Watching the turntable needle take another man
FRANCIS RACINE francis.racine@eap.on.ca
residents have exhibited symptoms of vinyl fever. These include an irrational love of older styled milk crates, an itch to look through yard sales in the hopes of discov- ering a hidden gem and a feverish need to see the Frisbee shaped discs spin on their turntable. Cornwall resident Kati Archambault and her father are owners of an extraordinary collection, home to thousands of records. “I started collecting about eight years ago,” the young woman says. “ My friends gave me a Rick Astley record and my mom gave me some that she had stashed away, so I brought them to my dad’s for safe keeping and it went from there. Being so young my dad didn’t really think that I was serious but then I kept bringing himmore andmore. My father buys in bulk, it’s always a good time going through to find the gems. ” Standing next to a good part of her col- lection, which is exposed on metal shelves in her father’s basement, the young woman can’t help but smile. “(My father) toldme it ’s the real way to listen to music,” she exclaims. “T he albumart is cool too! They were so big a lot of thought was put into making the covers really pop. I actually have some of my favourites hanging in frames inmy living room as decoration. ” Although she’s a real fan of vinyl, Archambault explains that there are some drawbacks to the black discs. “(It) take a lot of room to store these things,” she says. “I’ve got a hugemetal rack and a cabinet for half of them, and the rest are unfortunately in boxes.”
A low, nearly inaudible, yet cult-like whis- per can be heard from the small and nar- row corridors that make up a small vinyl store located nearby Cornwall. Suddenly, a man wearing a thin winter coat is seen emerging from the corridor’s dim light. In his hands are three records: an album from the renowned Jimmy Hendrix and two from the now defunct Quebec-based band, Beau Dommage . The shop owner, sporting a warm smile and a slight stubble on his chin, examines the vinyl. “They sure were popular when I was younger,” said owner Brian Lipsin, as he brushes the ac- cumulated dust on the cover of the albums. Surrounding himare thousands of records, ranging fromcountry, jazz, rock and roll and even newer release. For even if they were replaced by compact discs, records are slowly creeping out of the history books and attractingmore andmore followers. Vinyl sales were at an all-time high from the 1950s to the late 1980s, finally giving way to compact discs and later, digital downloads. Yet, since 2007, vinyl sales have made a sudden small increase, starting its comeback, and by the early 2010’s it was growing at a very fast rate. In some regions of the world, such as Great Britain, Canada and the United States, vinyl is now more popular than it was in the late 1980’s. The Vinyl tidal wave hits Cornwall Closer to home, in Cornwall, several
Kaiti Archambault poses proudly next to a portion of her vinyl collection.
But the young woman explains that the drawback sure is worth it, for when she puts one of her records on her turntable and lowers the small needle, she can’t help but feel happy. “What I like the most is the sound quality. You can hear the individual
tracks and instruments if you have a good enough sound systemhooked up.” She then pauses before adding, “maybe I’ma weirdo but the cracks and pops add to it, I love it. ” The love of music runs deep The Journal then decided to sit downwith
Le Journal, Cornwall
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Le mercredi 20 janvier 2016
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