Record Store Day - James Blake and more

Not only was today Record Store Day, but also Stumptown Comics Fest.  I might make a post about Comics Fest later though.  For now, here is what I scored for Record Store Day:

I picked up James Blake's LP.  Today was the first day it was available in this format, and this album has consistently been in my rotation since the middle of December (when it leaked), so I picked it up.  Interestingly enough, there is an extra song on vinyl that is not on other formats.  Not that big of a deal, except it is the opening track.  It completely changes the album dynamic that way, instead of being an extra tacked on to the end.

JB has said in interviews that the album is meant to be listened to on vinyl.  Of course these days, that is kind of a cliche.  For older albums, it is literally true that they are meant to be listened to on vinyl, but that is not to say it is inherently better on vinyl.  If the only viable medium for releasing music is on record, it's not like you can compare and contrast the strengths of vinyl versus CD or mp3, and then change the sound accordingly.  And that phrase has been bastardized by today's artist, simply because everyone trying to gain indie cred says it.

But, I was blown away by the truth in JB's claim.  With nearly all albums, the music is contained within the album or mp3, or whatever.  You listen to it and enjoy it, and that's it.  I found myself interacting with JB throughout the whole album.  The speakers, which usually act as the middle man between the record and your ears, instead takes the form of instrumentation itself.  The unique, electronic percussion JB uses almost causes you to ponder if the needle or your speaker is busted, but in a good way.  It is really hard to describe, but it truly feels as if you are hearing not only the music itself, but the process in making the album, even more so than listening to the mp3s.

As for what else I bought:

From top left going clockwise to the center:
Iron Butterfly - In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (1968)
the Jimi Hendrix Experience - Electric Ladyland (1968)
the Doors - Strange Days (1967)
Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick (1972)
Paul Simon - Graceland (1986)

I am not a huge fan of any of those artists, although I do love Paul Simon's work with Art.  And Thick as a Brick is a really interesting album to me, not only musically, but also pretextually (I know pretextually isn't really a word).  Maybe I will make a post about it someday.  Anyway, those five albums total were $6, and I felt they would add greatly to me collection, so I made the purchase.

I hope you all had a happy Record Store Day!!!