Vinyl Me Record Club Review

I recently took a chance and joined the Vinyl Me Record Club. I saw ads, I talked to someone on Twitter about it, and finally caved in when I saw that they were going to release a supreme reggae record. “Super Ape” is a record I reviewed for an up and coming blog “For The Fan”. It’s one of the best records from the Island era, that I have heard, and it was nice to get the updated treatment. However, the last two records from the club have been, meh. Here’s my simplified review of this service.

Pay Under $30

For starters, you can join month to month all for the price of 1 full priced vinyl record. Like many other clubs, you can keep your subscription and keep getting vinyl or you can quit before the month’s done and just get 1. When you sign up, you will get a newsletter, access to a member’s only store, and a lot of cool little notes.

The member’s only store is lackluster to me. There are some good records to explore, but it’s not nearly as grandiose as I thought. I thought I would enter a world of ultimate selection and serious music collecting elements. I guess I am spoiled by Discogs. Whatever the case is, this is not what I thought it would be. Plus the prices are full retail in many instances, and sometimes more. I’m good on all that.

The Records

The records that they release are great. Don’t get me wrong, they put a lot of effort into releasing records to the masses, and they do them up in limited pressings, with limited edition art, and more. You get a lot for the money, but if you’re not a fan of the selections, why be a member? I didn’t find myself longing to be a member after the release of the Wilco AM repressing. I’m not a HUGE Wilco fan, and the upcoming new record that the Vinyl Me club is releasing also doesn’t have my attention. I quit.

The Low Down

Simply put, this is a service for those that love vinyl and don’t care about the releases so much. They are smug at times, and when I talked to them on Twitter, they really rubbed me the wrong way. They weren’t very friendly. I received a total of 3 records for my involvement in their club, but for the price of $90 give of take, I could’ve picked up way better records from Half Price Books, Amazon, and Amoeba online.

Is it worth it? Not really. If you absolutely just want someone to recommend stuff to you, ask a friend, look on Spotify, fire up Pandora, and listen. Good music is out there. Vinyl Me is ok, but it’s like pop radio, it caters to a certain section, not necessarily everyone. It’s not for me, but it may be good for you.

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