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VINYL THEN AND NOW : THE EVOLUTION OF MUSIC CONSUMPTION Is music consumption cooler then or now?.
June 27th, 2025

As a graphic designer and a music lover, it’s safe to say that vinyl packages and physical media are high on my radar. With every album release, I study the album package, the accompanying tour package, and all other physical assets to see how the branding, design, and the music tie together. However, it wasn’t always this way. 

I’ve grown up in the age of technology, I had a purple iPod nano as a kid where I bought all my songs for 99 cents on iTunes. For Christmas in eight grade my biggest ask was for a Spotify Premium subscription - I didn’t have a bank account to open up my own. I was never used to the idea of going to a record store or buying cassettes as a way of consuming music, if I heard a song on the radio I could download it that day. 

I started appreciating and collecting vinyls in college, I always wanted to work in music as a designer and physical media is a big part of the gig. My first vinyl was Carole King’s “Rhyme’s and Reasons”, a man looking through the shelves handed it to me and told me he thought I should have it. I didn’t even have a record player yet. 

Scanned 7 inch inserts  from my local antique mall
It’s interesting for me to think about growing up in the time where physical media was the only way to listen, explore, and collect. It makes me think that die hard fans must have really been die hard - as it was expensive and took much more effort to have a customized collection of your favorite records. 

Today, I think vinyl is a way for serious fans to have a collectable as well as another listening experience. It’s a way for artists to create something tangible, so music can live in the real world forever. Some artists don’t even release vinyl, or release it as an afterthought after the record is on streaming services. It seems as more of a luxury then a necessity, for artists that have a budget to support vinyl manufacturing.

    Columbia Records Sleeve from the antique mall, estimated year 1955       (designer unknown)
Sleeve from Dominic Fike’s 2020  “What Could Possibly Go Wrong” : art by Clayborne Bujorian, Samm McAlear,  Allen Chiu, Reed Bennett

On one hand, I think its great music is such more accessible these days for everyone. You don’t need money or time or to live in a big city with lot of record stores around to find your next favorite. You can listen to your discover weekly on Spotify to expand your horizons, which is how I discovered the band I designed my first vinyl package for - This Is Not An Exit by The Backfires. 

 
   Elektra Records Sleeve from the antique mall, estimated year 1966          (designer unknown)
   Insert from The Backfires’ 2025 “This Is Not An Exit”  : designed by          myself, photography by Kirill Bykanov
On the other hand, I can’t help but think it was more of a personal experience for all the music lovers before. I imagine discovering your new favorite band by listening to a radio show or going to a concert and then going on the hunt for one of their records in the closest record store had to be fun. It’s also notable to think about the way music was listened to, a whole album had to be listened to from top to bottom. Transitions from song to song were purposeful and surprising, and albums told stories. You can’t help but feel some disconnect in today’s world of music. 

Sure, these things still happen. I’ve found some of my favorite bands at a festival while waiting for a headliner. I’ve listened to albums from beginning to end that tell beautiful stories through the sound and lyrics.  I love having all my niche playlists in one spot, and my thousands of likes songs downloaded in one place whenever I need them. I love my discover weekly, I love curating playlists, and I love knowing my next favorite song is a few clicks away. However, I still want a full room in my house full of records and collateral from album packages covering the walls. I wonder what my collection and taste would look like if I was born a few decades earlier.