The state of OPM in vinyl
by rick olivares
We all know that vinyl records
are back with a vengeance. Now, how is the Original Pilipino Music (OPM) market
coping?
We were able to speak to some
re-sellers of Original Pilipino Music (OPM) and unanimously, the most sought
records from local artists are the Juan dela Cruz Band, the Dawn, and Identity
Crisis in that order. Then there are a host of others… Maria Cafra, Judas, APO
Hiking Society, and the Gapo compilation are also in demand.
They sell for a lot of money
depending on their condition. In fact, some command outrageous prices that are
more than enough to make a down payment on a car. The cheapest price you will
find for old records pressed in the 1970s or 1980s is a thousand bucks. They
mostly sell for a lot of money.
When compact discs became all the
rage in the 1990s, local record companies slowly stopped pressing music on
vinyl. That is until the new millennium when indie and underground bands began
producing their own material.
With the release of Outerhope’s
third album, Vacation, on vinyl, that brings to five the number of vinyl
releases by independent local artists this year (with three more arriving
before the year ends).
It should be stressed that save
for the bunch of re-issues from a couple of major record companies in 2013, the
bulk and all that have come out since, have been wholly independent or
underground.
Earlier, there was the re-issue
of metal band Mass Hypnosia’s Toxiferous Cyanide and Traces by the Ransom
Collective both on 12-inch and Pilipinas Hardcore and Sandwich’s “Timelapse” on
7-inch.
Coming soon on 7-inch is the
split record of punk bands Choke Cocoi and Tiger Pussy and a 12-inch re-issue from
a very popular band who we will announce this October. Fil-American bands Aninoko
and Namatay sa Ingay will also share a split record while Fil-Italian band, The
Seeker, will also share a split record with German hardcore band Arno X Duebel.
What we can say about records
that will soon be released on vinyl are from Apartel, Up Dharma Down, the
Insektlife Cycle, the Strange Creatures, Sugar Hiccup, and Prank Sinatra. Some
will be out by year end or by mid-2019 at the latest.
It is great seeing local
recording artists as well as our kababayans abroad releasing albums on vinyl (there
are even more on cassette and compact disc). What prevents local artists from
releasing more music on vinyl is the cost as well as the time it needs to get
pressed since there are no longer any domestic pressing plants. All the records
are pressed in either in Europe or the United States.
Are the old OPMs the only ones
that are pricey? Or are the new releases selling too?
The vinyl releases from 2008 up
to today don’t sell in the numbers that they used too – moving thousands and
thousands of units. Press runs are smaller mostly because of cost and the time
it takes to get them (about two to three months). They average anywhere from a
hundred to a thousand or to 1,500 copies. Some like the split record between
Filipino post-hardcore band Legarda and Boston-based The Saddest Landscape saw
only 50 copies.
In the back sellers’ market, it
is difficult to find these releases even on Discogs.
I’ll say though that it has
become a collector’s market more than speculators.
Moving laterally, I spoke to
local re-sellers Jong Canimo of Northwest Estate Collectibles (along K1
parallel to Kamuning Road in Quezon City). He gave an insight into the demand,
collectability, and price range of Nirvana’s Nevermind album. Canimo who is based
in Washington State, USA, observed that you will not easily find first presses
of Nirvana’s Nevermind album on sale. It is his opinion – and I agree – that
people are holding on to their copies – because those who first bought them are
genuine fans. If there are – and he’s seen a few – they sell for as low as
$300!
There were over 35,000 copies of
Nevermind shipped during its first week and the bulk were on compact disc.
There were some on limited edition clear vinyl and you aren’t going to see any of
that for sale right now. A cursory check on Discogs shows that no one has sold
any of those copies. Locally, the European first press (also in 1991 the same
time it was releases in the US) sells for close to P5,000. You can be sure the
clear vinyl limited edition or even the genuine US first press will fetch for a
whole lot more.
It is the same here even for the
newer releases. Records of the Ang Nawawalang soundtrack, punk band Bad Omen’s
foreign presses of its debut record, and local calypso band Count Kutu and the
Balmers are much sought after. Sandwich’s “Timelapse” that came out mid-2018
had a limited run and was available for those who paid SVIP tickets to the
band’s 20th Anniversary concert. I am told that some are selling
them for at the very least three times the price (PhP500).
Speaking of price… that is
another challenge. Some bands price their records at P1,500 while others sell
them at a higher price. Speaking to several independent sellers, the higher
priced records are a challenge to sell. Take for example, one Makati-based shop
said that when Apartel’s debut, Inner Play was out, they got many inquiries
about purchasing a copy. When they found out that it was tagged at Php2,500
(because it was pressed in Japan), almost all balked. The potential buyers
opted to get foreign releases.
The underground punk bands on the
other hand opt to sell their records at a cheaper price (smaller profit
margins) – less than a thousand pesos for 12-inch records and P350 for 7-inch
records. The result has been better. The underground punk bands have for years
even before the vinyl resurgence been thriving. They routinely sell out their
releases and are able to put out more product.
Is it a healthy market? Locally,
it’s there. It’s alive. It’s still tough and I am not sure if I can say that it
is thriving. Some get them out because it is on their bucket list. But until
more kids get into vinyl and turntables and units moving like hotcakes, it’s
just all right. But that is better than nothing.
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