It seems that vinyl is dying again. Record companies stopped pressing vinyl for most genres back when CD's started to take over, but hip hop vinyl survived (though pressed in lesser quantity) and so did reggae on wax. DJ's needed to spin records, after all. That rationale has now disappeared, as DJ's are using digital files to play in small set-ups and even for the largest soundsystems.
I was forced to reflect on this when I went to Music Ambassador, a reggae distributor based in Brooklyn, as they were shutting down their shop due mainly to the precipitous decline in demand for records. It's beginning to feel strange picking up 45's, as if they are becoming novelty items.
Happily new songs are still being released on 45, though I don't know how long that is going to last, and of course the format isn't the most important thing, it's the music.
That said, I was happy to find two new tunes backed by classic riddims, on vinyl. "People's Choice" rides what most people know as I Need A Roof but started out as Larry Marshall's Mean Girl. It's a fine roots song with lyrics and music evoking the past. "Lean With It" is a catchy hit song climbing the charts right now, featuring Vegas starting a new dance, Elephant Man style. It's on Sly & Robbie's Taxi label and it's on one of my favorite riddims, Darker Shade of Black.