Thursday, June 19, 2014

Jack White's Lazeretto Goes To #1 Because Of Vinyl

Jack White "Lazeretto" album cover image
It used to be that you needed sales of 1 million+ and massive radio airplay to get to #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart, but those days are long over. Today the sales requirement is a lot more modest, sometimes as low as 50,000, which includes all sales of CDs, vinyl and downloads. That's why it's so interesting that Jack White's new Lazaretto album went to #1 this week, but chiefly based on his vinyl sales.

Lazeretto had total sales of around 138,000 in the week ending June 15, but 40,000 of those where vinyl copies, which also garnered him a #1 on the vinyl chart as well. To put that into perspective, the CD sales were only 41,000 and the rest were attributed downloads.

But the 40,000 vinyl sales were significant in another way. They were the highest weekly sales since Soundscan began sales measurement in 1992.

One of the things that really helped the vinyl sales of Lazeretto is the extra features that White included to make the record unique, like:
  • 2 hidden vinyl-only tracks beneath the label. One plays at 78 rpm and the other at 45 rpm.
  • Side A plays from the outside in.
  • Dual groove technology plays an electric or acoustic intro depending upon how the needle is dropped.
  • The dead wax area on side A contains a hologram designed by Tristan Duke.
  • Zero compression used.
  • Different mixes from the CD version.
Jack White has always pressed the limits of technology and music, and this time it appears to have paid off.
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2 comments:

Rain San Martin said...

I think the most interesting fact is that zero compression was used. That's a step in the right direction.

Rand said...

Not really a fan of Jack White's music, but I do respect his individualism and his attempts to re-establish traditional recording methods, etc.

God knows we need some fresh ideas these days, even if it means conjuring up the past.

'Do not go where the path may lead. Go instead where there is not path and leave a trail.' Ralph Waldo Emerson

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