Why is this once-derided symbol of shaggy self-indulgence suddenly making a comeback?
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The 70s are back in a major way.
No longer reserved forprog-rocktitans,era-definingrappers, andtorturedalt-rockgeniuses, the double-LP format has become surprisingly fashionable of late.
Morale & the Big Steppers,are double albums.
14, is a double LP.
Its not really about an homage to an old-timer.
The reasons for doing a double album in 2022 are probably the same as then.
You feel like you want to say more.
Big Thiefs latest exemplifies this phenomenon.
Between 2016 and early 2020, the acclaimed indie-folk group toured virtually nonstop and squeezed out four 40-minute records.
They had already decided to record a fifth album in an unusual fashion.
The pandemic happened to coincide with this plan.
We were like,Were going to record a bunch, Krivcheniatold Vulture earlier this year.
And we had a vague intention it was all going to be one record.
The events of 2020 allowed him to immerse himself in recording more than usual.
This huge, enormous parking lot just had my car in it every day.
So I had this stillness around me while I was making it.
The pandemic definitely gave me complete space and a physically solitary environment.
Morale & the Big Stepperscould easily be classified as a pandemic album.
I spend most of my days with fleeting thoughts, Lamar wrote ina rare statementto fans beforeMr.
Morale & the Big Stepperswas completed.
And collecting old beach cruisers.
The morning rides keep me on a hill of silence.
The resulting album is ambitious and sprawling but steers away from dance-floor anthems.
Vinyl has emerged as both a boutique product and major revenue source for stars of Lamars stature.
(And in the vinyl world, a 73-minute album is a double album.)
Mr. Morale & the Big Steppersis certainly the kind of album that benefits from an intermission.
These days, even streaming platforms simulate aspects of the double-vinyl experience: LoadMr.
Moraleon Spotify, and the tracklist is divided into Disc 1 and Disc 2.
Adeles gonna press a ton of records.
Similarly, Lamars new album,pricedat a steep $43, wont be available on vinyluntil August.
For independent artists, its hard enough getting a normal album pressed.
Curran says he has only released one double album, Sen Morimotos self-titled, in Soopers six-year history.
As the past 55 years have shown us, there are many categories of double albums.
And Im just talking about studio efforts.
Theres the Psychedelic Freak-Out double album (Tago Mago,Embryonic).
Theres the Double Album With Two Very Different Discs (Aerial,In Your Honor,Scorpion).
What these recent releasesalsohave in common with their 1970s antecedents is length.
None of them is longer than 85 minutes.
Whereas with CDs, it didnt matter if you had 70 minutes or 45 minutes of music.
Just fill the thing up!
It was going to be the same cost.
Indeed, once CDs became the dominant format around 1989, the definition of a double album fundamentally shifted.
Suddenly, 74-minute albums likeBlood Sugar Sex MagikorEroticawerent double albums; they were normally priced new releases.
Double albums didnt die out during the CD era.
They just got longer and less common.
Now, things have come full circle.
Twenty years ago, a 73-minute rap album likeMr.
Moralewould have been a normal hip-hop CD the same length as your average Outkast or Common album.
Today, its a double LP.
The promise of streaming, of course, is that physical limitations dont exist at all.
What constitutes an album has never seemed more malleable.
But what does a double album mean in the streaming era?
Ultimately, it has more to do with artistic intent and the aura of prestige than simple length.
If Lamar wants to sayMr.
Moraleis a double album andTo Pimp a Butterflyisnt, fans can roll with it.
So long live the double album.
