Alternative 1990s collection: The 10 best vinyl deals available on Amazon this week
Welcome back to Far Out’s weekly vinyl corner feature, where we look to bring you a tempting selection of records from some of our favourite artists, bargain vinyl deals to look out for, and unmissable limited-edition releases. This week, we’re taking a trip back to the 1990s for a selection of obscure yet masterful albums.
Vinyl sales grew for the 15th consecutive year in 2022, rising to 5.5million units, the highest level since 1990, when …But Seriously by Phil Collins was the year’s biggest-selling studio album. The return to plastic has steadily climbed since the invasion of streaming services in the late 2000s. While the weightless, highly accessible and practical format is great for discovering and consuming swathes of new music while you’re out and about, there’s nothing like coming home to a bit of vinyl.
Fellow collectors will agree that if there’s an artist or album you love, there’s always a good reason to have the turntable at the ready and a 12″ slot reserved on the shelf for inevitable expansion. The sound quality of vinyl brings something more hearty and vibrant with its analogue warmth and crisp definition that there really isn’t a substitute for.
So if, like me, you have a soft spot for these groovy discs of plastic, allow me to walk you through ten hot picks for this week. The list includes an electronic classic from Boards of Canada alongside some brooding brilliance from Tindersticks and Spiritualized.
The following selections have been handpicked by Far Out Magazine, and as a result, we may earn from qualifying purchases.
The 10 best vinyl deals available on Amazon this week:
Julian Cope – Peggy Suicide [Rare First Pressing]
Julian Cope’s musical journey began in the late 1970s alongside Echo and the Bunnymen frontman Ian McCulloch in the short-lived Crucial Three. After gathering a cult following as the LSD-popping figurehead of The Teardrop Explodes, he embarked on a rollercoaster solo career.
These solo exploits undoubtedly hit an apical ecstasy in 1991’s Peggy Suicide. The eclectic album follows spirituality, politics, the occult and ecology themes with sprawling tempos and styles from neo-psychedelia to funk to punk. This post-rock powerhouse has it all, including contributions from The Smiths’ former drummer Mike Joyce and future Spiritualized lead guitarist Mike Mooney.
Available for purchase here for £70.49.
Tindersticks – Tindersticks II
Nottingham’s versatile indie group Tindersticks formed in 1991 and brought Nick Cave-channeling depth and darkness to an often powerful and orchestral sound. The band developed over several iterations with varying moods and textures, but Stuart Staples’ insightful lyrics remained a sturdy constant.
Many fans consider Tindersticks’ first two self-titled albums to be the pinnacle of their output. The 1993 debut introduced the band’s trademark chamber-pop sound with memorable hits like ‘Marbles’ and ‘Drunk Tank’ before 1995’s second album followed through with an equally potent platter. ‘Tiny Tears’ was the album’s most popular track, but another highlight came in the form of ‘Travelling Light’, featuring Carla Torgerson in a duet.
Available for purchase here for £34.85.
Arab Strap – Philophobia
Falkirk duo Arab Strap perhaps weren’t expecting or even hoping for chart success; naming themselves after a penis ring mightn’t have been a prudent choice if they were. Alas, they achieved a respectable following in 1996 with their debut, The Week Never Starts Around Here, thanks to its lead single, ‘The First Big Weekend’.
Malcolm Middleton and Aidan Moffat followed up with likely their greatest all-rounder album, Philophobia, in 1998, which saw a maturation of their unique, brooding sound characterised by Middleton’s spoken word vocal delivery. While recording Philophobia, the pair were joined in the studio by Belle and Sebastian’s Stuart Murdoch, Chris Geddes and Sarah Martin.
Available for purchase here for £22.79
Spiritualized – Lazer Guided Melodies
From the ashes of Spacemen 3, the obscure, neopsychedelic rock group of the 1980s, Jason Pierce – professionally known as J. Spaceman pushed on to pastures new. His new project, Spiritualized, began in 1990 and has remained prolific for over three decades.
While the band has never broken out as a major charting act, they have remained in the fond thoughts of critics around the globe over nine studio albums. Understandably, the band’s most popular LP is 1997’s powerhouse, Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space, but this 1992 debut should be considered a close runner-up.
