grooves, the stylus, the slightly scratchy sound, and the whole ritual beautiful,” says the 63-year-old, a retired driver.</p>.<p>His stock majorly comprises pre-owned records in mint condition, spanning English, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, German, Hindi, Tamil, and Kannada EPs, LPs, and 78 RPM records.</p>.<p>Since a full vinyl setup — including a record player, amplifier, and speakers — can cost at least Rs 60,000, Murugan advises beginners to order turntables with a built-in amplifier, available online for Rs 4,000-Rs 5,000.</p>.<p>He says young customers keep returning for more and go for records of Neil Diamond, Jim Reeves, James Last, Beethoven and Boney M.</p>.<p><strong>CDs and cassettes</strong></p>.<p>A market exists for CDs, says Akhil Hemdev of On The Jungle Floor. Some musicians have started releasing their music on cassettes. Younger people have started collecting cassette tapes. “Cassettes and CDs are easier on the pocket than vinyls,” he explains.</p>.<p><strong>Newfound passion for young couple</strong></p>.<p>Two months ago, Dravisha Katoch bought her first vinyl as a keepsake. It was an album of her favourite songs by Swedish pop group Abba. Since then, Dravisha and her husband, Rajat Raghuram, both 25, have acquired 14 more vinyls, ordered a record player, and bought a coffee table in their Indiranagar home to display their collection. It includes genres like Japanese jazz and Bollywood disco.</p>.<p>Raghuram, initially drawn to vinyls for the jacket art, has since come to appreciate their analog sound as “different” and “engulfing”. But he admits his generation is drawn to vinyls largely because it is "cool" to own things of the past, and it adds sophistication to their social media image. Raghuram is a lawyer, while Dravisha works as a community lead.</p>.<p><strong>Contact</strong></p>.<ul><li><p>JD’s Jukebox, BCC, Yeshwantpur, opens 11 am, closed on Mondays. Contact @blrcreativecircus on Instagram</p></li><li><p>Rams Music Experience, M G Road, opens 11.30 am, closed on Wednesdays. Contact 95353 36383</p></li><li><p>Vinyl Records Hub, Domlur, opens 10 am, all days of the week. Contact 95358 90244</p></li><li><p>Analogue Space, Halasuru. Contact 99020 45059</p></li><li><p>Mahatobar Distribution, M G Road. Contact 96320 38530</p></li><li><p>On The Jungle Floor: Visit onthejunglefloor.com</p></li></ul>
<p>New online and offline stores are sparking a fresh interest in vinyl records among those between 25 and 50. Replaced by cassettes and CDs, vinyl records were once regarded as a nostalgic indulgence for older folks.</p>.<p>Entry-level, affordable turntables, and same-day delivery of records are contributing to the growing interest.</p>.<p><strong>New outlets</strong></p>.<p>On Sunday, Bangalore Creative Circus (BCC) launched a store in Yeshwantpur with 300 pre-owned vinyls, priced between Rs 1,000 and Rs 4,000. Called JD’s Jukebox, it is an extension of collector Sujit Ponoth’s store in Kerala. It drew about 50 visitors on launch day and sold 30 records. Most buyers were in the 35-50 age group.</p>.<p>Manisha Vinod, co-founder of BCC, believes curated listening sessions, which they plan to host, will help promote vinyls. The collection now boasts 10-12 styles, including Hindi songs by Bappi Lahiri and Pankaj Mullick, Tamil albums by Ilaiyaraaja, classical music by M S Subbulakshmi, Bhimsen Joshi and Vilayat Khan, soundtracks of British films like ‘Buster’, as well as disco, funk, soul, rock, and heavy metal.</p>.<p>Rams Musique Experience on M G Road sells vinyls and equipment (player, amplifier, speaker). Since opening in June 2024, it is doing monthly business of Rs 15-18 lakh on average.</p>.<p>Their 10,000-plus collection includes new Malayalam albums priced at Rs 1,500, soundtracks of Kannada movies by Dr Rajkumar priced at Rs 4,999, and a signed 1972 Parveen Sultana LP priced at Rs 1 lakh. They sell eight to 10 records daily.</p>.<p>“While we do have records by Indian indie artistes, customers largely ask for international artistes such as The Beatles, Talking Heads, Diana Krall, Taylor Swift and Ariana Grande. We sell at least two copies of Pink Floyd’s ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ every day,” says cofounder Sangeeth Ram.</p>.<p>Half the customers are music buffs, while the other half, including school students, are drawn to the analog technology after a demo at the store. The latter include those starting a new hobby, and those exploring vinyls after receiving them as gifts at birthdays, weddings and corporate events. “People who are gifted records come looking for a player, and vice versa,” says Ram.</p>.