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Interviews
Paula Cole Explores the Depths of Her Soul in Order to Behold a Better, More Intimate World on Vinyl With New 2LP Studio Set, Lo
Mike Mettler  |  Mar 03, 2024  |  1 comments

Paula Cole didn’t want to wait any longer to take full control of her career — so the acclaimed, heart-on-her-sleeve singer/songwriter started her own 675 Records label a little over a decade ago, and she hasn’t looked back since. The latest fruit of Cole’s vinyl-centric labors is a new 2LP studio set, Lo, her 11th solo album, which was released on 675 on March 1. Produced by Cole herself, Lo teems with the caliber of songwriting depth and arrangement breadth she’s long been known for as an artist. In a recent Zoom interview with AP editor Mike Mettler, Cole discussed why listening to vinyl is a “full body” experience, why Lo had no choice but to be spread across three LP sides, and why she feels passionate about reclaiming the rights to re-release her first three albums on her own label.. . .

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Album Reviews
The Move’s Classic 1970 Sophomore Album Shazam Gets a Much Needed and Most Welcome Abbey Road-Remastered Vinyl Reissue Via Esoteric Recordings
Mark Smotroff  |  Mar 01, 2024  |  3 comments

The Move, in their heyday — which was roughly 1967-71 — were quite popular in England and in Europe, despite never quite breaking through in a big way here in the States. Even so, The Move’s reputation has since continued to grow in stature — and their celebrated, hard-to-find sophomore LP, February 1970’s Shazam, has just been reissued by Esoteric Recordings. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see if the Esoteric update of Shazam belongs in your collection and on your turntable. . .

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AAA VinylNews
Rhino Hi-Fi Takes 2024 by Analog Storm With a Slate of Six New AAA 180g 1LP Rock and Jazz Releases Through April 5
Mike Mettler  |  Feb 28, 2024  |  3 comments

Rhino High Fidelity (a.k.a. Rhino Hi-Fi) is tackling the first quarter of 2024 head on by serving up a half-dozen new AAA 180g 1LP offerings in their acclaimed series of limited-edition vinyl reissues. Read on to see which six albums — a combination of rock and jazz classics — made the 2024 Q1 AAA Hi-Fi cut. . .

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Analog Gear News
Mola Mola Lupe Phono Preamp
Mike Mettler  |  Feb 27, 2024  |  5 comments
A Dutch company, Mola Mola was known in the formative mid-2010s for their preamp, power amp, and integrated amp predilections — plus some DAC work as well — and now they’re doubling down on branching out even further into the analog realm with the standalone Lupe phono preamp. Read on to see what the Lupe offers for both MM and MC cartridge deployment accordingly. . .

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Analog Gear News
Pro-Ject T2 Super Phono Turntable
Mike Mettler  |  Feb 26, 2024  |  2 comments

A lot of cool analog gear was seen and heard at the recent Florida International Audio Expo in Tampa, and one of the just-introduced products that caught both our eyes and ears there was Pro-Ject’s new T2 Super Phono turntable. Read on to see what the latest addition to Pro-Ject’s T series has to offer. . .

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Album Reviews
Yes’ Self-Titled 1969 Debut Album Makes a Welcome Return on Cobalt-Blue Vinyl With Original Pop-Art Cover Design Reinstated, But How Does It Stack Up Sonically With Its 2019 AAA Counterpart?
Mark Smotroff  |  Feb 23, 2024  |  3 comments

Some fans of progressive rock legends Yes tend to overlook their self-titled July 1969 debut album — but they really shouldn’t. Luckily, Yes is newly available as part of Rhino’s “Start Your Ear Off Right” campaign on cobalt-blue vinyl, and it’s housed in a gatefold package that faithfully reproduces the pop-art stylings of the original UK edition. Read Mark Smotroff’s review to see how this new 2024 SYEOR version of Yes stacks up with the 2019 AAA RSD version. . .

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AAA VinylNews
VMP Taps John Coltrane’s Mostly AAA 180g 8LP A Love Supreme Limited Edition Box Set for Late Summer Release
Mike Mettler  |  Feb 22, 2024  |  1 comments

There are seminal jazz albums — and then there is John Coltrane’s January 1965 Impulse! masterpiece, A Love Supreme. Numerous Supreme LP upgrades have been issued over the years — including the most recent and most excellent 11/11 UHQR edition from Analogue Productions — and now VMP enters the picture with their upcoming 180g 8LP mostly AAA limited edition box set that’s been earmarked for a late summer release. Read on to see all that this historic Supreme vinyl box set entails. . .

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Analog Gear News
Exposure 360 Turntable
Mike Mettler  |  Feb 21, 2024  |  11 comments

Since an LP regularly spins a full 360 degrees, it only seems logical that someone would capitalize on the concept for a model number — and that’s what noted British electronics manufacturer Exposure has done with their new 360 turntable. Read on to see more about the specs and features for Exposure’s very first turntable in 50 years of making gear. . .

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AAA VinylAlbum Reviews
Add It Up: Craft Recordings Celebrates 40th Anniversary of Violent Femmes’ Seminal Self-Titled 1983 Debut With Limited-Edition Box Set Featuring 180g AAA Version of Original LP, Two LPs of Demos and Of-Era Live Material, and a 45 to Boot
Mark Smotroff  |  Feb 16, 2024  |  4 comments

Craft Recordings’ new four-disc 40th anniversary deluxe edition box set celebrating the timeless, self-titled April 1983 debut LP from Violent Femmes, Milwaukee’s pioneering folk-punk trio, has as its centerpiece an AAA version of the original LP along with one additional LP full of demos and another LP with choice of-era live material, plus a bonus 7-inch single. Read Mark Smotroff’s review of this near-undefinable, infectious slab of post-new-wave, post-punk classic combined with a sizable collection of bonus material all adds up to a worthwhile analog spinning-and-listening investment. . .

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Interviews
Steve Hackett on Creating “Inclusive Music” for His New 180g 1LP The Circus and the Nightwhale, Plus He Shines a Light on How Genesis Compromised Neither Sound Nor Song Length on 1972’s Classic Foxtrot LP
Mike Mettler  |  Feb 15, 2024  |  6 comments

Whenever the calendar turns, almost inevitably, new Steve Hackett music is on the horizon — and thus we have before us the British guitar maestro’s 30th solo album, The Circus and the Nightwhale, which is being released tomorrow, February 16, 2024, as a 180g 1LP set via InsideOut Music. In a recent Zoom interview across the Pond with AP editor Mike Mettler, Hackett discussed the genesis (pun intended) of Nightwhale music, the importance of deploying volume dynamics whenever possible, and why Genesis was in no way going to compromise the depth and the integrity of the song arrangements they came up with for the initial vinyl release of their groundbreaking 1972 LP, Foxtrot. . .

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