Update: I Just Experienced Vinyl!

Which was my first ever song?

Hey folks,

Before we get into the post, some awesome news: What’s Curation? just broke into the top 100 music newsletters on Substack. Yes, it’s highly dynamic and might change in the days to come, but it’s an achievement from initially not even ranking to getting to this point.

Anyway, last week, I published an essay titled “I Still Haven’t Experienced Vinyl” which got some interesting comments and encouragement to chase after this experience. I doubled checked with my high school friend, V, if I’d accidentally been living under a cultural rock growing up.

V assuaging my fears.

I was in downtown Toronto yesterday to meet a friend and afterward, I decided to head over to Kops Records store on 395 Queen St W.

Kops is Toronto’s oldest independent record store and family-owned since 1976. They have two stores in Toronto and one in Oshawa (5,000 sq ft!). The Queen store—the one I visited— has North America's largest collection of Rare and Northern Soul 45s.

I walked in and introduced myself to the staff and explained my situation. They were happy to let me listen to a song from any record that wasn’t sealed. So I walked up and down the length of the store, looking through jazz, hip-hop, soul, and other genres. Finally, I settled on a classic album and a familiar tune.

My first vinyl record experience!

I listened to Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here”: Roger Waters’ and David Gilmour’s tribute to former frontman, Syd Barrett.

It’s a song I’ve listened to numerous times on digital media, but it felt surreal to see the record spinning, to hold the record sleeve, and gaze at the album art. Online music has truly spoiled us: millions of tracks are available instantly, combined into infinite combinations of playlists and curations, present—seemingly—in a phone that fits into your pocket.

But in Kops, I saw customers patiently sift through aisles, picking up the albums, inspecting them, and being absorbed in the tangible experience of music. With vinyl, you enjoy the tracks in the order they’re meant to be played; you have to interact with the turntable to skip to the track you want to play. There’s that sense of intention.

It was a very enjoyable experience and I have to thank the good folks at Kops. If I get a turntable, I’m definitely going to get a copy of Coldplay’s Parachutes. I cannot wait to listen to Shiver all over again. Yeah, I’m several decades late to the party, but I’m here now, so hand me that drink!

And in case you missed the essay, here it is:

I Still Haven't Experienced Vinyl

See you later this week!

-Nikhil.