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AAA VinylAlbum Reviews
Does UMe’s 50th Anniversary What’s Going On Beat MoFi’s One Step?
Malachi Lui  |  May 01, 2022  |  94 comments
There’s plenty already said about the musical content of Marvin Gaye’s 1971 classic What’s Going On so I’ll avoid redundancy and just say that its scope—from the sociopolitically-minded lyrics to the carefully assembled song cycle structure and luscious musical arrangements—pushed the boundaries of what a Motown release could be, and truly stands the test of time. It’s an endlessly relevant record (decide yourself if that says more about the album’s excellence or society’s failures), and also one of the most exhaustively reissued: in the past 20 years, we’ve seen Universal’s 30th anniversary 2CD featuring the original Detroit mix, more alternate mixes, and a Kennedy Center live recording from 1972; Mobile Fidelity’s SACD and 33rpm single LP releases; UMG’s 40th anniversary “super deluxe” edition adding further session material and alternate versions; quite a few run-of-the-mill digitally-sourced vinyl reissues of the core album, done at United for the US and GZ for Europe; an Abbey Road half-speed 4LP mirroring the 2001 2CD; and MoFi’s 45rpm double LP UltraDisc One Step cut from tape. That’s not including the “Vinyl Lovers” Russian reissues of dubious legal origin cut and pressed at GZ, the 192kHz/24bit hi-res download, a Blu-ray Audio release (remember that format?), and the Japanese SACDs, CDs, and MQA-UHQCDs featuring a flat transfer of the original master tapes (yes, really!).
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Sweepstakes
The Story of Vanguard Vinyl LP Box Set Sweepstakes
Analog Planet Staff  |  Apr 29, 2022  |  260 comments
Register to win a The Story of Vanguard Vinyl LP Box Set (Total value $289.00) we are giving away.

About the prize:

First edition limited to 1000, on 180 gram audiophile colored vinyl, pressed at GZ. All six albums were AAA cut from the mono master tapes by Ryan Smith at Sterling Sound. All of these albums were lacquered directly from the mono master tapes, preserving the original sound upon release of these albums in the ‘50s and ‘60s.

[This Sweepstakes is now closed.]

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FeaturesShort Cuts
Review Explosion: Spiritualized, Pusha T, Bladee & Ecco2k, Father John Misty, & Swedish House Mafia
Malachi Lui  |  Apr 28, 2022  |  41 comments
(Review Explosion, curated by contributing editor Malachi Lui, is AnalogPlanet’s guide to notable recent releases and reissues. It focuses on the previous few months’ new releases for which we don’t have time or energy to cover more extensively.)

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AXPONA 2022
AXPONA 2022—Super Show or Super Spreader?
Michael Fremer  |  Apr 28, 2022  |  24 comments
AXPONA 2022 was definitely a super show. Was it a super spreader? Time will tell. Few attendees were masked, proof of vaccination wasn’t required, and crowds mingled as in pre-Covid days. I came “locked and loaded” with antibodies from having had Covid a few weeks before the show, picked up during a visit to the U.K. for the launch of SME’s new Model 60. I had the worst possible Covid variant: OmicronMQA. You get Covid and it unfolds in your body measles and peyronie’s disease. I've since recovered and everything's been straightened out.

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News
The Cassette Comeback Continues—New Series Due June 17th From RecordingTheMaster and ThinkIndie Distribution
Michael Fremer  |  Apr 27, 2022  |  25 comments
Press release: April 26, 2022—RecordingTheMasters—the worldwide leader in reel-to-reel tape manufacturing—is set for the release of their latest cassette-only music series in conjunction withThinkIndie Distribution. The series of releases features a new full-length album from Patty Griffin comprised of demos and home recordings titled TAPE, alongside a number of reissues available on cassette for the first time ever: Built to Spill Plays the Songs of Daniel Johnston, John Prine’s The Tree of Forgiveness, Suzanne Vega’s An Evening of New York Songs and Stories, Mother Nature’s SZNZ and Versus’ Ex Voto. The cassettes will be available at participating indie record stores beginning June 17.

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News
Has T-Bone Burnett Invented the Indestructible Lacquer?
Michael Fremer  |  Apr 26, 2022  |  83 comments
In a press release today first reported by Variety of all places, record producer and analog fan T-Bone Burnett announced that he's just completed a special recording session with Bob Dylan that will be released in a new analog format he calls "Ionic Originals". Burnett claims it is "The first breakthrough in analogue sound reproduction in more than 70 years".

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News
Vinyl Me, Please (VMP) Announces New Denver Pressing Plant Opening Late 2022!
Michael Fremer  |  Apr 25, 2022  |  21 comments
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News
With Newly Announced Expansions, Tennessee Emerging as Center of American Vinyl Pressing
Michael Fremer  |  Apr 21, 2022  |  101 comments
The State of Tennessee's recent press release makes clear that the state will soon emerge as the central hub of America's record pressing business.

GZ Media's Plating Operation in the Czech Republic. (Photo: Michael Fremer)
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Album ReviewsFeaturesNews
An RSD Special: Albert Ayler Revelation  The Complete ORTF 1970 Foundation Maeght Recordings
Michael Fremer  |  Apr 21, 2022  |  7 comments
Jazz historian, Resonance Records Co-President and tireless searcher for unreleased jazz treasures Zev Feldman in 2015 was searching the French Institut National de la audiovisual (INA) archives when he came upon the complete, never before released in their entirety, Albert Ayler’s 1970 ORTF 1970 Fondation Maeght Recordings, recorded by Radio France, using professional recording equipment—a completely different STEREO source for this material than the radio broadcast, parts of which had previously been issued.

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Album ReviewsFeaturesNews
Resonance's Bill Evans RSD "Double Play"
Michael Fremer  |  Apr 20, 2022  |  25 comments
For an artist who passed away at a relatively young age (51) Bill Evans left a rich and varied recorded legacy—more music on disc than even the most dedicated Evans fan could possibly consume, yet more rare and often precious gems continue to be discovered and released, particularly by Resonance Records, whose Co-President Zev Feldman is a huge Evans fan.

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