Vinyl Me Please to open “audiophile-grade” record pressing plant in Denver
Global music company Vinyl Me Please have announced the construction of a new “audiophile-grade” vinyl pressing plant in Denver, CO.
The 14,000 square foot pressing plant will be located across from concert venue Mission Ballroom and will open at the end of 2022 in Denver’s River North Art District.
“Quality, control and availability are critical to maintaining and expanding our leadership position in the vinyl industry,” VMP chief executive officer Cameron Schaefer said. “With this in mind, we’ve decided to press records in a way that provides an incredible experience for our customers and visitors to our plant.”
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Development of the new experiential space, which will allow fans to see how records are made first-hand, and includes a bar, listening room, and retail area, has been overseen by record-maker Gary Salstrom.
“I’m thrilled to have the resources and partners required to make the best vinyl LPs ever produced, in a place where the experience will be as special as the finished goods,” Salstrom said.
Artist, producer, and Acony Records co-founder David Rawlings has also joined the project as partner and chief groove officer.
“It’s a dream to work with Gary refining and innovating to press the finest records possible,” Rawlings said. “In an industry that has often been too focused on quantity over quality, VMP always aims to honour the music and the musicians that create it.”
This news follows the vinyl industry experiencing huge delays due to COVID, meaning many smaller artists have been forced to delay album releases due to wait times at pressing plants.
Earlier this year, Jack White shared a video and open letter to major record labels, urging them to build their own vinyl pressing plants.
The White Stripes frontman owns the Nashville-based Third Man Records, which runs its own pressing plant and opened a new London store last year.
“At least once a week, without fail, someone will reach out asking me to help expedite their vinyl record manufacturing,” White’s message began. “It’s a natural thought… knowing that I own a pressing plant and have my own record label, ‘if anyone could help, it’s this guy!’”
he went on to call the idea for major labels to build their own plants a “no-brainer,” writing: “We have ALL created an environment where the unprecedented demand for vinyl records cannot keep up with the rudimentary supply of them.”
White continued: “We’re all on the same team with the same goals,” he added. “I truly believe that with a good faith investment in the infrastructure that got us here, we can continue on this upward trajectory and further inspire the worlds around us. Now is the time.”
Last year, vinyl outsold CDs in the US for the first time in 30 years.