Recent Vinyl Acquisitions
a mixed genre recap!
While in some previous posts I’ve shared the merits of owning physical media, I realized I haven’t shared much from my collection here despite it being the main focus of my content on Tiktok, etc.
That being said, here is a group of recent(ish) vinyl pickups from various genres. Some of these you may recognize from other posts I have made sharing albums and others may be new!
Disclaimer: If I link to anywhere you can purchase an album, it is merely to share a source. I am not sponsored or affiliated with any linked store or platform.
The Roy Hargrove Quintet - Earfood (2008)
Originally released in 2008, Earfood is one of my favorite albums from Roy Hargrove and has *never* been issued in vinyl until just now with the release of this Japanese pressing. While this 2-LP gatefold will run you a pretty penny should you decide to pick it up, it’s well worth the cost! ‘Strasbourg/St. Denis’ and ‘Speak Low’ are two highlights I recommend listening to. This album is included in my shortlist of ‘testing’ music to test any sort of changes or tweaks I make with my system. Fantastically well-recorded.
I got my copy from Juno Records in the UK since I could not find a US-based retailer that had any for sale. Juno records is currently out of stock, however. For US buyers, expect to pay around $90-100 for the album including shipping (steep, I know).
The Circling Sun - Spirits (2023)
I recently posted about this (a little over a week ago) and surprisingly the record arrived quite quickly from the UK as I ordered it directly from the label via Bandcamp. Note: If purchasing via Bandcamp, you’ll also get the option to digitally download the album in whatever format you prefer — including various lossless/HiRes file types. Nice redundancy and have permanent access to the digital files no matter the album’s status on streaming platforms.
I won’t go into too too much detail about the album besides I highly recommend it! I’ll share a specific track this time vs the entire album stream (can listen to it in full on youtube for no charge, or it’s on streaming services if you subscribe to one).
Concord Super Band - Concord Super Band II (1980)
Recorded live in Japan in 1979, the band consisted of a group of musicians from the Concord records roster at the time and focused mostly on standards. This album was never released on CD and is not available digitally (that I can track down - not even on youtube), but can be found used in minty condition for relatively little money — my copy cost me less than $25 including shipping from Discogs and is virtually brand new. I am a fan of Scott Hamilton, so I was intrigued by the album and picked it up. There is a really nice version of ‘Just Friends’ among other nice takes.
While I wouldn’t necessarily call this ‘essential listening,’ if you come across a nice copy for ~$20 it’s well worth the purchase!
Jack Wilson - Easterly Winds (1967)
2023 saw the reissue of Easterly Winds as part of the Tone Poet series with Blue Note. While I personally have stopped purchasing new reissues from BN after their very unfortunate choices regarding a subscription service and tier-locked availability of some ‘exclusive’ titles that runs completely opposite the stated goal of the TP and Classics series (to make these titles accessible to all), I got this in a trade for another album I had a duplicate of.
Anyway, the lineup here is really stellar and the overall pace and mood of the album is fairly high energy hard bop with a little dash of soul-jazz here and there. While I’m a sucker for a beautiful ballad, the more upbeat tracks on this album are definitely my favorites. A solid album from start to finish, however!
The Sure Fire Soul Ensemble - Gemini (2025)
While I mentioned this one back in early March, I just recently received my vinyl copy. I really enjoy this soul/funk group. For some reason, they remind me of if Zero 7 and Budos Band had a love child.
In honor of the just-recently-passed Earth Day, here is ‘Mother Earth’ from the album.
Masako Ohta & Matthias Lindermeyr - Nozomi (2025)
I mentioned this album in my somewhat-controversial ‘Jazz Ain’t Dead’ post back in February and patiently awaited the vinyl to arrive. This was an interesting package since the photo is only attached with a small paperclip and the white paper is effectively a large OBI and booklet rolled into one. A pretty interesting presentation but a bit irritating to get into a sleeve!
This is a very pensive album — great if you are in need of a calming music experience that values moments of silence and stillness as much as the music. Meditative!
Oblique Occasions - Leviathan (parts I and II combined) (2025)
The rest of my albums being featured here today are going to be in the vaporwave/barber beats genres as I got a big delivery of a bunch of pre-orders from mid last year. For those unaware, much of the barber beats is a sub-genre in vaporwave (already somewhat notorious for plundered samples), though sometimes these can be entire songs that are slowed down and/chopped up, etc. While there are questional ethics around this (and legality, frankly), I typically find a lot of it relaxing (or fun).
For this genre, due to the nature of them they are not available on streaming services, and frequently end up taken down on Bandcamp as well. They feel almost like modern-day unauthorized DJ remixes and such.
I’m going to mostly rapid-fire these off though, since there’s not a whole lot to say about them!
Oblique Occasions - Solipsism (2025)
Another from OO, this album as a whole is a bit more laid back.
Oblique Occasions - Guile (2025)
Another from OO, this is one that has quite a few very blatant just slowed down tracks, but it’s pretty fun nonetheless!
Macroblank - 肉と魂 (2025)
MB is a pretty prominent and highly prolific Barber Beats moniker that has had to deal with various platform bans and such, but still quietly releases music. The vinyl releases for MB are often pretty limited runs (sub-500 copies, usually 300-450 these days).
Macroblank - Hooligan Mix (2025)
This release is a mix that only breaks to switch sides. Macroblank illustrates an ability to curate and weave songs together that otherwise might not work with some clever reworking, and does a great job creating an overall ‘vibe’ that tends to meander between hip-hop, trip-hop, and occasionally dashes of jazz.
Here’s the entire album (both sides) on youtube:
Have you picked up any records (or CDs or otherwise) this year? If so, what have been some of your favorite pickups?
Is that a Michel turntable? My favorite. What tonearm?
Great picks, The Sure Fire Soul Ensemble is something else! I'll have to check out some of these others I'm unfamiliar with!