12"

i've been in the imaginary market for a record player. realistically, a record player is not conducive to a college dorm room. well, actually, i want this record player. it's bulky but oh-so beautiful. a record player is most certainly a future "must-have." i want a record player because of the record store--dingy, corner stores that smell like dust and vinyl.

today, i read an article entitled "deep cover" in vibe. quite fittingly, the title is likely a reference to deep throat, the fbi agent whose identity was recently revealed. nonetheless, the article begins:

The covers of hip hop and R&B albums are often as striking and signifying as the music itself. Whether sketched out by hand or Photoshopped on a Mac, these images set the tone for what pulsates in the grooves and resides in the hearts and souls of the artist themselves. You can download your music, but you can't digitize an album cover's visceral immediacy. Back in the day, LP record jackets were a vivid cardboard window into a musician's life and art, an opportunity to experience another facet of their expression.

here, amy linden (the piece's author), is going for the gut. she is trying to sell music purchasing/listening as an experience that is not to be missed. she's reaching, she's illustrative, i'm feeling it.