Streaming made music disposable. This vinyl seller is finding new ways to make records collectible

When English singer-songwriter Sienna Spiro released her highly anticipated debut album, Visitor, in July, it was available in a variety of formats: MP3, cassette, CD, and an array of colored vinyl records (red, gold, brown) that were exclusive to different retailers. But 3,000 fans received copies that look remarkably different: discs swirled with orange and black—deeply pigmented on some copies, nearly translucent on others. The special-edition album— created by London-based Blood Records—started its journey at the Press On Vinyl record plant in Northern England. To create it, a worker extruded a snake of black plastic, wrapped it around a puck of amber-colored PVC that was heated to roughly 225 degrees Fahrenheit, then smashed them together between a master cutting of the album using a hydraulic press. Blood Records’ vinyl is produced at Press On Vinyl, which churns out roughly 100,000 discs per month. [Photos: Joe Hart] The $40 record sold out in 10 minutes on Blood Records’ website, where, since 2018, the company has sold limited-edition pressings from indie darlings like Spiro and chart-topping artists such as Olivia Rodrigo and Elton John. Currently, it drops new pressings …