Take it from Bonsai: Vinyl isn't dead ... yet

The term “spinning wax” goes all the way back to the invention of recorded audio in the 1880s and Thomas Edison’s phonograph with its wax cylinders as a recording medium. German inventor Emile Berliner would kill the phonograph with his gramophone, which used a flat disc instead of a cylinder, and in 1940 vinyl would become the dominant format.

But “spinning wax” would stick around in the audiophile lexicon as a term synonymous for playing records.

THE ANCIENT tradition of spinning wax is a weekly ritual every Thursday at Bonsai Brewing Project, which began its Vinyl Night shortly after its current location opened in 2014.

Bonsai founder and brewmaster Graham Hart explains why they choose to start Vinyl Night.

“I knew it was kind of making a comeback,” he said. “A lot of people that we know have random small collections of vinyl. So it was just kind of like, ‘let’s use this … let’s see what people have.’ I just thought it was a good idea.”

Vinyl has had proven staying power, enduring the rise and fall of multiple different recording formats including cassette tapes, eight-track tapes, CDs and, most recently, digital downloads, though that’s when vinyl began its biggest resurgence.

Brewery General Manager Keela Smith explained what makes listening to records such a unique experience.

“I like it because you have to be intentional with what you’re picking,” she said. “It takes the time to get it, take it out of the sleeve and put it on. If you’re just flipping on your computer or something it’s so easy to skip around.”

For the brewmaster, Hart explained it is the slow burning, visceral nature of listening to music on records that brings back memories.

“It’s kind of nostalgic in a lot of ways,” he said. “You find old records lying around at every thrift store on the planet and every now and then you find some gem, some of that stuff you can’t even find on CD anymore. So it’s kind of cool, it’s the nostalgia, really, for me.”

Hart added it’s also fun to see what other people have in their collection

“You see someone whip something out that you wish you could find but you can’t anymore because there are none,” he said. “So it’s fun to see what people have and try to barter with them.”

Hart went on to identify the difference in sound from today’s digital recordings.

“The sound quality is really nice in the right set up for sure. They do have a richer, deeper sound.”

WHILE MANY have declared the rebirth of vinyl a fad, I asked the duo if they foresaw parents today passing their vinyl collections off to their kids.

“I hope it does last that long. I hope it’s not just a fad. It’s such a solid form of listening power,” Smith said.

As far as Bonsai’s weekly Vinyl Night, the brewery provides the turntables, and mixer Smith explained, “Every Thursday we get a friend or just a local music head comes in and brings their collection of vinyl and spins their favorite tunes from 6 to 8 p.m.

“Bring in whatever you’ve been holding on to, blow the dust off of it and see what it sounds like.”

A warning to future DJs in case you’re tasked to spin for Vinyl Night — vinyl means vinyl, as one person found out the hard way.

“We have had someone come in to play for Vinyl Night and try and plug their phone in,” Smith said. “We had to be like, ‘Oh no no, you’ve got to play real records here.’

“It’s a little more difficult to have to pull a record out and pick and know what you’re going to play next. It does put someone on the spot a little bit. It creates that essence of live music even though you’re just playing a record, you get that feeling that someone’s really working for this.”

Smith will be the one “spinning the wax” this Thursday to celebrate Vinyl Night’s third year anniversary.

The brewery hosts Vinyl Night every Thursday at the brewery from 6 to 8 p.m., and it is also broadcast live on www.whitefishcommunityradio.com. Bonsai Brewing Project located at 549 Wisconsin Ave in Whitefish.

Eric Waier is the founder and president of Whitefish Community Radio, a 501(c)(3) registered nonprofit broadcasting live at www.whitefishcommunityradio.com.