The latest project aiming to make vinyl more ecologically sustainable comes from Sonopress and Warner Music Group.
It’s called ‘EcoRecord’ and involves using recyclable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) as its base material rather than PVC. The companies say that in their tests of the new format, it generated energy savings of up to 85%.
Now they’re rolling out the first production line for EcoRecord at Sonopress’s plant in Germany, while promising that buyers won’t have to compromise on sound quality.
“From the beginning of development, we set out with the ambition that the quality of the EcoRecord should match that of a conventionally produced vinyl LP in terms of sound quality,” said Sonopress MD Sven Deutschmann.
“It should not only convince the experts, but above all offer the music lover an excellent feel and a great listening experience.”
WMG’s EVP global operations Salvatore Monteleone said that the project is one of several “green innovation initiatives” that the major label has underway with partners.
“Our goal with this project is to provide fans with the high-quality sound of vinyl, while minimising carbon emissions in production and eliminating the use of PVC.”
Other recent sustainable-vinyl stories include startup Evolution Music’s bioplastic records, which received their first commercial release last August with a Michael Stipe / Beatie Wolfe record.
Blond:ish also worked with Evolution Music in April this year for her #PlasticFreeParty compilation.
Last year another startup, ElasticStage, raised a £3.5m funding round for its own non-PVC vinyl production business. We’ve also written about the launch of the eco-friendly Naked Record Club series.
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