<p>Rishi Walia, who runs the store Analogue Space in Halasuru, says 60-65% of his customers don’t own record players. “They want to buy a copy of their favourite artiste or album before it runs out. They have plans of buying a player sometime in the future,” he says.</p>.<p>Walia shares that records made in Japan are more sought after because of their strict quality controls, low surface noise and use of pure virgin vinyl.</p>.<p>The Japanese records come with an ‘obi’ — a strip or sash around the cover. As the obi strip is solely present in Japanese pressings, a Japanese pressed vinyl with the obi intact is much more valuable than the same record without its obi strip.</p>.<p>Vikram Bhat has been collecting vinyls since 2000. Through his store, Mahatobar Distribution, located in the Public Utility Building on M G Road, he has been selling records and record players for 10 years. He sells about six record players in a month, with prices ranging from Rs 20,000 to Rs 2 lakh.</p>.<p>“Some customers are older people who had record players and now want to get back into the hobby,” he says. Bhat, member of one of India’s first death metal bands, Dying Embrace, has a few first-press Black Sabbath records in his collection.</p>.<p>Back in the early 2000s, many were getting rid of their collections. Bhat was able to buy them cheap. It was cheaper than buying a CD, he says. “For instance, in the UK, a record was three pounds, while a CD was 10 pounds,” he recalls.</p>.<p>In recent years, contemporary artistes have started producing LP (long playing) records, says Akhil Hemdev of On the Jungle Floor, an online LP store. Now, Kendrick Lamar, Charlie XCX and Taylor Swift release their albums as records. They are priced upwards of Rs 3,000. Rock and hip-hop sell the most at his store.</p>.<p>Contemporary Indian record labels are yet to catch on as the vinyl business is not yet viable here, says Bhat.</p>.<p><strong>Repeat business</strong></p>.<p>Until Covid-19, people who had inherited a love of vinyl from their parents or grandparents would visit A Murugan to update their collection or get repairs. Today, his home business in Domlur, Vinyl Records Hub, sees at least one college student or young professional daily. Some teenagers also visit with their parents.</p>.<p>“Many kids born after the ’90s have never seen a vinyl player. When they do, they find the grooves, the stylus, the slightly scratchy sound, and the whole ritual beautiful,” says the 63-year-old, a retired driver.</p>.<p>His stock majorly comprises pre-owned records in mint condition, spanning English, Russian, Spanish, Arabic, German, Hindi, Tamil, and Kannada EPs, LPs, and 78 RPM records.</p>.<p>Since a full vinyl setup — including a record player, amplifier, and speakers — can cost at least Rs 60,000, Murugan advises beginners to order turntables with a built-in amplifier, available online for Rs 4,000-Rs 5,000.</p>.<p>He says young customers keep returning for more and go for records of Neil Diamond, Jim Reeves, James Last, Beethoven and Boney M.</p>.<p><strong>CDs and cassettes</strong></p>.<p>A market exists for CDs, says Akhil Hemdev of On The Jungle Floor. Some musicians have started releasing their music on cassettes. Younger people have started collecting cassette tapes. “Cassettes and CDs are easier on the pocket than vinyls,” he explains.</p>.<p><strong>Newfound passion for young couple</strong></p>.<p>Two months ago, Dravisha Katoch bought her first vinyl as a keepsake. It was an album of her favourite songs by Swedish pop group Abba. Since then, Dravisha and her husband, Rajat Raghuram, both 25, have acquired 14 more vinyls, ordered a record player, and bought a coffee table in their Indiranagar home to display their collection. It includes genres like Japanese jazz and Bollywood disco.</p>.<p>Raghuram, initially drawn to vinyls for the jacket art, has since come to appreciate their analog sound as “different” and “engulfing”. But he admits his generation is drawn to vinyls largely because it is "cool" to own things of the past, and it adds sophistication to their social media image. Raghuram is a lawyer, while Dravisha works as a community lead.</p>.<p><strong>Contact</strong></p>.<ul><li><p>JD’s Jukebox, BCC, Yeshwantpur, opens 11 am, closed on Mondays. Contact @blrcreativecircus on Instagram</p></li><li><p>Rams Music Experience, M G Road, opens 11.30 am, closed on Wednesdays. Contact 95353 36383</p></li><li><p>Vinyl Records Hub, Domlur, opens 10 am, all days of the week. Contact 95358 90244</p></li><li><p>Analogue Space, Halasuru. Contact 99020 45059</p></li><li><p>Mahatobar Distribution, M G Road. Contact 96320 38530</p></li><li><p>On The Jungle Floor: Visit onthejunglefloor.com</p></li></ul>