This is not a hit piece on vinyl

Before I say one more word against modern pressings, I want this on the record. I love vinyl. Everything hard I say about the industry starts there.

Vinyl is physical and it is emotional. When you choose a record, clean it, place it and drop the needle, you are taking part in the music. You're not just pressing play, and with over 300 records at 33 rpm and more than 30 at 45 on my shelves, every one of them was a decision.

I am not alone in it either. 44 million records were sold in the United States alone last year, the 18th year of growth in a row, in a $2 billion global market that is still climbing. People want vinyl, and that demand is given to the industry out of affection, not out of need.

That is exactly why I hold it to a higher standard. A streaming service owes me convenience. A record at $30, $50 or $80 owes me care, because I am paying for a ritual and for an object, and the object is where the corners keep getting cut.

I do not criticise pressings so that people stop buying records. I criticise them so that the records deserve the buyers.