Available for purchase here for £28.74.
Boards of Canada – Music Has The Right To Children
Scottish electronic duo Boards of Canada released their debut album, Music Has The Right To Children, in 1998. The electro-pioneers have developed their unique approach over four sporadic and diverse albums over the past two decades. While these subsequent albums are fantastic in their own right, it’s near-impossible to contend with this essential masterpiece.
“Music Has The Right To Children is a statement of our intention to affect the audience using sound,” the duo told Forcefield in 2014. “‘The Color Of The Fire’ was a reference to a friend’s psychedelic experience. ‘Kaini Industries’ is a company that was set up in Canada (by coincidence in the month Mike [Sandison] was born), to create employment for a settlement of Cree Indians. ‘Olson’ is the surname of a family we know, and ‘Smokes Quantity’ is the nickname of a friend of ours.”
Available for purchase here for £25.58.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor – F#a#∞
It’s easy to see why Godspeed You! Black Emperor have never been the talk of the town or the cream of the charts. If these Montreal-based wizards wanted to be there, they wouldn’t create albums consisting of just three epic tracks.
Frankly, everything Godspeed You! Black Emperor have put out is novel and intriguing, but their 1997 debut is one of those experimental 1990s albums that seemed to slip under the radar of many many avid listeners. The three songs, ‘The Dead Flag Blues’, ‘East Hastings’ and ‘Providence’, create absorbing soundscapes and themes that are split into highly palatable movements.
Available for purchase here for £22.15.
Talk Talk – Laughing Stock
By the late 1980s, frontman Mark Hollis had brought Talk Talk a long way from their synth-pop roots. By the time they released their 1988 album, Spirit of Eden, they had stripped away the pop element of their music, leaving behind a post-rock sound of unbound beauty.
This late Talk Talk sound was more ambient, consisting of protracted jazz, blues, classical, and dub excursions strung together with meticulous production. Spirit of Eden is often critiqued favourably to its 1991 follow-up, Laughing Stock, but I feel this latter deserves just as much attention, if not more.
Available for purchase here for £19.91.
Morphine – Cure for Pain
I always have a soft spot for musicians who try something a little different but manage to remain very much in the realm of enjoyable listening. Combining smooth jazz and blues sounds, the Massachusetts band stuck mainly to a stripped-back bass, saxophone and percussion triad.
For me, Morphine perfected their characteristic sound with 1993’s Cure for Pain, best known for ‘Buena’, which featured in the first season of The Sopranos. But under the surface, the album has much to offer with highlights like ‘Cure for Pain’, ‘Sheila’ and ‘In Spite of Me’.
Available for purchase here for £19.91.
The Verve – A Storm in Heaven
The Verve struck a chord with the Britpop movement in 1997 with the release of their third studio album, Urban Hymns. The music was punchy, anthemic and chorus-orientated, a surefire combination for chart success when coupled with Richard Ashcroft’s towering vocal prowess.
When The Verve dropped their debut album, A Storm In Heaven, in 1993, they weren’t fussed about charting. Their initial sound was to focus on an experimental psychedelic blend. According to bassist Simon Jones (via udiscovermusic), guitarist Nick McCabe “didn’t treat the guitar like a guitar… He didn’t want to be a guitar hero. He wasn’t into Jimmy Page… It was all about texture.” This shimmering textural beauty undoubtedly deserves the ears that enjoyed the band’s next two albums.
Available for purchase here for £27.93.
The Orb – The Orb’s Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld
The early 1990s marked the rise of rave culture as the synth-pop of the 1980s began to take an even more electrifying turn. The advanced technology in the realms of sampling, sequencing and synthesising gave one person the power of an orchestra at their fingertips.
The Orb joined a swathe of aspiring electro producers, and alongside the likes of Aphex Twin, Underworld and Autechre, they pushed the preconceived norms of sonic exploration. This reissued debut, The Orb’s Adventures Beyond the Ultraworld, originally arrived in 1991 and was a truly astonishing double album. The continuous, progressive composition emulates a two-hour psychedelic trip – a stroke of genius from Alex Paterson.
Available for purchase here for £30.14.
