Finally got around to watching the Vinyl Nation documentary last night and found it to be far better than expected. There’s been a glut of docs about the vinyl revival over the last few years that all were kinda slow and kinda the same, with middle-aged white guys droning on and on. This flick, without virtue signaling, has a wildly diverse cast of interviewees, automatically bringing different stories and insights to the table, making for a far more enjoyable movie (in fact, I’d guess that the majority of interviewees were women). The pace moves just quickly enough to cover all the usual topics - RSD, collecting, fairs, indies vs. majors, vinyl as Instagram fodder (hellooo!), how LPs are produced, Third Man Records and the like - without getting bogged down. Often there’s subtext to be found, too, which is great in the face of endlessly earnest taking heads. In a section that fawns over the widely (and rightly) hated Crosley turntables, the film never mentions the animosity towards Crosley gear, just that they are the gateway for next-generation record buyers to get started in vinyl collecting. But when a Crosley exec crows about how his infant kid can play a record, they show footage of the toddler…using dad’s Audio-Technica turntable. For those in the know, that one shot says everything you need to know about the filmmakers’ understanding of the situation. And there’s other laughs along the way, too, especially the silent, sometimes incredulous face of a husband listening to his wife, a BuzzFeed editor, share insights that are occasionally brilliant…and occasionally BuzzFeedy. It’s definitely worth a watch; I picked up this RSD release, which came in a gatefold LP sleeve sporting both DVD and Blu-Ray editions, which was gimmicky but a gimmick that I liked.