Why New Vinyl Sounds Better Than Ever in 2026: Modern Pressings, Colour Vinyl, and the Vinyl Boom

The new vinyl era is different (and that’s a good thing)

If you’ve bought a brand-new record in the last few years and thought, “Hang on… this sounds surprisingly good,” you’re not imagining it. New vinyl has changed, not just in popularity, but in how it’s manufactured, mastered, and presented.

At Rockaway Records, we see it daily: more artists pressing vinyl again, more customers choosing vinyl as their “main” format, and more variety in pressings than at any time since the 70s. This article breaks down what’s actually improved, what’s mostly marketing, and why the vinyl revival has real staying power.

Colour vinyl is better now (but let’s be precise about how)

You’ll often hear people say “black vinyl is best”..  and historically, there was truth in that. Traditional black records use carbon black in the PVC compound, which manufacturers have long associated with improved durability and more consistent pressing results.

So is colour vinyl “stronger” now?

Not usually stronger than black, but more consistent than it used to be.

What’s changed is:

• Better quality control at plants (less variability run-to-run).

• Improved compounds and pigments, meaning fewer noisy “whooshes” and fewer issues like non-fill on decent releases.

• More experience: plants have done thousands of colour runs now; it’s not a novelty workflow anymore.

In other words: modern colour vinyl is far less of a gamble than it was years ago, especially when it’s pressed at a reputable plant and mastered properly.

SHOP NEW & USED COLOURED VINYL

Practical buyer tip: treat colour as a presentation choice, not a quality guarantee. The mastering and the plant matter more than the colour.

Pressing plants have improved...

A) Higher level cuts

A hotter cut means the music is cut into the lacquer with a higher signal level, often giving you:

• stronger punch,

• better perceived dynamics,

• less need to crank your amp.

But it has trade-offs: too hot can cause tracking issues on lesser setups like Crosley & Flea Market turntables.

B) Wider groove spacing / more groove real estate

This is the big one. If you give each side more physical space (shorter sides, or spreading an album across 2LP), the cutting engineer can cut with more comfortable groove spacing and avoid compromises.

C) 45 RPM releases

At 45 RPM, the groove moves faster under the stylus, which can help high-frequency detail and reduce distortion, especially toward the inner grooves. 

Why does modern vinyl benefit more from these choices?

Because labels are finally treating vinyl as its own format again:

• dedicated vinyl masters (sometimes),

• deluxe 2LP editions to avoid cramming,

• premium series (half-speed, audiophile cuts, etc.) where the whole goal is “use the medium properly”.

Almost every artist is pressing on vinyl again

Vinyl isn’t back by accident. A few forces are all pushing the same way:

A) Vinyl is the premium “collectable” format

Streaming services offer undeniable convenience, but they are ultimately access-based platforms, not ownership. When you stream music, you are licensing temporary access to a catalogue that can change at any time. Albums can be removed, accounts can be suspended, and services themselves can shut down. Many customers experienced this firsthand when digital music platforms closed or changed their models, leaving purchased libraries inaccessible or difficult to retrieve.

Vinyl, on the other hand, is true ownership. When you purchase a record, it is yours... permanently. It cannot be removed from your collection due to licensing changes or platform decisions. Beyond that, vinyl often retains, and in many cases increases, its value over time. It is not just a format; it is a tangible, collectable asset.

Vinyl is:

• physical,

• giftable,

• displayable,

• “event-based” (you listen with intention).

B) Vinyl is merch that people actually use

For many artists, vinyl sits in that sweet spot: higher perceived value than a CD, more emotional impact than a shirt, and often better margins than streaming revenue.

C) Fans buy variants (sometimes more than one)

Multiple editions (different sleeves, colours, bonus tracks) can drive sales, and chart performance. It’s controversial, but it’s real.

D) The culture has shifted

Indie stores, Record Store Day, and the social side of collecting have created a loop: people buy vinyl because it feels like participating in music again.

In the US, vinyl sales continued rising in 2025 (another year of growth), with a major share going through independent stores.

The biggest vinyl albums of 2025 (what dominated new-release vinyl)

A single perfect “worldwide vinyl top 10” is hard because sales reporting is usually market-by-market. But we can still paint a very clear picture using credible year-end sources.

UK (Official Charts Company) — biggest vinyl albums of 2025

Official Charts Company published a year-end “best-selling vinyl albums of 2025” list, led by Taylor Swift – The Life Of A Showgirl.
(That list can include catalogue titles too, but the #1 is a new-release era blockbuster.)

US (Luminate-reported figures via Axios) — top-selling vinyl albums of 2025

Axios reported the top vinyl sellers in the US for 2025, led by:

• Taylor Swift – The Life of a Showgirl (reported 1.6 million vinyl copies)

• Sabrina Carpenter – Man’s Best Friend (reported 292,000)

• Kendrick Lamar – GNX (reported 279,000)

If you want the honest takeaway: 2025 new-release vinyl was dominated by modern pop and hip-hop heavyweights, not just classic-rock reissues.

Artists getting creative with pressings right now (beyond “just another colour”)

The most interesting trend isn’t just colour variants, it’s when the pressing itself becomes part of the art.

Third Man Records: the modern benchmark for “vinyl as an object”

Third Man (Jack White’s label) keeps pushing limited pressings and unusual variants.. including releases where each LP is pressed on uniquely mixed colour blends.

Eco-focused “new vinyl” that isn’t PVC

Two big examples of creative (and future-facing) manufacturing:

• Coldplay EcoRecords: re-releases made from recycled plastic bottles using injection-moulding technology, marketed as dramatically lower emissions than traditional PVC records.

• Billie Eilish: pushing recycled and lower-impact variants (including recycled black vinyl and ECO-MIX/BioVinyl approaches).

Whether these alternative materials become “the norm” is still playing out, but the direction is clear: artists want vinyl, and they want it with less footprint.

Want to press a record in Australia? Here are real options

If you’re an artist or label (or you’ve ever daydreamed about cutting your own 7”), Australia now has genuine local pathways.

Australian vinyl pressing plants

These are the key names to know:

• Zenith Records (Melbourne) - long-running, end-to-end facility with pressing plus in-house lacquer cutting and plating (per their own company information).

• Program Records (Thornbury, VIC) - pressing since 2020, positioned as a modern plant with contemporary machinery and services.

• Suitcase Records (Brisbane / Meanjin) - Brisbane-based pressing plant offering local pressing services. 

Pressing services / brokers

• Impress Vinyl - an Australia-based vinyl service provider offering project support (lacquers, packaging, etc.).

FAQ

Is 180g vinyl automatically better?
Not automatically. Heavier vinyl can feel nicer and may resist warping a bit more, but mastering + pressing quality are the real deciders.

Why do some LPs come out on 2LP or 45 RPM?
To give the music more physical space on the disc (and at 45 RPM, more groove length per second), which can improve playback quality.

FINAL SPIN

Vinyl isn’t just “back”... it’s evolving. The best modern pressings are taking advantage of smarter mastering choices, better manufacturing consistency, and genuinely creative presentation. And in 2025, the biggest vinyl sellers proved one thing beyond doubt: new-release vinyl is now a mainstream first-choice format again, not a niche collector side quest.