Record Store Day: Young music fans driving revival in vinyl LPs

The tactile quality of a vinyl record - as well as the artwork of the sleeve - are attracting more young music fans

More young music fans are snapping up the latest releases on vinyl, triggering a boom in LP sales. In 2022, vinyl outsold CDs for the first time in 35 years. Ahead of Record Store Day in the UK, the BBC asked young record store regulars why "old school" beats downloads.

In a sea of stallholders at the Chelmsford Record Fair, two teenagers are proving that vinyl records are as relevant now as ever.

Will, 16, is a GCSE student and guitarist who hopes to study music full-time at the Colchester Institute.

He believes buying vinyl is a better way of supporting artists than streaming or downloading music and reveals he has inherited his own collection of records from parents and grandparents.

"Vinyl is being carried through the generations," he says.

"You can inherit not only the music, but also the memories, and tell the story though vinyl."

Will is running a second-hand vinyl stall with Sam, 18, from Chelmsford, a guitarist and singer who plays in a band called Alison.

Sam (left) and Will look for bargains themselves at vinyl record fairs

Sam says record fairs are essential because new vinyl LPs can be expensive for budding collectors.

"It's hard to become a vinyl collector now when you go to your local record shop and see that it's 40 quid a record," he says.

"That's why these record fairs are important. Stuff's just cheaper."

The pair work at Intense Records in Chelmsford, one of the hundreds of independent music shops across the UK taking part in Record Store Day on 22 April.

Record Store Day celebrates independent music stores, with many labels and artists releasing limited editions specifically on the day

Intense Records in Chelmsford is among hundreds of UK independent record stores taking part in Record Store Day

The annual event, which was established in 2007, has become one of the biggest in the music calendar, with independent record shops often achieving their highest sales of the year.

Previous events concentrated on gatherings and concerts, with long queues snaking outside shops as fans tried to snap up limited-edition releases.

"We've definitely seen a new generation of younger music fans embracing vinyl," says Record Store Day UK co-ordinator Megan Page.

"For superstar artists like Taylor Swift and The 1975, vinyl has become a really important part of their marketing campaign.

"I think for a lot of young people who kind of grew up in this digital era - where everything suddenly became very small, in your pocket or on your phone - it's actually an opportunity to really connect with something."

Vinyl enthusiasts browse the racks at Intense Records in Chelmsford

Young music fans are prompting a revival in vinyl sales

Jon Smith, manager of Intense Records, says DJs will be playing to the crowds of collectors expected to go along.

He said many customers hope to grab a bargain or snap up a limited release on the day.

"We've been getting a lot of phone calls about Taylor Swift's release," he says.

"There'll be loads of people getting here early hoping to get that one. It's going to be busy."

Kasabian fan Geordie has all his favourite band's music - on vinyl

Nineteen-year-old Kasabian fan, Geordie Breeze, is "crate-digging" in Norwich - a vinyl hunter term for flicking through the rows and racks of records in music shops.

The environmental science student at Lancaster University says he already has "a few hundred" vinyl LPs.

"I think the sound quality's better, and I like a physical record to hold," he says.

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According to figures from the British Phonographic Industry, vinyl records outsold CDs in 2022 for the first time in 35 years.

The revenue generated from vinyl was £119.5m - £30m more than CDs.

Lola, 14, browses for records with her dad

Vinyl fan Lola, 14, loves to browse the vinyl in record shops with her 61-year-old father, former DJ Tony Pratt.

"It's really cool," she says. "I love the covers, displaying them."

Her sister, musician Imogen Bradley, 23, looks out for "old school hip-hop" on vinyl. She is a fan of British rapper MF Doom and American hip-hop collective Wu-Tang Clan.

"I just prefer having a physical copy," she says. "It's nice to display your favourite artists on a wall."

Imogen Bradley said her friends love vinyl too