Culture
This Record Label Is Pressing Audio To Recycled Medical X-Rays
Blank City Records’ X-Ray Audio Project pays homage to Soviet Russia’s unusual bootlegging history.
Last year, the X-Ray Audio Project sat down with Electronic Beats to discuss a fascinating and under-appreciated history of illegal bootleg record pressing during the Cold War in Soviet Russia. In an attempt to distribute music deemed unpatriotic or overtly Western within the USSR, a number of inventive—and brave—music enthusiasts would press music into X-ray film. Contraband jazz, rock ‘n’ roll, tango and foxtrot music smuggled into the country by sailors was pressed to discarded X-rays using a Telefunken recording lathe.
A new LA-based label called Blank City Records is now paying homage to this narrative by reviving the creative vinyl pressing technique: each release is pressed onto unique limited-edition vintage medical X-rays. Head to Blank City’s website for more info here and read our original interview with the X-Ray Audio Project here. Below, watch the documentary produced about the history of these very unusual records.
By loading the video, you agree to YouTube’s privacy policy.
Learn more
Read more: This label presses dinosaur bones and razor blades into vinyl records
