This site is about records.  Not songs, not videos, not even the artists, it’s about records.

And not just any records.  LPMG is about those special albums that only come along a few times a decade.  These are records in which you can start at track one and listen all the way through without reaching for the skip button.  You know that kind of record.  You probably have a few nestled in your ipod right now.  These albums are like old friends who stop by from time to time, friends you can spend a whole afternoon with and not notice how late it’s gotten.  This site is a celebration and exploration of those rare moments when a dozen or so songs become more than the sum of their parts.

And the name?  I saw it written on the sleeve of one of my grandad’s old 78s when I was a kid.  Sadly the exact record has been lost in my memory, but ever since then I’ve loved the way Long Playing Maxi Groove rolls off the tongue, and how it perfectly describes the feeling of listening to one of those flawless albums where every track is gold.

There are a few ground rules for a record to make it on LongPlayingMaxiGroove.com.  First and foremost, it must adhere to the rule that no single track ever makes you want to reach for the skip button.  You can play one of these albums with your ipod buried deep in your bag and never feel the need to dig it out to get to the next song.  We’re pretty strict about this rule.  This is why an album like OK Computer will never be featured on LPMG.  Despite being one of the best records of the 90s, Thom and the gang decided to bury the 1′57″ “Fitter, Happier” as track 7 right in the middle of the masterpiece.  I don’t know of a single person who doesn’t skip this track after hearing it a few times.  In the age of the ipod this means having to go through your track list and deleting those songs that drag a record down.

There are a few things we hope to accomplish with this strict policy.  One, we hope to gently prod artists to not add novelty or throw-away tracks on otherwise strong records.  This takes on even more relevance with the rise of Itunes, as consumers now get to choose whether to buy a whole album or just the choice tracks.  As an extreme example, see the otherwise decent Relient K’s bizzarre choice to add a 12 second piano track in which the singer lilts, “I just wasted 10 seconds of your life.” It’s not the ten seconds that bothers me Matt, it’s the 99 cents your asking for this track on Itunes.  I know I’d much rather listen to a solid 30 minute record with 8 tracks than a 45 minute record with 8 good tracks and 4 weak ones.  We hope LPMG pushes artists to deliver all killer no filler records.

Second, this site is all about the quickly fading art of making and listening to complete albums.  Digital downloading has essentially made every track a single, and artists are feeling more pressure than ever to produce material that will grab a listeners attention via a 20 second streamed sound-clip off a website.  LPMG is a rallying cry for those of us who love making and enjoying records as complete works of art.

And finally, LongPlayingMaxiGroove is a place for passionate people to share the music that has colored and contoured their lives.  There’s nothing more fun than talking with a friend about a record you both love.  We hope to simply bring back those conversations people used to have over the counter at little record stores all over the world.  Comments, debates, and “if you like this you’ll LOVE this” conversations are highly encouraged.

If you have a recommendation or would like to write for LongPlayingMaxiGroove send me an email to longplayingmaxigroove (at) gmail.com.  Only the highest quality writing and music will be featured on this site.  We are completely non-dogmatic about music.  A LongPlayingMaxiGroove record could be number one on the charts, or from your buddies down the street who recorded in their garage.  It could be 40 years old, or released last week. Good music shines through.

Happy listening everyone.  The record album lives! d(-_-)b

Patrick Reynolds

Senior Editor