Boutique vinyl cutter, Steve Gibson began his career in Germany a year ago with a 20-hour training day followed by another all-nighter.

He had been eyeing up German engineer Souri Automaten乌鸦传媒檚 record cutter, which cuts a vinyl record in real time from digital copies, for quite some time. The only way to buy the equipment is to fly to Germany to be trained by Automaten himself. Then, only once training is completed to Automaten乌鸦传媒檚 satisfaction, can equipment be purchased.

Once Gibson returned home he started Sleepovers for Life, his own small-batch, record-cutting company that took off without any advertising. Gibson乌鸦传媒檚 business has been growing solely by word of mouth. In one year he has cut hundreds of records.

乌鸦传媒淩ecord people are generally collectors. Limited runs mean a huge amount to certain people, myself included. It乌鸦传媒檚 that first pressing, this colour or that colour. The small batches are really fun for a certain group of people,乌鸦传媒� said Gibson.

Working with local bands and now receiving orders from around the province, Gibson creates an average of 20 vinyl records per order to keep the cost low for both him and the band.

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Sleepovers for Life is Scott Gibson's brainchild. Gibson cuts boutique vinyl for local Kelowna musicians. He posed for a photo in his workshop on Nov. 27, 2018. (Marissa Tiel/ 乌鸦传媒)

Gibson乌鸦传媒檚 love of music began in the B.C. punk rock scene. He moved abroad and lost touch with the local music scene for most of his 20s, but when he came back he was astounded to see cassette tapes covering merchandise tables at shows.

乌鸦传媒淚 lived away for most of my 20s, so I missed things乌鸦传媒擨 didn乌鸦传媒檛 get quite how dead CDs were until I moved back to Canada and saw cassettes on peoples merch tables and though wow, people must really hate CDs right now,乌鸦传媒� Gibson said.

He says that people are more willing to spend money on vinyl copies of music because of the quality of sound.

乌鸦传媒淰inyl has a warmer sound and it乌鸦传媒檚 more durable, there乌鸦传媒檚 a good chance your CDs from the 乌鸦传媒�90s乌鸦传媒� you can乌鸦传媒檛 listen to them,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淵ou can interact with the music in a more hands-on way where I think (in) the digital age we are kind of missing (that).乌鸦传媒�

Records are also a way of preserving the history of music.

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乌鸦传媒淟iving through the 乌鸦传媒�90s and early 2000s there is a bunch of music history that is lost on CDs from bands before they had a digital footprint. No records were around and there were some huge punk bands that were pretty big deals but there is almost no trace of them anywhere because everything was pressed to CDs乌鸦传媒� it乌鸦传媒檚 a shame that it乌鸦传媒檚 lost,乌鸦传媒� Gibson said.

He now works with local bands to create exclusive cuts, such as Kelowna乌鸦传媒檚 Icelandia. He cut their latest deluxe limited edition 10-inch clear vinyl, Paradise on Earth.

Anthony Martens, a member of Icelandia, has known Gibson for most of his life and describes him as a 乌鸦传媒渃entral fire of the music scene乌鸦传媒� in Kelowna.

乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 the perfect fit (creating vinyl). He has been involved in the music community as talent, promoting music and now with the resurgence of vinyl. He has done extremely well, right off the bat,乌鸦传媒� said Martens. 乌鸦传媒淗e has had people knocking on his doors saying 乌鸦传媒業 heard about what you do, can you take this.乌鸦传媒� There is just a line-up.乌鸦传媒�

Martens, who also swears off of CDs, says musicians are rushing to get their own short-run vinyls created by Gibson because it is rare to have affordable limited editions to sell at shows and record stores.

乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 such a rare thing to have short-run vinyl like that,乌鸦传媒� said Martens. 乌鸦传媒淚f you want to get vinyl made it乌鸦传媒檚 tough, you have to mass produce it (elsewhere) for it to be worth it. It opens up the opportunity for smaller artists, and those who just want a limited edition short run.乌鸦传媒�

Icelandia mass produced their debut album because they wanted a large amount to sell and to market themselves. However, Martens said the process was expensive and when they released the deluxe edition of Paradise on Earth they only had Gibson make 40 to keep it special.

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乌鸦传媒淭he way the music industry is, people miss picking up something physical from a store, or an artist. It gives them a chance to feel something, see the artwork and take it out of the packaging. It乌鸦传媒檚 a way for fans to connect with artists again in a way that feels special,乌鸦传媒� Martens said.

In 2017 Nielsen Music reported that vinyl sales in the U.S. rose for the 12th straight year, vinyl LPs rose by nine per cent to a record high 14.3 million albums.

BuzzAngle Music reported that vinyl sales have risen by 22 per cent in Canada and 27 per cent in the U.K. Rock乌鸦传媒檔乌鸦传媒檙oll was the highest selling genre at 4.5 million albums sold compared to pop that came in second at just over one million.

Through creating these records Gibson has had the opportunity to work with bands that he otherwise wouldn乌鸦传媒檛 have had the opportunity to.

乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 a great way to keep involved in the music industry, it乌鸦传媒檚 exciting to see what乌鸦传媒檚 going on and to see people who are really passionate about it. A lot of people (new bands) are keeping the dream alive,乌鸦传媒� said Gibson.

He is now experimenting with 4.5 inch cuts that are CD sized but are able to be sent in mail with a regular postage stamp. He says the possibilities are endless with that size of vinyl.

Sleepovers for Life cut records are available from artists directly and some are available at Milkcrate Records.

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